Officials unveil Moldovan-Austrian cooperation strategy for 2016-2020
13:18 | 05.04.2016 Category: Economic
Chisinau, 5 April /MOLDPRES/-The Moldovan-Austrian bilateral cooperation strategy for 2016-2020 was launched in Chisinau today. Strategy goals and success stories about collaboration with the Office for coordinating development cooperation of the Austrian Embassy in Chisinau, were unveiled during the event.
“Austria’s assistance is significant and important for Moldova,” government’s secretary general, Tudor Copaci said during the event. “More than 34 projects have been implemented in Moldova so far with the help of Austria’s support, while 16 of them are currently active.”
“Unveiled data show Austria’s significant support for Moldova’s economic and social development. Moldova-Austria cooperation strategy for 2016-2020 aims to extend the current normative framework and prolong the previous cooperation strategy for 2011-2015, which lays the foundations of Moldovan-Austrian cooperation in priority fields. Meeting the goals of the new strategy will essentially help improve life standards and modernize Moldova,” Copaci said.
Government’s secretary general also noted that the new bilateral strategic cooperation document makes ambitious commitments. “I refer to poverty alleviation, fair education with an emphasis on vocational training and infrastructure projects that focus on water, environment and climate change. Compared to the previous strategy, the current one extends the bilateral cooperation area, making the human-right approach a basic principle in all cooperation fields,” Copaci added.
“You have been an important partner to us for more than ten years. We monitor your progress and we continue to be by your side,” the director general for development cooperation of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Europe, Integration and Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Peter Launsky-Tieffenthal said
The executive director of the Austrian Development Agency (ADA), Martin Ledolter, highlighted that any collaboration needed a strategy. “This collaboration builds a team that will focus on improving life standards of more Moldovan citizens. We are firmly convinced that a safe economic course depends on the participation of more authorities from here,” Ledolter said.
ADA expert, Constantin Mihailescu, emphasized that water, environment and climate change were a priority of the bilateral strategy for the next five years, as “these components had a cumulative effect on human health, life level, poverty alleviation and Moldova’s sustainable development”. These three priorities comply with Moldova-Austria cooperation policy.
(Reporter V. Bercu, Editor M. Jantovan)