The latest country strategy, approved in September 2007, outlined the following strategic priorities for the Bank in Moldova:
Private enterprise
The Bank will continue to pursue investment opportunities in all enterprise sectors including, without limitation, the food processing, manufacturing, information and communication technology (ICT), retail and property sectors. Well-performing companies will be provided with direct financing including through Early Transition Countries Initiative (ETCI) instruments. The Bank will facilitate foreign investment either by investing alongside foreign strategic investors or by assisting the development of local companies which in due course may attract foreign investment. Working capital may be provided to agribusinesses under the recently established warehouse receipt system. Non-financial support will also continue to be provided. to private enterprises through its Turn Around Management (TAM) and Business Advisory Services (BAS) programmes.
Financial institutions
The EBRD will provide its local partner banks with access to its small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) and micro and small enterprise (MSE) credit lines, its Trade Facilitation Programme (TFP), as well as its Medium-sized Co-financing Facility (MCFF). It will seek to extend its cooperation to new partner banks and assist in the development and promotion of new financial instruments such as mortgage financing, leasing and energy efficiency credit lines. On the equity side, the Bank may consider further investment in banks, leasing companies and mortgage providers. It will further enhance its support for the development of microfinance particularly (but not exclusively) in Moldova’s regions. Opportunities to support the emergence of the non-banking financial sector will also be explored.
Infrastructure
Given Moldova’s sovereign debt capacity constraints and the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s concessionality requirements, the Bank will - to the extent possible - co-finance public infrastructure projects with other international financial institutions (IFIs) and donors to ensure maximum leverage of grant and concessional financing. To enable Moldova to take full advantage of its new EU neighbourhood status, the Bank will give priority to infrastructure projects that promote regional integration and interconnection with neighbouring countries. The Bank is also committed to resume its municipal infrastructure lending provided sufficient grant financing can be attracted to address affordability constraints. The support to private infrastructure investments will continue.
The Bank will underpin the above operational objectives by an ongoing policy dialogue on investment climate issues, in consultation with other IFIs and bilateral donors. The Bank will ensure that all operations in Moldova are subject to the Bank’s Environmental Policies and Procedures as well as International Labor Exchange (ILO) and national labour standards. In the context of the ETC Initiative, the Bank will seek increased donor grant financing to fund project preparation and implementation, support legal transition work, institution building and policy dialogue and leverage the Bank’s financial support to key sectors.
