Qualified labor force remains on the list of priorities of foreign investors - Marin Ciobanu
This was stated by the head of the Balti Free Economic Zone (FEZ), Marin Ciobanu, during discussions on the platform of the Economic Press Club. According to him, providing tax benefits and other advantages for foreign investors play an important role, but it is the 5th-6th factor in the list of priorities. “Investors are looking for qualified labor force, and if they don't have it, everything else is meaningless,” he said, noting that in March 2025, Chisinau will open the largest training center for the industrial sector in Moldova, where more than 10 professional competences will be available - from metal processing and plastic production to laser cutting, etc. He noted that it is very important for Moldova to orient not only to the regional context, but also to the international, global one. According to him, the automotive industry is migrating to countries such as Morocco or Tunisia, and it is quite possible that the production of electric cable as a priority is already in the past. “Donald Trump has announced that he plans to impose an export tax of 20% on European products. This means that production in Europe will fall by around 500 billion euros just due to the new levies on exports of industrial products to the US. In addition, it is not news what is happening to the auto industry: for example, Volkswagen is closing 3 plants in Germany, eliminating tens of thousands of jobs, in Germany the auto industry accounts for 17% of exports. Of course, this will affect us as well,” said Marin Ciobanu. According to him, one should not underestimate the withdrawal of investors from the market. “Only due to the withdrawal of Fujikura and Coroplast companies from the market, we have lost about 5-6% of industrial exports,” he believes. In his opinion, it is necessary to direct more funds to development and research, as well as to education. The head of the Balti FEZ also noted that one of the important achievements of recent years is the reform and increase of the staff of the Investment Agency, which he used to head. The meeting also discussed the role of media and expert opinions in the public space on investors' decisions and concrete cases when, due to negativism in the news and the lack of adequate reaction of the authorities to such publications, investors stopped considering Moldova as a country for investments. IDIS Viitorul expert Veaceslav Ionita expressed the opinion that all investors come with their own priorities, and the main barrier to investment is not corruption or bad legislation, but the lack of a market. “Investors who came to Moldova until now have always had a sales market,” the expert said, noting that now the sales markets for Moldova are the EU and the countries of the Black Sea basin. // 27.12.2024 - InfoMarket
