On May 30, the Council of the European Union approved the doubling of EU macro-financial assistance to Moldova from 150 million to 295 million euros.
In particular, on Tuesday they decided to almost double the amount of macro-financial assistance to Moldova, which was agreed to provide a year ago. In April 2022, the EU Council adopted a law that allows the EU to provide macro-financial assistance to Moldova in the amount of 150 million euros. Today, the EU Council approved an increase in its amount by 145 million euros, which means that 295 million euros will be available to Moldova as a whole. EU macro-financial assistance will be aimed at supporting economic stabilization and the structural reform program in Moldova, complementing the resources provided under the IMF financial agreement. Swedish Finance Minister Elisabeth Svantesson noted that Moldova can continue to count on the EU. "We will continue to support Moldova, including financially. Given the current circumstances, it is advisable to double the funds that we provide to Moldova," she said. It is planned that out of the maximum amount of 295 million euros, the EU will provide Moldova with up to 220 million euros in the form of loans and up to 75 million euros in the form of grants. The assistance will help cover the needs of Moldova's balance of payments, as defined in the IMF program. Chairman of the European Parliament Delegation to the Parliamentary Association Committee European Union - Moldova Siegfried Mureşan wrote on his social media page that he is very pleased that after the majority vote in the European Parliament in early May, additional macro-financial assistance in the amount of 145 million euros for Moldova was approved today by the Council of the European Union as well. "Moldova urgently needs this money to guarantee its economic stability and take new measures to support the people. That is why, as a speaker on the opinion of the budget committee in the European Parliament regarding this support, I took steps to approve the macro-financial assistance in the European Parliament as soon as possible. I am pleased that the proposal to provide additional assistance to Moldova was also adopted by the Council of the EU. After the approval of the two European institutions, the financial support will enter into force and the funds will arrive in Moldova, as planned, in the second half of this year," he said. It is planned that out of the additional assistance of 145 million euros, up to 45 million euros will be provided in the form of grants, and up to 100 million euros - in the form of loans on preferential financing terms. The amount is to be paid in two additional installments scheduled for the third and fourth quarters of 2023, subject to the agreed conditions. The materials of the EU Council note that Russia's war in Ukraine has a significant negative impact on the Moldovan economy. Considering that Moldova's balance of payments for 2023 still has a significant residual external financing gap over and above the resources provided by the IMF and other multilateral institutions, the Council considered it necessary to increase EU macro-financial assistance provided to Moldova. This increase, in the current exceptional circumstances, is in response to Moldova's request for support for its economic stabilization, in conjunction with the IMF program. The decision taken by the EU Council will enter into force on the third day after its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union. Moldova received EU candidate status in June 2022. Even before granting EU candidate status, Moldova received financial assistance from the EU under the European Neighborhood Instrument. This support is now on the rise. The new EU macro-financial assistance package for Moldova came into force on July 18, 2022 and envisaged for the provision of 150 million euros, including 120 million euros of concessional loans and 30 million euros of grants. At the same time, the first tranche in the amount of 50 million euros was allocated to Moldova by the European Commission in August last year. April 5 this year Moldova received a grant in the amount of 10 million euros from the European Commission within the second tranche of macro-financial assistance, and another 40 million euros in the form of loans were allocated to our country in early May. Herewith, earlier the European Commission proposed to double the current macro-financial assistance to Moldova and increase its total amount by 145 million euros - from 150 million to 295 million euros. The EU is helping Moldova in parallel with the International Monetary Fund program for Moldova of December 20, 2021. In May 2022, due to growing funding needs, caused mainly by the consequences of the war in Ukraine for the Moldovan economy, the IMF also decided to increase financial support to Moldova. //30.05.2023 – InfoMarket.
