INVESTMENT FORUM BEGINS IN GAGAUZIA AUTONOMY

An international forum called “Invest Gagauzia 2020” began on Friday in Comrat town, the administrative center of the southern Moldovan autonomous region of Gagauzia, for a 6th time. This year, the forum is being held in an unusual format – at the Comrat Stadium.

Moldovan Prime Minister Ion Chicu said at forum opening: “As a response to the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, we must convert Moldova and its regions into a big construction site. Gagauzia can be regarded as an example of attracting of foreign investments”.

Autonomy’s Bashkan [governor] Irina Vlah said that precisely the pandemic has revealed weak points in the region’s economy.

“We have been building everywhere lately. Only at the two ring roads around Comrat and Vulcanesti, we have carried out construction works total worth 56 million euros and have built 102 kilometers of roads. All in all, we have invested 220 million lei in our roads. Employment has been ensured to some 10 thousand builders with average monthly wages of 10 thousand lei”, said Irina Vlah.

In her words, investments in the infrastructure of free economic zones in Gagauzia have amounted to 20 million lei, and FEZ residents have invested 5 million euros in the zones.

The Gagauzia forum is being attended by delegations from Russia, Turkey, Romania, Belarus and Italy.