Project Summary:

Considering its economic structure and geographic features, Moldova is highly vulnerable to climate change and is exposed to disasters due to hydrometeorological phenomena and natural hazards. While drought and floods are among top hydro-meteorological hazards caused by extreme weather and climate events, due to current and projected abnormal high temperatures leading to water scarcity, the incidence of forest fires is increasingly posing a threat to natural ecosystems, agricultural systems and human settlements.

The country is highly vulnerable and exposed due to its dependence on rain-fed agricultural production, which is tied to climate, making it the most vulnerable of all economic sectors. This is primarily due to limited resources and capacities to plan and put in place water storage facilities for irrigation needs in rural communities, especially since climate projections show larger rainfall events in the future, which could feed such facilities. Because of the projected decrease in surface water availability by 16-20% by 2020 due to climate change, the water supply for all users requires adaptation options to reduce the vulnerability of rural communities related to water stress.

The project is supporting implementation of climate-smart water management solutions for agriculture, flood management and fire prevention and expansion of community-based rescue/firefighting teams in selected rural communities of Republic of Moldova with the purpose of reducing the exposure and vulnerability of rural communities to climate change and disaster risks

Objectives:

The overall objective of the project is to increase resilience and adaptive capacities of rural communities to climate change and disasters through improved water storage infrastructures and disaster risk reduction measures.

Expected results:

• Create an enabling environment for local resilient livelihoods through improved climate-sensitive planning and climate-smart agriculture approaches at community level to increase water availability for agricultural livelihoods and protect from floods;
• Enhance local disaster risk reduction capacities in a decentralized manner through establishment of capacitated community-based rescue and firefighting brigades with access to resources for response and recovery needs. 

Accomplishments:

• 990 smoke detectors installed in vulnerable households from 5 target districts to reduce vulnerability and exposure to fire events;
• An information campaign on disaster risk prevention measures was conducted in 5 districts of Republic of Moldova and reflective vests, leaflets, calendars and other information materials were distributed to increase awareness of the local population on fire events and other climate-induced disasters;
• 100,000 Euros were leveraged from the Estonian Ministry of External Affairs and 3.2 million MDL from the Local Public Authorities for the construction of 4 local firefighting stations to enable quality rescue and firefighting services for at least 65 communities reaching a population of approximately 60,000 people;
• 36 jobs created (9 jobs per rescue/firefighters unit), resulting in additional income for 36 families from the Republic of Moldova;
• Training curriculum for community volunteer rescuers and firefighters developed and approved, incorporating specific aspects for such non-professional intervention groups;
• 177 volunteers (women and men) benefited from professional capacity building training in the area of climate and disaster risk prevention and response;
• 9 water storage basins were built in 5 districts, with a storage capacity of 119,150 m3, that can ensure the irrigation of an area of 177 ha;
• Cooperation with the UNDP-Czech Trust Fund and the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations was set up for the purpose of introducing new normative acts and European practices on firefighting volunteering in Republic of Moldova;
• Establishment of mobile triage centres to support the National Inspectorate for Emergency Situations COVID 19 related field interventions.