MOLDOVA INVESTMENT CONFERENCE

 

By Derek Nowek

 

On October 8–9, 1999, Moldova’s National  Agency for Attracting Investment, in cooperation with the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), sponsored “Moldova: Your Partner in Europe,” an international investment conference in Chisinau. The event provided an occasion to present up-to-date information on investment opportunities in Moldova and to promote scores of projects offered for investment auctions.

 

Moldovan President Petru Lucinschi welcomed forum participants, including representatives of over 50 companies from Europe, Asia, and North America and Moldova’s leading enterprises. He stated that Moldova strongly welcomes the participation of foreign investors and multilateral development banks in the modernization of the country’s key economic sectors—agriculture, telecommunications, energy, wine, tobacco, construction, and transportation.

 

U.S. companies can take advantage of Moldova’s privatization activities either by submitting bids for tenders offered by the Department of Privatization or by working with individual enterprises. U.S companies can  wholly own and manage companies in Moldova, as well as freely repatriate profits and capital. The country’s legal framework offers a number of guarantees and tax incentives to foreign investors. 

 

At the time of this writing, the Moldovan parliament voted to dismiss the government of Prime Minister Sturza over his proposal to implement a package of key economic laws, including privatization of the country’s largest tobacco and wine sector enterprises.

 

A partial list of Moldova enterprises up for privatization during 1999–2001 is available at www.privatization.md.