Investment boom is on in Moldova: President

An investment boom is taking place in Moldova now, as was forecast, President Vladimir Voronin maintains. At a news conference on July 23, he said “the phenomenon is the direct effect of the liberal modernization,” Info-Prim Neo reports. The President expressed certitude the rhythm of attracting foreign investments would step up because all the obstacles had been removed. Including the ones in raising the companies' capitalization, in reevaluating their assets, and in enhancing their attractiveness on the market. According to the head of the state, the foreign investments surged by 40% since the beginning of the year, the investment hike in 2008 exceeding the indexes from 2005 twice. Vladimir Voronin says the privatization is playing a special role in this process, which “essentially differs from the way it was done in the past.” According to the President, in 1991-1997 over 1,500 companies were privatized, worth several billion lei. But the privatization was done with vouchers, the companies got into the hands of different funds, and most of them lost their value and failed. “As a consequence, the voucher holders, as the state budget, got nothing. A real robbery!” the President said. He maintains the present privatization “unfolds transparently, the state chooses the best offers.” Last year and in the beginning of 2008, the Government has got 241 million lei for privatizing 73 companies. According to the President, the economic growth in the first quarter of 2008, compared year on year, was 4.3%. It could have been bigger, but statistically speaking, Moldova has not yet got rid of the negative impacts of the last summer drought, the President said.