Supervision commission of PARE 1+1 programme approves non-refundable financing for 33 Moldovan enterprises

Chisinau, 15 March /MOLDPRES/ – The Committee of Surveillance of Program for Attracting Remittances in Economics "PARE 1+1" today approved 33 grant applications submitted by companies created by migrants or their relatives, totalling 6.6 million lei.

According to the Moldovan economics ministry’s public relations service, the estimates indicate there will be created about 100 new jobs and investments in the national economy will constitute 19.5 million lei.

Deputy Prime Minister Octavian Calmic, Minister of Economy, said that, "Program "PARE 1+1" enjoys a growing interest among migrants and their relatives, causing constant increase in the number of people interested to return home or invest remittances in creating and developing their own business," said the Economics Minister.

At her turn, Iulia Iabanji, director of the Organization for Development of Small and Medium Enterprises, pointed out that for Programme "PARE 1+1" implementation, there are provided 40 million lei from the state budget.

Also, the quoted source said that 49 per cent of businesses receiving grants were in expansion phase/business growth and 51 per cent, during the launch. Out of total applications received, 15 businesses were created by migrant workers who returned from abroad and 18 ones being constituted by migrants’ first-degree relatives. Similarly, the statistics indicates that 60 per cent of businesses are created and managed by women and 23 per cent of these by young people.

Twenty businesses are oriented in agriculture, cultivation of cereals and grape-vines, lavender cultivation, vegetables in protected areas etc., out of the total grant requests. Seven businesses, which were accepted for grants, are of the fileld of services and other 6 ones represent manufacturing.

Analysis origin of remittances shows that the 33 applicants invest remittances from work carried out in 14 countries: Italy – 14, Germany, Russia – 3 each, France,  Israel – 2 each, Denmark, Iceland, USA, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Romania, Spain, Portugal and Ireland – 1 person each.

Also today, the Committee of Surveillance of Program for Attracting Remittances in Economics "PARE 1+1" accepted the decision to start procedures for introducing changes to program guidelines, including increasing the maximum amount of the grant allocated from 200 thousand lei up to 250 thousand lei.

Programme PARE 1+1 aims to mobilize human and financial resources of Moldovan migrant workers in Moldova's sustainable economic development by stimulating the creation and development of small and middle enterprises by migrant workers and remittance recipients. The program operates by rule "1+1", so that each leu invested in remittances will be substituted with a leu in the form of grants under the program. The grantees can be migrant workers, citizens of Moldova and beneficiaries of remittances, first-degree relatives.

(Reporter A. Mardare, editor L. Alcaza)