The government is streamlining the National Food Safety Agency’s (ANSA) controls at the state border. The Executive has approved amendments to the Regulation on how to cross the state border for goods subject to ANSA control (Government Decision No 938). Thus, the frequency of physical and identity checks of food goods of non-animal origin is to be reduced. According to the new amendments, the subject of identity checks will constitute 10% of the 100% of consignments of foodstuffs of non-animal origin and products used as ingredients in the preparation of food for human consumption. Previously, all consignments were subject to all three types of control (documentary, identity and physical checks). The Regulation also provides for new border checkpoints, risk analysis for the Food Safety Border Surveillance and Control Programme, and an updated list of tariff codes for food of non-animal origin intended for human consumption subject to food safety control. The need to develop amendments to Government Decision No. 938 came from the business community as early as 2019 and were discussed at the Economic Council under the Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova. At that time, entrepreneurs argued that if the document is not amended, economic operators will continue to incur unjustified expenses due to imperfections in the regulatory framework. The amendments to Government Decision No 938 were drafted with the support of the Secretariat of the Economic Council under the Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova and the members of the Council. The Secretariat also helped to promote and ensure consultations on these amendments in multiple meetings on various platforms, including the Economic Council.

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.