● MONDAY, April 22
In 2018 Moldova exported $164M worth of IT services, a 40% rise on the previous year and a doubling from 2016. Ana Chiriță, strategic project manager at the Moldovan Association of Private ICT Companies (ATIC), attributes the rise to “a fairly effective cooperation between the private sector and the governmental sector”. Ana Chiriță has told IPN that among the factors are the emergence of a legal framework stimulating the growth of the sector and a looser fiscal policy. She also singled out the creation of a national IT Park, an initiative from 15 ATIC member companies and which has grown to have about 400 resident companies today, exceeding original expectations.
Central bank to improve concentration risk and currency position surveillance
The Executive Board of the National Bank of Moldova approved amendments to the instruction on the presentation of COREP reports for supervision purposes and to the regulations concerning the open currency position in a move to enhance concentration risk and currency position surveillance. The decisions were taken in a move to adjust the reporting on large disposals and the open currency positon to the requirements set down in the regulations and to the best regulatory practices of international financial-banking markets, IPN reports, quoting a press release of the central bank.
● WEDNESDAY, April 24
Minimum wage raised ahead of Labor Day
Effective on May 1, the guaranteed minimum wage in the real sector will increase by 165 lei to to 2775 lei per month. This means employers will not be allowed to pay less than 16.42 lei an hour. This was decided by the Government today. The minimum guaranteed salary in the real sector is calculated based on the cumulative increase in the consumer price index and the rate of increase in labor productivity. The rate of increase in labor productivity is the ratio expressed as a percentage between the growth rate of gross value added and the growth rate of the average number of employees.
● THURSDAY, April 25
Cabinet approves Land Cadaster
Moldova has over 2.2 million ha of farmland (22,500 ha of irrigated land) of the total 2.384,7 million ha of land, according to January 1, 2019 data included in the Land Cadaster that was approved in the April 24 meeting of the Cabinet. According to the Land Cadaster, the number of farmland owners stands at about 1.330 million. The publicly owned land of the state is 784,200 ha in area, which is 23.2% of the total, while of the territorial-administrative units - over 702,06 ha in area. The privately owned land is over 1.89 million ha in area and more than 1.282 million owners possess this.
Higher subsidies to be provided to agricultural producers
The financial support provided to a farmer will rise from 3milion lei to 5 million lei a year, while the subsidies intended for groups of producers will increase by 50% following amendments made to the regulations concerning the distribution of the resources of the National Agriculture and Rural Development Fund. The new provisions are designed to ensure the more efficient use of the funds by directing these to areas with high value added. The augmentation of the support offered to a farmer or a group of producers will create preconditions for improving the postharvest infrastructure and will open up possibilities of entering new markets.
IMF official says ‘vital’ to avoid initiatives weakening central bank safeguards
A robust central bank governance framework and strong balance sheet underpin price and financial sector stability, which are fundamental for sustainable economic development, stated Volodymyr Tulin, IMF Resident Representative in Moldova. In a statement released today, the official said the IMF has always placed an utmost importance on the issue of central bank institutional and policy independence. “Legal reforms enacted in the aftermath of the 2014 banking crisis and supported by the IMF have strengthened the NBM’s governance structure and autonomy. The existing governance framework rests on adequate mechanisms for dismissal procedures of the NBM management.
New deadline announced for rehabilitation of 80 km of roads
A new deadline has been announced for the rehabilitation of 80 kilometers of the national roads Chisinau-Ungheni-Sculeni and Chisinau-Lăpușna, which was originally supposed to be completed in 2016. This was decided today at a meeting between Minister of Economy and Infrastructure Chiril Gaburici and the contractor’s representatives. Minister Gaburici gave the Azerbaijani company Evrascon JSC until November 2019 to complete the repair. During the meeting, the contractor’s representatives presented the works already done and what steps need to be taken to fully complete the rehabilitation.
● FRIDAY, April 26
More people tend to register tenancy agreements, official
An upward trend as regards the registration of tenancy agreements has been witnessed in the past few years. In 2018, the revenues from taxes paid based on tenancy agreements rose by 50% on a year before, Nicoleta Nemerenco, head of the General Compliance Division of the State Tax Service, stated in the talk show “Issue of the day” on Canal 2 TV channel. The functionary said about 3,400 tenancy agreements were registered during the first three months of this year alone. According to Nicoleta Nemerenco, the rise is due to the fact that intense measures to inform the people about the consequences of non-registration of tenancy agreement and non-payment of the given tax were taken last year.
New financing agreements signed under PARE 1+1 Program
The Organization for Small and Medium Enterprise Sector Development (ODIMM) today signed agreements under the Pare 1+1 Program to fund 65 new businesses started by Moldovan migrants who returned home. Under the PARE 1+1 principle, the Program grants one leu for every leu invested by the beneficiaries. Acting ODIMM director Petru Gurgurov told a press conference that the 65 new businesses will contribute to the economic development of 29 districts, including through the creation of new jobs. The total investment, including both the beneficiaries’ own contribution and the grant component, amounts to about 40 million lei. Businesses are in the agricultural field, in the processing industry, as well as in the provision of services, including medical.
Transgaz signs all contracts needed to build Ungheni-Chisinau gas pipeline
The Romanian state-owned gas transmission system operator Transgaz SA has signed agreements for all the seven investment lots that now enables it to start building the Ungheni-Chisinau gas pipeline. The order to commence work is expected to be issued on May 2. The Moldovan Ministry of Economy and Infrastructure recalled in a press release that the project involves building of 120 kilometers of pipe and three gas distribution facilities, two in Chisinau and another one in Ungheni. Additionally, a control and dispatcher center in Ghidighici will undergo an equipment upgrade.
