Dan MORARU, Head of the External Relations and Investment Attraction Department at Bălți City Hall, at FERM 2025: ‘Building Trilateral Bridges for Sustainable Regional Development’

REGIONAL ECONOMIC FORUM MOLDOVA 2025

19th Edition – Vatra Dornei, July 9–13, 2025

Thematic Panel:

Regional and International Cooperation – Partnerships for Development

Speaker:

Dan Moraru – Head of External Relations and Investment Attraction Department

Topic of the speech:

“Transformations of Bălți Municipality in the Processes of Regional and International Cooperation. Lessons Learned. Past and Present Best Practices”

Dan Moraru, Head of the External Relations and Investment Attraction Department within the Bălți City Hall, presented at Panel 11 of the Regional Economic Forum Moldova (FERM) a technical vision, clearly future-oriented, regarding development projects implemented in the city and opportunities for cross-border cooperation.

His intervention was complemented by the perspectives of Ion Ștefanovici, President of CAPDR, and the Vice Mayor of Botoșani Municipality, Bogdan Buhăianu.

Bălți – a Development Hub Officially Recognized by the Government of the Republic of Moldova

Dan Moraru emphasized from the outset that his presentation is “entirely technical” and reflects exclusively the initiatives of Bălți City Hall as a local public authority. Bălți Municipality, the second largest city in the Republic of Moldova, with a declining population (85,000 inhabitants in 2025, according to the National Bureau of Statistics), nevertheless plays a key role as an urban, industrial, educational, and cultural hub in the northern region.

Official recognition of this status came recently, in 2024, with the approval of the National Program for Accelerating the Development of Bălți Municipality for the 2024–2028 period – a first for the Republic of Moldova.

“Bălți Municipality is one of the two cities in the country that has an Action Plan for a Green City approved by EBRD and is part of the Green Cities Initiative. Additionally, we have a municipal program dedicated to climate change adaptation until 2030,” Moraru mentioned.

Concrete Investments with Major Impact

Among the most relevant projects presented were:

• Public Transport Modernization through the purchase of 11 autonomous trolleybuses (wireless, battery-powered), with support from EBRD, the EU, and Sweden (€4.7 million).

• Energy Rehabilitation of “Dimitrie Cantemir” High School, one of the largest interventions in the local educational infrastructure (€1.3 million).

• Modernization of public spaces and educational infrastructure in urban revitalization zones, with support from the National Fund for Regional and Local Development.

• Rehabilitation and digitalization of the History and Ethnography Museum, a significant step towards enhancing local heritage.

Another ongoing project – Phase III of public transport modernization – also includes street lighting and foresees the purchase of 22 new trolleybuses with a total budget of €7 million. Moraru acknowledged that Bălți City Hall is approaching the legal maximum debt limit (30%), but considers the investments essential.

Cross-Border Cooperation Bălți–Botoșani: A Model of Continuity

One of the most appreciated collaborations was the cultural project “Eminescu – Culture, a Route”, carried out together with Botoșani Municipality through the Romania–Republic of Moldova Joint Operational Program 2014–2020.

“The project involved creating a cultural-tourist Eminescu route in both municipalities, partial rehabilitation of Bălți’s Central Park, and the establishment of a tourist information center,” explained Moraru.

The total project value amounted to €1.37 million, largely covered by EU funds.

Bogdan Buhăianu, Vice Mayor of Botoșani Municipality, praised this collaboration.

“Even though the sum was not very large, it was an exemplary project that drew national attention. It paved the way for other initiatives – the Luchian route, the Iorga route – and we have already submitted a new cross-border project together.”

Ion Ștefanovici: “Real Partnerships Mean Committed People”

CAPDR President, Ion Ștefanovici, intervened to highlight the importance of human capital and functional partnerships.

“We do not always find real counterparts in European projects. But in Bălți it is possible to work because there are people who know, who stay, who build. We trained 50 Moldovan specialists in accessing European funds, but lost contact with them. This personnel volatility makes continuity impossible.”

Ion Ștefanovici advocated for the digitalization of regional tourist routes and the creation of a common online promotion and booking platform.

“We need to achieve a regional booking platform that organizes everything in 2–3 clicks.”

He also emphasized bureaucratic difficulties in current projects.

“We have projects approved with Chișinău since last year, and the funds still have not been transferred. There are budget imbalances, reorders, but we must continue and be clear about what we request.”

Clear Requirements for the Future: Investment in People

When directly asked “what do you specifically need?”, Dan Moraru gave a straightforward answer.

“Investment in human capital. Not just courses on how to write a project. Implementation is the real challenge – with technical, financial, and monitoring problems. We write applications using artificial intelligence, but no AI application implements them.”

Results and Prospects

Between 2015 and 2024, Bălți City Hall implemented 30 development projects worth approximately €8 million, 80% from external sources. In just one year (2024–2025), 30 new funding applications have already been submitted, worth €20 million, of which 7 were selected, 13 are under evaluation, and 10 were rejected – “a normal record in a competitive system”, says Moraru.

Conclusion: From Bilateral Cooperation to Trilateral Alliances

Dan Moraru highlighted the importance of expanding bilateral collaboration between Bălți and Botoșani toward trilateral formulas including Romania, the Republic of Moldova, and other neighboring countries such as Ukraine, Poland, or Bulgaria. These alliances open new funding and regional integration opportunities under the Interreg program, aiming for sustainable development and strengthening economic and cultural relations.

Ion Ștefanovici drew attention to recent changes in European regulations, which temporarily suspended trilateral programs. Nonetheless, both parties emphasized the necessity of continuing concrete dialogue and identifying the right partners to ensure viable and beneficial projects for the region.

Thus, the transition toward trilateral cooperation represents an important strategic direction which, although fraught with challenges, can bring significant advantages for regional development if supported by a pragmatic and flexible approach.