​BARRIERS TO INVESTING IN MOLDOVA ARE TOO BIG - EXPERT

The obstacles in the way of investments in Moldova are too big and almost did not change since 1990s, said economic expert Viorel Chivriga while presenting results of the research “Attracting direct foreign investments to Moldova: analysis of obstacles” at Wednesday’s meeting of the External Policy Association.

The expert said that since Moldova’s independence, almost US$4 billion of investments arrived to the country that is US$1 thousand per person, which is too few.

“The country has a potential for investments, but obstacles are too big, the business environment should be changed. The legislation in this field is quite good, but if it is not applied or is modified too often, it becomes harmful, because it deters potential clients”, said he, adding that the economic sector has laws, which were modified up to 20 times over the last several years.

According to Chivriga, the survey has shown that the biggest obstacle to attracting investments is corruption.

“It reached an incredible level in Moldova. We need to work hard to solve this problem, which does not allow developing the country’s economy”, said he.

The expert also said that in 2014 the number of foreigners who came to Moldova with business purpose went down, while problems in banking sphere alerted potential investors even more.

“Moldova needs a strategy on attracting investments. The Moldovan Investment and Export Promotion Organization (MIEPO) is almost invisible for both domestic and foreign investors”, concluded he.