Moldova remains one of the poorest states in Europe according to Millennium Development Goals Report

Despite the economic progress made by Moldova in the recent years, about one million people in 2006 lived under the minimum subsistence level and 150,000 people lived in extreme poverty on a consumption of less than 404.2 lei a month. These findings are contained in the Report on the Millennium Development Goals “New Challenges –New Tasks” prepared by the Ministry of Economy and Trade. The poverty affected mainly the population living in rural areas, where the risk of being poor is six times higher than in large towns. With a Gross Domestic Product of about 936 USD per capita, Moldova remains one of the poorest states in Europe, the report says. According to Natalia Catrinescu, head of the Economy Ministry’s General Division of Macroeconomic Policies and Development Programmes, Moldova’s goal is to reduce by 10% the number of people living under the minimum subsistence level and by 1% of those living in extreme poverty by 2015. The rate of the population living on a consumption of less than 4.3 USD a day per person is projected to be decreased from 34.5% in 2006 to 23% in 2015. As regards another millennium development goal – to achieve universal primary education, the quality of education is a more serious problem than the putting of children to school, the report says. The present situation in education does not enable to obtain knowledge of the highest grade. The teaching and technical-material basis is in a poor condition and a large part of the buildings are damaged. The number of teaching staff in 2006-2007 decreased by about 1,700 persons compared with 2005-2006. Some 14% of the teachers are of pensioning age. Natalia Catrinescu says that the Government aims to improve the situation in the area and to increase the gross admission rate to compulsory general education from 94.1% in 2002 to 98% in 2015, as well as to maintain the literacy rate among people aged between 15 and 24 at the level of 99.5%. Moldova, alongside other 191 states, signed the Millennium Declaration at the Millennium Summit in 2000, pledging to meet eight Millennium Development Goals by 2015. The goals are: to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger; achieve universal primary education; promote gender equality and empower women; reduce child mortality; improve maternal health; combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases; ensure environmental sustainability; develop a global partnership for development.