90 mayors and deputy mayors from 26 districts are participating in the Mayors' Forum in Ungheni on 12-14 November. The local officials represent communities supported by two major programmes funded by the European Union and implemented by UNDP: "Mayors for Economic Growth" and "EU4Moldova: Focal Regions".

The Forum, dedicated to regional development, facilitates dialog between representatives of local public administration, so as to establish partnerships, gather expertise and best practices for local infrastructure development and sustainable urban planning. Good practices of mayors from Romania, Poland and Lithuania were presented at the event. Also, the third day of the forum included visits in Ungheni municipality to Independence Square, Tourist Information Center, Free Economic Zone (supported by the EU and UNDP Moldova) and "Eiffel Bridge". 

“The EU is promoting social inclusion and increasing the well-being of its citizens through various programs and funds. By aligning its social policies with EU standards, the Republic of Moldova can improve the well-being of its citizens, reduce social inequalities and create a more inclusive and prosperous society. During the pre-accession period, the Republic of Moldova will benefit from the EU support and expertise in aligning its social policies with EU standards, including through the EU Growth Plan for the Republic of Moldova. Local authorities play a crucial role in implementing these policies at local level. In this respect, capacity building of local authorities is now more important than ever,” stated Jānis Mažeiks, Ambassador of the European Union to the Republic of Moldova.

"This forum provides local public authorities with the chance to discuss these real, often overlapping issues and how we can effectively respond to them together. UNDP and the European Union will continue to support local communities in becoming more resilient, prosperous, and ready to involve people in decision making and implementing solutions to the issue they face," said Seher Ariner, UNDP Deputy Resident Representative to the Republic of Moldova.

"This event is an opportunity for Moldovan mayors to collaborate, learn from the experiences of other regions and strengthen local economic development projects. Only through cooperation and strong commitment can we bring lasting and meaningful change in our communities", said Ana Mardare, State Secretary, Ministry of Infrastructure and Regional Development.

During the event, the results of the "Mayors for Economic Growth" (M4EG) initiative, funded by the European Union with a budget for the Republic of Moldova of 1.8 million euro and implemented by UNDP, were presented. The initiative is focused on capacity development of local authorities and implementation of strategic projects for sustainable economic development in the network of 65 municipalities and district councils. 

With the support of M4EG, localities such as Ceadîr-Lunga, Sireți, Taraclia and Geamăna have implemented energy efficiency projects, attracting investments for interventions such as thermo-insulation of kindergartens and modernization of street lighting, etc., which has contributed to energy savings and reduced expenses for over 20,000 inhabitants.

In Copceac, Drochia, Cimislia, Cărpineni and Volintiri, M4EG supported projects for economic development, inclusion of refugees and strengthening social cohesion, benefiting more than 35,000 people.

The forum also mentioned examples of good practices achieved by the "EU4Moldova: Focal Regions" programme, which, with a budget of 23 million euro, has contributed to the development of the Ungheni and Cahul regions, improving living conditions for more than 200,000 inhabitants. These regions have benefited from strategic interventions in various fields, such as business environment development, investment attraction, infrastructure improvement, development of smart solutions and capacity building of local administration.

Thus, in the municipalities of Cahul and Ungheni, the SMART City platform was developed, the One Stop Shop was established, kindergartens were equipped with IT equipment, in Ungheni more than 1000 water meters with remote reading and video monitoring were installed at the regional operator AVE Ungheni.

The programme also supported 74 entrepreneurs and 8 clusters with over 180 members. These interventions, aimed at developing the business environment, have generated over 440 new jobs and around 250 new products and services have been created. As a result, Ungheni and Cahul are now on their way to becoming smart, green and inclusive regions.

The initiative "Mayors for Economic Growth" and the "EU4Moldova: Focal Regions" programme are EU-funded projects implemented by UNDP Moldova, which promote sustainable development and improve the quality of life in the Republic of Moldova, prioritizing job creation, infrastructure development and capacity building of local public administration.