Violetta Crudu
“Although most of the changes that are planned to be implemented in the process of preparation for Moldova’s accession to the EU concern local authorities, so far local administrations have remained aloof from the process itself,” said Violetta Crudu, mayor of the municipality of Cruzesti, Chisinau municipality, vice-chair of CALM, on the sidelines of the conference “Enlargement Report 2025: successes and future priorities of the Republic of Moldova” held on November 11 in the capital.
At the conference, the mayoral community was hardly represented by speeches, only by presence. Although Moldova is about 1000 localities living a separate life, and they are the ones closest to citizens and could be the guides of their expectations, the representatives of local authorities noted.
In this context, European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos’ speech at the conference sounded as a direct recommendation to the new authorities. “The development of a country starts with the empowerment of local communities,” she emphasized. – With the ability of local authorities to effectively manage their needs. And decentralization is one of the basic elements of a nation’s development. It is crucial to empower local communities to manage spheres and services that the central level is not fully coping with. No one knows better than mayors and local administrations what is happening on the ground”.
The Commissioner noted that an efficient decentralization process contributes to improving governance, increasing the accountability of the authorities and strengthening the links between institutions and citizens, stressing that the EU will continue to support Moldova on the path of institutional consolidation.
“The new Moldovan government announced the launch of a reform on the modernization of local public administration, aimed at strengthening the financial autonomy of the mayoralties and improving the quality of public services,” Marta Cos also said. – The reform envisages a more efficient distribution of powers between the central and local levels, transparent management of resources and digitalization of processes. Through decentralization, the government aims to make local authorities key players in the implementation of European community policy”.
“The law on the voluntary merger of mayoralties has long been adopted and the process itself is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2026, but I cannot answer my fellow citizens’ question about the future of the commune and the mayoralties. We believe that this law is not being promoted sufficiently. We still don’t know what the authorities’ plan is. We are told that there is one, but we have not seen it a year before the end of the merger process, and that is wrong. Therefore, we are looking forward to consultations with the new secretary general of the government, Alexei Buzu, on these issues,” Violeta Crudu said.
