National fund for regional development is 135m lei this year

The Ministry of Construction and Regional Development by June 10 will accept regional development projects that will be funded from the national fund for regional development, Info-Prim Neo reports. In a news conference on May 10, Minister Marcel Raducan said this year the national fund for regional development is 135 million lei or 1% of the state budget revenues, plus the money provided by foreign donors (DFID). The projects will be implemented by local and district councils, mayors' offices and the three regional development agencies set up in the north, south and center of the country. Regional development projects can be also presented within public-private partnerships. “Priority will be given to the projects that will last for up to 24 months, in such fields as rehabilitation of infrastructure, diversification of the economy and support to the private sector, improvement of the environment and tourist attractiveness,” Marcel Raducan said. The value of the projects will vary between 250,000 and 100,000 lei. They should focus on: rehabilitation and construction of water and sewerage systems and wastewater treatment stations; road rehabilitation and modernization; development of cooperation in selling agricultural products; rehabilitation of tourist facilities etc. The regional development projects will be selected by the regional councils for development that include representatives of the local public authorities, the civil society and the private sector and by a commission set up under the Ministry of Construction and Regional Development, which consists of representatives of a number of ministries and experts. Valentina Plesca, the head of the Regional Development Agency, said the authorities that will present regional development projects will benefit from consultancy and advice in elaborating them. Deputy Minister of Construction and Regional Development Veaceslav Gututui said the selection of the first regional development projects is a major objective following the creation of the three regional development agencies. The regional development law came into force three years ago, but it should become functional, say officials of the Ministry.