World Bank to provide Moldova with 45 million dollars for reforms to enhance transparency

Chisinau, 18 December /MOLDPRES/- The Board of Directors of the World Bank approved the second development policy operation (DPO-2) for Moldova amounting to 45 million dollars. The support is meant to back the government's efforts to encourage the business environment to increase investments in the country and create many jobs, the government's communication and media relations department has reported.

DPO-2 sees providing budget support for implementing the structural reforms on facilitating and making transparent activity of the business environment, ensuring stability in financial sector, optimising management of publlic investments, including by ensuring granting subsidies in agriculture in an effective way. Also, the money is to be used for developing social assistance programmes in Moldova.

The decision was approved by the World Bank after a string of actions taken by the government and the National Bank on combating fraud in 9the banking sector. Among them are withdrawing the license of the Savings Bank (Banca de Economii), Social Bank and Unibank, carrying out audits on activity of other banks in the country, as well as taking measures to strengthen banking regulation and supervision.

The financial support is a continuation of the First Development Policy Operation approved in March 2014 and is part of the country partnership strategy for Moldova for 2014-2017. At the same time, the support backs implementing the actions of the national development strategy "Moldova 2020".

Moldova became a member of the World Bank Group in 1992 and has already benefitted from over 1 billion dollars earmarked for implementing over 60 projects.

(Editor A. Răileanu)