132 projects worth 628 million lei will be implemented as part of the first phase of the government's “Europe is Close” program
According to Minister of Infrastructure and Regional Development Vladimir Bolea, these projects were selected from 579 applications submitted for participation in the program. Their total cost is approximately 2.6 billion lei and, according to the Minister, they will be financed in the future: the second phase of the program is planned to be announced in the fall. For the first stage, the competition commission selected 132 projects worth 628 million lei, of which 568 million lei will come from the National Fund for Regional and Local Development, and 60.7 million will be contributed by local authorities. Most of the projects were approved for the Central development region (65), 30 projects will be implemented in the Southern development region, 28 in the Northern region, 8 in the suburbs of Chisinau, and 1 in the Gagauzia ATU. Funding is adapted to the size of the settlements: 57 settlements with a population of less than 1,500 people will receive up to 2 million lei, and 33 settlements with a population of more than 1,500 people will receive up to 5 million lei. In both cases, the cost of the projects will be fully covered by the National Fund for Regional and Local Development. Another 42 settlements will receive more than 5 million lei, but these projects will be implemented with co-financing from local authorities, which will allocate 10% of the cost of each project. The projects approved for funding include the construction or repair of about 20 km of district and municipal roads; the renovation of 105 km of municipal roads and streets in settlements; and the improvement of 41 km of pedestrian walkways and platforms for access to public institutions. It is estimated that around 315,000 residents and 776 public institutions will ultimately benefit from these investments. The “Europe is Close” program is part of the government's strategy to reduce development gaps and modernize rural infrastructure, contributing to Moldova's gradual integration into EU infrastructure standards. The program is financed from the state budget through the “Budget +PLUS” mechanism. The full list of settlements that will receive funding under this project is available at: https://lista-proiectelor-prioritare-selectate.tiiny.site/. // 30.06.2025 — InfoMarket
