Moldova needs a new public information strategy on European integration

The general public must be ensured with proper information concerning Moldova’s European integration, the bodies of EU and their activities, thus a public information strategy in these regards is necessary. This is the conclusion of several participants in the projects “Public Policy Analyses Scholarships”. Cristina Gherasimov, participant in the project, stated at the presentation of the project on Friday, January 12 that despite the positive attitude of the majority of population (about 70%) in what concerns the European integration, the population knows little about the basic concepts of the EU. Among the causes she mentioned the insufficient communication between the governmental institutions and NGOs; over-centralisation of the communication channels; the deficiencies of the laws in what concerns the involvement of the civil society in the process of boosting public awareness about the European integration etc. According to the source, the public information strategy must be divided into several stages. Each stage must be composed of different series of information necessities and levels of resources. The sociological researches must have a special role in this process. Also, for an efficient tackling of the issue, the public must be divided into several target groups. The experience shows that NGOs are able to significantly contribute to the information process if they are seen as partners. Both the Government and civil society will be advantaged if a part of the information burden will be given to the NGOs, she concluded. According to another participant, Victor Nichitus, the media in Moldova is separated into 2 different dimensions. On one hand, the Romanian media, which tackles the issue of European integration, on the other hand the Russian media, which to a great extent promotes Slavic ideas and nostalgia for the Soviet past. The Government tries to draw up a unification strategy in this respect, but it is hard to imagine with what resources it will be implemented, he added. The project “Public Policy Analyses Scholarships” was implemented by the Institute for Public Policy, with the financial support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Poland. According to Arcadie Barbarosie, IPP director, the project aims at supporting young researchers in Moldova for a better understanding of public policies. The participants visited Poland within the frameworks of the project.