Public debates on draft Decentralization Strategy held across the country

The draft National Strategy on Decentralization was debated on Tuesday in Cahul at an event which brought together members of the central and local government as well as civil society representatives. This was one of the 10 debate events planned as part of the first round of public consultations on the Decentralization Strategy. The debates were launched on Monday, in Hancesti, and will continue until April 15 in Edinet, Ungheni, Chisinau, Orhei, Balti, Comrat, Soroca and Causeni, Info-Prim Neo reports. “We want the final variant of the document to be based on consensus, because the decentralization reform concerns not only the interests of the authorities, but also of all the people living in a certain area”, said Victoria Cujba, head of the decentralization policy department of the State Chancellery. The debate in Hancesti addressed the mechanisms and stages of decentralization proposed in the Strategy and the steps to be taken. Leova Mayor Gheorghe Focsa said that a priority in this respect should be training for the local authorities. “Everybody says: give us more money and we will solve all the problems in the community. But more money means more responsibility and an increased need for skills and knowledge”. Concerning the potential changes in the administrative divisions, Mayor Gheorghe Focsa said things would sort out by themselves. “Imagine how community services could improve if a couple of small settlements united to form one administrative entity. You'll see that the {primarias} which are unable to offer good services to the people will disappear by themselves”, said Focsa. Vasile Balica, deputy head of Cimislia district, expressed his regret that the decentralization reform was so delayed. “In 2006 the Decentralization Law was adopted and then things came to a stall. The Law on Financial Decentralization is still not adopted, and the legal framework on property decentralization has not been completed yet. The Decentralization Law provided that the reform would begin in 2010 and now its start has been postponed until 2012. Its goals will be achieved no earlier than in 2016. We are very late in implementing this reform and we need to move at a faster pace if we don't want to talk about these issues all over again for 10 more years”. Moldova's decentralization efforts are supported through the Joint Integrated Local Development Program, implemented by the Moldovan Government with the assistance of UNDP and UN Women, and with the financial support of the Swedish Government and the Council of Europe.