Three years after the launch of the initiative to create the Chisinau Agrifood Center, its construction hasn’t yet started as there is no money. Valeriu Cosarciuc, chairman of the National Farmers Federation of Moldova, who in 2010 was minister of agriculture, said that initially they identified the necessary financial resources, but the parliamentary elections thwarted all the plans.
“In 2010, we released the first share issue. The idea was for representatives of professional organizations to buy shares. Then, the association’s members subscribed for shares of 4.5 million lei. All the documents needed for registration were presented, but the elections upset the plans,” the former minister has told IPN. Valeriu Cosarciuc does not exclude that certain hidden goals may be pursued, but he said he does not want to speculate on the issue.
Current Minister of Agriculture and Food Industry Vasile Bumacov stated for IPN that obstacles are being placed. The bill on the creation of the Chisinau Agrifood Center reached Parliament, but wasn’t passed because the Ministry was then in litigation over this issue. The mayor of Ghidighici sued the Ministry, claiming the plot on which the Center is to be built. Afterward, the court ruled in favor of the Ministry, but the necessary money couldn’t be found. “We are holding negotiations to obtain funds. We need over €30 million. We are negotiating with the European Investment Bank and with Japan,” said the minister.
In 2010, they proposed erecting the Chisinau Agrifood Center near the Agrarian University. The plot would have represented the state’s contribution, while the investors would have had the task of constructing refrigerating facilities of different capacities, outfitted with equipment for post-harvest operations. The Center’s goal was to ensure agrifood products of a high quality sorted, packed, and kept in special refrigerators for the home market and for export.
