Culture minister says over 500 community centres from Moldova in lamentable state

Chisinau, 19 January /MOLDPRES/ - More than 500 community centres from Moldova are in a lamentable state and need capital repair. Education, Culture and Research Minister Monica Babuc has made statements to this effect in an interview given exclusively to MOLDPRES.

The official noted that such works as changing roofs, water and sewerage networks were necessary. “Presently, the community centres are managed by local authorities; I mean mayoralties and district councils. Some of the local authorities have managed to renovate the buildings. This fact was made due to external development projects; yet, there are a few of such cases.” Babuc said.  

The minister specified that the Education Ministry’s actions were guided by the general strategy of developing the culture, approved in early 2014. “At present, it is necessary that we make an assessment and, by common agreement with the local authorities, identify the institutions that will be renovated. They are to be repaired both from the state budget and external development projects,” Monica Babuc said.  

Contacted by MOLDPRES, the mayor of the Zaim settlement, eastern Causeni district, Ion Veste, said that the ministry’s initiative was welcome, especially as the people from the rural zone actively participate in cultural actions. “This is a very good possibility for the active community centres. In our settlement, the community centre was restored last year with the support of the UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) Moldova, as well as with sources of the local budget and the ones provided by natives working abroad. Now, we are set to connect the building to thermal energy supply. It would be very good if we could benefit from financial means from the state budget for the repair works; in this way, we could re-direct the money from the local budget for other needs,” Ion Veste added.     

(Reporter A. Ciobanu, editor L. Alcaza)