Documents Republic of Moldova 47 results

"Hardly any European country receives as little attention in the international press as the Republic of Moldova. Since the end of the bloody civil war across the Dniestr in the early summer of 1992, the country has provided no spectacular headlines, but has developed almost silently: neither the comparatively dramatic problems, nor the moderately encouraging first signs of progress in Moldovan politics, have been acknowledged outside of the country with the exception of limited expert circles. Nevertheless, this young state on the strategically significant dividing line between the crisesshaken south-east Europe and the post-soviet transformation region is worthy of examination. In the shadow of political turbulence and some bloody disputes in the region of the “crisis belt” from Central Asia over the Caucasus up to former Yugoslavia, Moldova endeavours to attain stability and reform to overcome the overwhelming problems inherited from the Soviets. On 22 March 1998, 2.4 m electors in the Republic of Moldova were called upon to elect a new Parliament. With the constitution of the new legislature by 101 parliamentarians, those deputies from the previous period, who emerged from the first free elections in 1994, lost their mandates. In the same way that the presidential elections carried out at the end of 1996 had led to a peaceful power change at the level of the head of state, the parliamentary elections can also be regarded as evidence of noticeable advances in the democratisation of the country. For the first time, reform-oriented forces now represent the majority of members of Parliament, who brought a reform-minded government into power in May. After the crises, retrogressions and crippling power struggles of the last few years, Moldova has thus received a second chance for profound economic and democratic change."

"Since it became an independent state in August 1991 as the successor to the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic, the Republic of Moldova has been suffering from a deepening social crisis. The main elements of this crisis are an enormous decline in income and growing income differentiation, decreasing expenditure and consumption, growing poverty and sharply deteriorating nutrition. In the article a detailed overview will be provided of the effect of eight years of transformation on the living standards of the Moldovan population. First, however, some words about the economic context in which this dramatic social decline has taken place."

"On 31 August 1999, Moldovans celebrated the 10th anniversary of their language law. Limba noastră (our language), as the day is officially called, marks a turning point in recent Moldovan history: it was the breakthrough for national awakening in Moldova and the starting point for severe minority conflicts, one of which escalated into outright civil war in 1992. Ten years farther down the road, there is neither nationalist sentiment nor hot conflict in Moldova. This does not mean that all the problems surrounding the use of language and the rights of the different minorities are resolved. However, even though the country is suffering under the economic transformation process – partly accelerated through bad government and widespread corruption – it seems unlikely that this would again result in violence as they did between 1990 and 1992. The Moldovan example clearly shows that ethnic diversity in itself is not a cause of war or militant conflict. It might lead to conflict if it is politicised under certain circumstances but, even then, inter-ethnic accord can be achieved by peaceful means if the right lessons are learned. This article starts with a basic overview of the historical background and developments in the late eighties and early nineties and then discusses the lessons which have been learned and have not been learned in Moldova. It focuses mainly on two aspects which have proved to be of particular importance not only for Moldova but for the whole region: the use of languages and territorial autonomy."

"Corruption is one of the most significant impediments for the reform and for the economic recovery of the Republic of Moldova. This has been recognized by both, the Government of Moldova, as well as international organizations collaborating with Moldova, including the World Bank, UNDP, IMF, and Transparency International. The main purpose of this study is to assess the present situation regarding state capture and administrative corruption in the Republic of Moldova and identify priority measures for making a substantive advance in combating corruption. Following an introduction, the first chapter of this report assesses the present situation regarding corruption and its consequences for the Republic of Moldova. It presents a summary of work previously done by the author, and published by the Center for Strategic Studies and Reforms. The notion of corruption on the national scene, the place of Moldova in international rankings of corruption and the assessment of consequences of corruption for the economic, social and democratic development of the country are also discussed in this chapter. The second chapter generalizes the results of the opinion poll with regard to corruption carried out among businessmen and households. It presents the structure of the questionnaire, and the main results for general questions, as well as for the specific questions for businessmen and for households. Wherever it was possible, the chapter includes comparisons with other countries in transition in the South East Europe and CIS. The third chapter includes the discussion of national attempts to fight corruption and concrete proposals to curb corruption in Moldova in the following cross-section: judiciary and legal reform, public sector reform, amelioration of state control procedures, transparency in political life, creation of a viable private sector, research of the phenomenon of corruption. The role of civil society and of international donor organizations are also examined here."

"This article provides an overview of recent labour market trends, challenges and employability in the Republic of Moldova. Substantial structural changes have been seen in the labour market, resulting from a pronounced demographic crisis over the last twenty years caused by a decrease in fertility and by high infant mortality. These demographic transition effects have been aggravated by the difficult times of the transition to a market economy and by migration of the population, while an increase in the coefficient of aging has had an effect on changes in the structure of the labour market. The article examines distinctive features of the labour market, such as employment and unemployment, and current trends in active and passive policies, etc. Many developing countries face rapid aging transitions, while Moldova has to strengthen the economic contribution of older workers. The article also reviews the evidence of official sources on employment and the job market, such as demographic trends, and the gender dimensions of agricultural and rural employment. "