Number of licensed entrepreneurial activities will be cut

The number of entrepreneurial activities that are authorized by the Licensing Chamber will be decreased by about one fourth, Info-Prim Neo reports. Under a bill with amendments to the law on the regulation of entrepreneurial activity by licensing, which was presented by the Ministry of Economy during a debate meeting, 13 of the 51 licensed entrepreneurial activities will be cut. Cezar Ilias, deputy division head at the Ministry of Economy, said among the activities that will be cut are the audit, examination of goods, planning of orchards and vineyards, production and sale of seeds and planting material, keeping and sale of breeding stock, international transportation of goods by road, nuclear and radiological activities, import and production of perfumes and cosmetic products etc. Ilias explained that the measure is aimed at excluding the doubling of functions of the public authorities involved in the authorization/licensing process and at reducing the cost of doing business in Moldova, which is higher than in other countries. Three types of activity that are subject to accreditation will be also removed from the list of licensed activities. These are: the pharmaceutical activity, the provision of medical assistance by private medical and sanitary institutions, and the activity of private education institutions of all levels. Cezar Ilias said that in order to simplify the licensing procedure they proposed eliminating the preliminary examination of the applicants so as to see if they meet the licensing conditions. The applicants will themselves assume responsibility for this compliance. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Valeriu Lazar said the bill will be submitted to the Government and the Parliament by March. Asked to express his viewpoint, Sergiu Harea, division head at the Chamber of Trade and Industry, said the businessmen have waited for the reduction in the number of licensed entrepreneurial activities and the debureaucratization of the procedures. The Chamber, in concert with the BIZTAR Project financed by USAID, submitted a number of related proposals. Former First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Dodon, who is now a member of Parliament representing the Communists Party, said that the regulations governing the entrepreneurial activities must be simplified and that the former government did a lot in this respect, but the present executive does not want to admit this. As to the planned reduction, Dodon said the state could lose control over a number of areas on which the public health and security depend.