Andrian Gavrilita
The government approved at a meeting on Wednesday, April 29, the launch of negotiations on a draft loan agreement between Moldova and the IBRD.
“In general, we are talking about additional foreign currency financing, which will make it possible to reduce the pressure and, consequently, the cost of borrowing on the domestic market,” Finance Minister Andrian Gavrilice said.
Commitments
The program covers key areas: public administration, economic competitiveness, social protection, energy, environmental protection and digitalization of the economy. In order to receive the financing, Moldova has committed itself to fulfill 14 conditions. So far, seven measures of the first phase have already been implemented, including modernization of the public procurement system, improving the business environment, increasing financial transparency, and bringing the transport and energy sectors closer to EU standards.
Conditions
According to the Ministry of Finance, the loan is available for up to 20 years with a floating interest rate depending on the currency. For euros, the rate is normally calculated as EURIBOR (6 months) plus a margin of up to 1.08p (based on January 1, 2026), for US dollars as SOFR (6 months) plus a margin of up to 1.42p. There is also a one-time fee of 0.25% and a 0.25% fund reservation fee on the unused balance. The amount of $250 mln will be transferred in one tranche.
The government delegation to the negotiations will be headed by State Secretary of the Ministry of Finance Ion Gumene. The agreement will enter into force after it is signed and ratified by the Moldovan parliament.
Context
On November 24, 2025, the Ministry of Finance requested the World Bank Group to launch a development policy program, divided into two phases – 2026 and 2027 – with a total volume of $300 million. The program is aimed at supporting reforms in public administration, economy, social sphere, environment and energy.
In the context of limited domestic market capacity and high borrowing rates, on April 1, 2026, the ministry submitted an additional request to increase the first tranche by $100 million to partially replace domestic financing with external concessional resources. This brings the funding for 2026 to $250 million.
Following the negotiations, the World Bank handed over to the Ministry of Finance the draft reform matrix to be agreed with the relevant agencies, as well as the draft loan agreement between Moldova and the IBRD within the framework of the program of support for sustainable growth.
