Dr. Veaceslav Ionita, Head of Moldova's Parliamentary Committee on Economy, Budget and Finance (Photo: CIPE)
In April 2009, flawed elections in Moldova triggered the so-called “Twitter revolution,” a wave of youth-driven public protests. The people who took to the streets were outraged not only by the manipulated results of the election but also by Moldova’s ineffective economic transition nearly two decades after the fall of the Soviet Union and the country’s independence. The protests led to an early parliamentary election after which four parties formed a reform-oriented coalition, The Alliance for European Integration (AEI).
With the new leadership came a new way of engaging the public in the policymaking process. The coalition’s priority has been to improve the quality of regulations and to reduce bureaucratic inefficiencies. In order to do that, the government actively engaged with different civil society groups, including private sector organizations. Earlier this year, for instance, more than 30 business associations and chambers of commerce from across Moldova presented to the government their priorities for reform outlined in a National Business Agenda for 2012-2013. The conference was attended by various officials, including the Head of the Parliamentary Committee on Economy, Budget and Finance, Dr. Veaceslav Ionita.
In this CIPE Feature Service article, he talks about Moldova’s path to reforms and the importance of transparent public-private dialog to democratic development. He notes that “Democracy is not only words; democracy is an instrument that fosters public pressure on different government agencies to perform in a transparent and accountable way. Democratic institutions can thus ensure the basis for economic development and increase security for investors.”
Article at a Glance
- Strengthening democratic institutions in transition countries is crucial not only for their democratic development but also economic success.
- Public debate on economic and regulatory issues encourages transparency and weakens systemic corruption.
- By transparently involving broad-based private sector in the policymaking process Moldova is on a path to building a new, competitive economy.
You can read the full article here: http://www.cipe.org/publications/fs/pdf/123011.pdf
