The Institute for Rural Initiatives (iRi) continues the trainings within the Budget Academy “Citizen ACT” conceptualized and implemented by iRi in support of rural communities in the Republic of Moldova.
The Budget Academy is a training course developed by iRi for initiative groups and local public administrations (LPAs) in rural communities of the RM. The Budget Academy is an innovative way of learning that combines 6 offline and online sessions, emphasizing the use of tools to involve citizens in the budget process.
The idea of the Academy is to bring the people closer to the LPA and the LPA closer to the people in order to increase budget transparency and improve the consultation process with citizens thus contributing to the implementation of Law 239/2008 on transparency in the decision-making process and HG 967 on the public consultation mechanism with civil society in the decision-making process.
In total, around 50 civil society representatives will benefit from this course in 2025, becoming active actors in local decision making as a result of a process of learning and interaction.
Today’s sessions were dedicated to initiative groups from 5 rural communities located in the North, Center and South of the Republic of Moldova.
The event brought together 19 participants, both representatives of initiative groups and local public administration (LPAs), with a clear objective: to improve the dialog between citizens and authorities, increase budget transparency and improve the public consultation process.
Tatiana Cosuleanu, executive director of iRi, opened the session by emphasizing the importance of civic involvement:
”Active civil society in the Republic of Moldova accounts for about 25%, largely concentrated in Chisinau and other urban areas. In rural communities, this involvement is almost non-existent. Through the Budget Academy, we aim to empower, strengthen initiative groups in rural areas and take another important step towards impactful civic activism.”
In his turn, Guillermo Llinás, country director of People in Need Moldova (PIN), emphasized the role of citizens in the decision-making process:
”I am glad to see representatives of both civil society and LPAs. It is essential that citizens are put at the center of the transformation process and actively participate in decision-making.”
Participants appreciated the practical approach and openness to dialogue.
The Budget Academy is an innovative learning model that combines 6 offline and online sessions, emphasizing the use of budget engagement tools. In total, around 50 civil society representatives benefit from this course, becoming active actors in local decision-making process.
”The training was very useful, interesting and without any barriers to expose yourself. It was an open dialog that helped us to better understand how we can effectively involve the community residents and local public authorities in the budget process and community life.” – Natalia Dobrota, president of the NGO Lingureni cu suflet mare, Lingura village, Cantemir district.
After the completion of the Budget Academy, we will start public consultations for the year 2026 in line with the recommendations of the Ministry of Finance.
We are preparing the process to be, we hope, “by the book”.
The activity is part of the project ”Citizens ACT: Improving participatory governance and transparency at local level”, implemented by the Institute for Rural Initiatives (iRi) in partnership with People in Need Moldova (PIN) with the financial support of the European Union.
For more photos from the event, please visit the iRi Facebook page.