State controls continue to be a barrier to business

Abuses by control bodies are a serious obstacle to business development and activity.  Experts from the Alliance for Women’s Economic Empowerment in Moldova came to this conclusion after meeting entrepreneurs in Straseni, Balti and Comrat.

The information was presented to the Working Group on Women’s Economic Empowerment and Gender Equality. Thus, according to representatives of the Alliance for Women’s Economic Empowerment of the Republic of Moldova, the discussion with entrepreneurs also revealed that businesses, including women’s businesses, especially small and medium-sized ones, have limited access to information on financing opportunities and business advice. At the same time, there is a lack of awareness of supported employment programmes for people with disabilities and the related legal framework among rural businesses. And the lack of financial resources and working capital makes it difficult or even impossible for micro and small enterprises to pay VAT, especially on imported goods and services and on imported production equipment and machinery.

At the same meeting, the Centre for Entrepreneurship and Economic Policy and the Association of Entrepreneurs with Disabilities noted that research has shown that entrepreneurs in Moldova face high costs and unfair competition from companies that do not operate legally. The research also showed that the crises that have been going on for the past two years have greatly affected small and medium-sized enterprises, especially those owned and run by women. They face a shortage of labour. It was also noted that there is still limited access to public buildings for people with disabilities.

The experts came up with a number of recommendations to the authorities, including: suspension of state controls and cancellation of sanctions leading to the blocking of accounts, digitisation of business, support for the programme to encourage and consult micro and small enterprises in the field of e-commerce, making public-private dialogue more effective, systematic involvement and communication with business associations, etc.

And according to representatives of the Alliance of Small and Medium Enterprises of Moldova AIM is targeting the promotion of several reforms included in the Roadmap on Reducing the Regulatory Burden for Small and Medium Enterprises by 2022, developed jointly with the Economic Council community. An important goal is to create synergy in the actions of partners to achieve the proposed goals, AIM representatives said.

Also during the Working Group, information was presented about the principle of “business angels”, how they work and how funding opportunities are identified, the work of which is directly correlated with a higher survival rate of startups and small businesses.

The proposals and recommendations made during the meeting will be included in the joint agenda of actions of the Working Group to be finalised in the next three weeks and sent to the relevant ministries for consideration.

The Secretariat of the Economic Council to the Prime Minister is supported by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, funded by the UK Government’s Good Governance Fund, and the International Finance Corporation’s Investment Climate Reform Project funded by the Government of Sweden’s International Development Agency.

The Secretariat of the Economic Council to the Prime Minister is supported by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, funded by the UK Government’s Good Governance Fund.