Cătălina Pascal from Zîrnești village, Cahul is one of the 55 entrepreneurs from the focal regions of Ungheni and Cahul, who have benefited so far from financial assistance within the grant programme for the business sector.

Existing businesses and start-ups in the Cahul and Ungheni regions will benefit from grants of €14,000 to 24,000 each, awarded by the European Union in the framework of the “EU4Moldova: Focal Regions” programme, funded by the EU and implemented by UNDP and UNICEF. The new call for grants of up to €300,000 is launched today, 28 April, for the development of the private sector in both focal regions. 

“The European Union support for businesses and local development in Cahul and Ungheni through our ‘EU4Moldova: Focal Regions’ programme is bearing fruits. This means more effective support for start-ups and existing business, increased local capacities in a sustainable way. Thanks to this new EU additional support, in form of grants, people will be able to benefit from new jobs and strengthened local entrepreneurial culture. SMEs are the heart of an economy – the more booming an economy is, the more prosperous the life of the people is. We are proud to witness successful and tangible results of the EU support provided to local businesses so far and we are firmly committed to continue supporting them for the benefit of the Moldovan citizens, as we are stronger together!” said Jānis Mažeiks, Ambassador of the European Union to the Republic of Moldova. 

“It is rewarding to see so many successful projects implemented under the first two rounds of support to private sector from Ungheni and Cahul regions with a tangible impact on the local economies. This call will offer a new cohort of entrepreneurs the opportunity to fulfil their potential and create new jobs, innovate and adopt a green and circular economy approach in their undertakings,” said Dima Al-Khatib, UNDP Resident Representative to the Republic of Moldova. 

In the third call for funding for the private sector launched by the “EU4Moldova: Focal Regions” programme, grants will be awarded to 16 companies from the focal regions of Cahul and Ungheni. 

Financial assistance will be allocated for the purchase of equipment, goods, works and services to develop the business, promotion of circular economy models, creation of new jobs, increasing the attractiveness of focal regions for new investments. 

The selected entrepreneurs will also benefit from free mentoring and training. 

The requirements of the competition and the applicant’s guide may be downloaded at www.eu4cahul.md and www.eu4ungheni.md. 

A training session on the application process is available at: https://bit.ly/3Mn0YS. There will be organized additional information sessions on the grants call. Their schedule will be published separately on the websites mentioned above.

The deadline for submitting files is 6 June 2022, at 15:00. 

Since 2020, when the first call was launched and until now, 55 existing companies, start-ups and social entrepreneurship initiatives have benefited from grants of up to €1.4 million, in total.

The “EU4Moldova: Focal Regions” programme (2019-2024) supports smart, environmentally friendly, inclusive and sustainable socio-economic development in the Cahul and Ungheni regions to ensure a better quality of life for citizens. The program has a total budget of EUR 23 million, is funded by the European Union and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).