Free vouchers for professional training; Moldovan labour minister says National Employment Agency intervenes when women want to improve skills

Women who have been on maternity leave can benefit from free professional training courses based on vouchers. Labor and Social Protection Minister Natalia Plugaru has announced the measure, which aims to support young families.

The announcement was made during the event on the launch of a new call for projects to develop public nursery services, through which about 5,000 new nursery places will be created in the next two years.

Minister Natalia Plugaru emphasized that, in most cases, caregiving family responsibilities were the main factor limiting women's participation in the labor market.

“The unequal distribution of caregiving tasks makes it difficult to reconcile family life with professional life and disproportionately affects women. Women account for 95.5 per cent out of the 117,200 inactive people who say they do not work due to family responsibilities. Nevertheless, where there is support, things change. The employment rate of women with children under six years old increased from 39.4% in 2019 to 50.7% in 2024. Presently, only about one quarter of children under three benefit from public or private nursery services. The rest remain home, most often in the care of their mothers,” said Natalia Plugaru.

In the context, the official noted that the National Employment Agency (ANOFM) implemented more programmes aimed at women who have been on child care leave.

“ANOFM intervenes when women, after child care leave, want to improve their skills in the field or get retraining in the labor market. We provide vouchers for obtaining retraining, as well as support for starting businesses. These measures are primarily dedicated to women and aim to provide income for young families,” said Natalia Plugaru.

Contacted by MOLDPRES, ANOFM director Raisa Dogaru said that, during the period of January to November 2025, about 340 unemployed individuals had graduated from professional training courses based on vouchers, of whom 257 are women, accounting for 76.3 per cent.

“The new procedure simplifies the process of conducting professional training courses for the unemployed and stipulates that they choose the educational institution where they will undertake the professional training courses, and a nominal voucher is provided for their payment,” Raisa Dogaru also said.

ANOFM covers the costs related to professional training. At the same time, the unemployed may benefit from a non-taxable monthly stipend, amounting to 35 per cent of the average monthly wage on the economy for the previous year, which is granted proportionally to attendance at professional training courses.

“A person can opt for professional training courses whose price exceeds the nominal value of the voucher, by paying the difference on their own account. Also, during the period of enrollment in professional training courses based on vouchers, individuals stay registered as unemployed. Applicants may benefit for free from only one professional training course within a consecutive 24-month interval,” Raisa Dogaru noted.

In the first eleven months of the year, 197 graduates of professional training courses were placed in employment, including graduates from previous years (58.5 per cent). Additionally, on this period, 700 unemployed individuals were enrolled in professional training courses based on vouchers. At the end of September 2025, 350 people were attending courses. Over the past year, 587 unemployed individuals were enrolled in professional training courses based on vouchers.

For more information about attending a professional training course, those interested can call the ANOFM Call Center at 0 8000 1000 or contact the nearest ANOFM subdivision: https://anofm.md/ro/subdiviziuni.