On the left bank of the Nistru River, 54% of the unemployed are women. The women are most seriously affected by poverty, while each third woman is aggressed and subject to domestic violence. At the same time, the woman from the right bank of the Nistru are not taking an active part in the decision-making process, while the national minorities or the women who are in a difficult economic situation are generally not represented in the administrative bodies. These are the conclusions of the study “Participation of women from rural areas from both banks of the Nistru River in developing the community” that was conducted by Contact Center in partnership with the Tiraspol-based Independent Institute for Law and Civil Society.

Vasile Cioaric, program coordinator at the Contact Center, presented the results of the study on the right bank of the Nistru in a roundtable meeting, saying the Moldovan authorities do not consider the fact that the women do not take part in decision-making a problem. The women do not know that they have the right to take part in this process.

Chiril Pereverzev, project assistant at the Independent Institute for Law and Civil Society, made public the results of the study in the Transnistrian region, saying that poverty there is feminized. The women in rural areas are in a much worse situation than those in urban areas. The divorce increases the women’s risk of facing extreme poverty and domestic violence is very frequent there.

In order to improve the situation of the women in Transnistria, the local information systems must be developed and access to information must be ensured. It is also necessary to set a quota of women employed in the public sector and to support the businesses started by women.

Programs should be implemented to develop the rural areas and to help the socially deprived persons. The quality of life and the status of women in society must be improved. The young people should be motivated to remain in villages in order to develop the communities.

The study was carried out within a project implemented with the assistance of the Support to the Confidence Building Measures Program that is financed by the EU and UNDP. Olga Vasiliev, project officer within the program, said that emphasis was put on women because it is known that they do not have possibilities of asserting themselves in the Transnistrian villages.