The Vilnius Eastern Partnership Summit is a historical opportunity for Moldova to accelerate the pace of reforms, while the World Bank Group will support Moldova in its efforts to make the country a really better place for all its people, World Bank Country Director for Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine Qimiao Fan said, quoted by IPN.

In an opinion article, Qimiao Fan says that Moldova must increase the competitiveness of the private companies by further improving the business environment. The enhancement of the efficiency of public institutions and ensuring of access to long-term financing, especially for small and medium-sized companies, must also be among the priorities.

According to Qimiao Fan, the recent events related to the raider attacks on banks accentuated the necessity of having appropriate supervision and penalization mechanisms. Moldova must continue to increase the quality of education and health services, to address the demographic challenges and to protect the poor and vulnerable persons.

In the same connection, the World Bank official called on the Moldovan authorities to take measures to improve the management of natural resources and to ensure sustainable development in the energy security sector as this will stimulate the country’s resistance to foreign shocks.