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Activity of the Government on September 8–21, 2003
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e-journal #15 |
Relations with foreign donors
The Permanent Representative of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Moldova, Edgaro Ruggiero, refuted a recent report in a Moldovan media outlet that the IMF would not resume funding to Moldova before early 2005, when a new parliament is to be elected. Ruggiero called the report an attempt at politicising the relations between Moldova and the IMF and stated that the IMF policies on Moldova are determined by its economic policies rather than the political colour of its government. At the same time, Ruggiero said that IMF might resume funding to Moldova in the first half of 2004 and that an IMF Mission is to come to Moldova this autumn to asses the readiness of the Moldovan Government to further promote market economy reforms as well as the role it is going to assume in the Moldovan economy.
Meanwhile, the World Bank has turned down the request by the Moldovan Government to extend by six months the Loan Agreement SAC-III, which expires on 30 September and from which Moldova has only received one instalment worth US$10,6 million out of the total value of the loan of US$30 million. Moldova was to receive the second instalment of the loan in December 2002, but the WB blocked it due to the inconsistency of the economic policies of Moldova and its failure to fulfil all the conditions for funding. Last summer, the WB put forward some additional conditions to unblock the loan, but the Moldovan Government did not fulfil them either. Under the current circumstances, the Government will have to negotiate with the WB a new credit for structural adjustments.
Tariffs
The Government gave up the idea to set up the Agency for the Protection and Development of Competitiveness by merging the National Agency for Regulations in Energetics with the National Agency for Regulations in Telecommunications and Informatics. In exchange, the Government will set up a separate agency for the protection of consumers, but will first consult the international creditors about it. It has to be reminded that the Government’s intention to merge the two agencies last summer was criticised both by local analysts and the foreign creditors as an attempt by the Government to institute control over the fees on electricity and natural gas.
On the other hand, Prime Minister Tarlev recently declared that the Moldovan executive will influence the prices on oil products through a state enterprise that will import these products directly from the producers, without intermediaries. According to Tarlev, the state will safeguard competitiveness in the market, but will at the same time make sure that the prices on oil products stay stable.
Trade Unions — Government
The Government decided on 17 September to raise by 15% the wages of budget employees working in education, healthcare, social assistance, science, culture, arts and sports, as of 1 September 2003. The wages of the rest of budget employees will be raised by 15% starting 1 December 2003.
The Government adopted this decision following the conclusion of negotiations with the trade unions, which ended in Government’s failure to meet the unions’ demand to raise wages by 50%. Despite this, the unions will not go on strike as they had announced earlier. In exchange, they will demand that the Government provide for funds for new wage raises in 2004.
Compulsory health insurance scheme
The Government took a series of measures with a view to introduce the scheme of compulsory medical insurance in Moldova starting 1 January 2004. The scheme was introduced on 1 July 2003 as an experiment in Hincesti District. According to preliminary assessments, the scheme has worked well, although not smoothly. Thus, the Government instructed the relevant ministry and the National Company for Compulsory Medical Insurance to set up an inception fund for the introduction of the scheme nation-wide in 2004 and ruled that all credit debts of public healthcare institutions be paid off by 1 November 2003. In addition, the Government ruled that the compulsory medical insurance policies be distributed, the fees for healthcare services be published and the mechanisms of supplying hospitalised patients be worked out.
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