Boosting Business in Moldova .

The June 2014 ratification of the Association Agreement and the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement with the European Union enabled Moldova to expand its trade significantly. Funded by USAID and Sweden, the Moldova Competitiveness Project (MCP) made the most of these economic benefits by improving the quality of Moldovan products and encouraging the country’s private sector to participate in the European Union and other higher-value markets. By focusing simultaneously on workforce development, trade, and investment, the project strengthened Moldovan businesses along the value chain.

Prior Initiatives

MCP followed two previous Competitiveness Enhancement and Economic Development (CEED) projects in Moldova, known as “CEED” and “CEED II.” These programs, which ran from 2005 to 2010 and 2010 to 2015, respectively, approached competitiveness by focusing on productivity, trade, and investment.

In five years, CEED helped 115 companies generate more than $84 million in sales and 3,500 full-time jobs. Additionally, the project increased information and communications technology exports from $24 million to $114 million. Using a value chain approach, CEED II built on the success of CEED, upgrading enterprise marketing and sales skills in Moldova while strengthening the capacity of its workforce and industry service providers.