In 2023, 10 million lei was initially approved, but the plan was adjusted to 2.48 million lei, while 2.46 million lei was used. In 2024, the authorities again approved a budget of 10 million lei, but the adjusted plan amounted to 3.9 million lei, while 3.86 million lei was used.
In 2025, the situation was partially stabilized and the initial plan of 3.1 million lei was adjusted upwards to 5.86 million lei, of which 5.59 million lei was used. In total, over three years, public expenditures for the program amounted to 11.93 million lei.
The main barriers to the utilization of funds were technical difficulties in the use of electronic signature, insufficient information of the target audience, as well as limited access to online platforms in rural areas. Young people in the regions do not find ways to spend their 1,000 lei at their place of residence, which causes the funds allocated by the state to “burn out” when the voucher expires.
Nevertheless, the statistics of the Ministry of Culture records an annual increase in the number of participants in the program. Thus, in 2023 the number of beneficiaries reached 3.5 thousand people, in 2024 their number increased to 4.2 thousand, and in 2025 the number of beneficiaries reached 9.5 thousand. In total, 17.3 thousand adult citizens received the state service.
At the same time, the program does not fulfill its task of diversifying the cultural market. Those who used the voucher, in more than 58% of cases spend it exclusively on buying books. Theaters, cinemas and concerts remain without this channel of funding, and the low involvement of public institutions increases the project’s dependence on certain private operators.
This is why the new strategy for 2026-2030 plans to revise the mechanisms of resource allocation outside Chisinau, lowering the age of participants to 16 and expanding the program to the category of elderly people, in order to raise the overall percentage of public funds used.
It should be noted that the national program “Cultural Voucher”, launched at the end of 2022, is intended for young people from 18 to 19 years old. Once they reach the age of majority, they can receive 1,000 lei to buy books or tickets to cultural events organized by local artists: cinema, theater, concerts, exhibitions, master classes, etc. At the age of 19, the unspent money is burned off.
