Two regional development agencies are to be created this year – the Regional Development Agency Chisinau and the Regional Development Agency UTA Gagauza, Deputy Minister of Regional Development Veaceslav Gututui said in a program on Radio Moldova, quoted by Info-Prim Neo. A sum of 174 million lei or 1% of all the budget revenues will be allocated from the state budget to the National Regional Development Fund in 2012. 28 million lei will be provided by the UK Department for International Development as a grant. The Ministry of Regional Development and Construction is holding negotiations with potential foreign donors that expressed readiness to finance regional development projects. The EU Delegation to Moldova may offer €7 million for financing pilot regional development projects. The provision of technical assistance is negotiated with 12 EU member states, in particular for improving the mechanism for financing regional development projects. The U.S. promised to allocate US$12 million for local development this year, through USAID. The regional councils for development Centru, Nord and Sud are holding meetings this week. They will propose new regional development projects for financing in 2012. The final decision will be taken by the National Regional Development Coordination Council, whose meeting is set for end-February. Last year there were launched 21 regional development projects, financed from the National Regional Development Fund. Two of them were completed – the building of the road from Basarabeasca to Ukraine and the modernization of the water treatment station and sewerage system in Calarasi district. The other 19 projects will be finished this year. They include the renovation and modernization of water supply and sewerage systems, rehabilitation of regional roads, and extension of household and solid waste collection and storing systems.