The key note speech of HE the EU Ambassador to Moldova during the kick-off event on 23 September 2015 in Chisinau, Moldova

1. Key note speech by H.E. the EU Ambassador to Moldova Mr. Pirkka Tapiola
Venue: Palace de Republici
Conference "Review and evaluation of Moldovan public administration based on SIGMA
Principles of Public Administration"
23 September 2015, Chisinau
It is my pleasure to be present here today for the launch of this important exercise and I
would also like to welcome the presence of Prime Minister Streleţ, Ms Karen Hill from
OECD, the representatives of public institutions in Moldova, as well as the development
partners present at this event;
SIGMA programme is a joint initiative between OECD and the European Union with
more than 25 years of track record in the field of promoting better public governance in
the Accession countries. Since 2008, SIGMA started working with Neighbourhood
countries, including Moldova.
Today, we are kicking off here, the first SIGMA Baseline Study done in a
Neighbourhood country and it will establish comparative benchmarks with the
Accession countries. Moldova could look beyond the Eastern Partnership area and to
see how close or how far it is in comparison countries which are further in the
approximation process to the European Union.
The SIGMA baseline assessment will help us to understand the strengths and
weaknesses of the Public Administration. SIGMA assessment is evidence-based;
therefore, the colleagues from OECD will need to compile a lot of information from
different Moldovan institutions. The cooperation will be crucial and that is the reason
why I am very happy to see Prime Minister and some of the key ministers present in this
room.
Some of you will ask why we are putting so much emphasis in Public Administration
and its Reform process. The answer is simple: Public Administration is the backbone

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of the state; a functioning Public Administration is able to tackle corruption, is the
gatekeeper of the rule of law and ensures a fair and transparent use of the taxpayer's
money.
SIGMA colleagues will verify not only the laws but also the way the administration is
effectively functioning, regarding how the policy development works, how the human
resources are managed, whether the mechanisms for ensuring accountability of the
administration are working, how accessible and citizen-oriented are the public services
or how the taxpayers money are used and whether the financial controls are effectively
working.
A strategic framework encompassing reforms in the Public Administration is missing
since 2013. The recent creation of the PAR Commission led by Prime Minister is a
good starting but a good quality national strategy is needed in order to set up the vision
of how your Administration shall be in the future.
The EU Assistance to Moldova is focused on three main sectors of intervention for
2014-2017 and Public Administration is one of them. Just days ago, Brussels approved
a package of EUR 15 Million for PAR that will provide with Technical Assistance in
different relevant areas. The programme will start working in the second half of 2016
and it will incorporate the findings of SIGMA Assessment.
Once again, we would like to encourage the Moldovan public institutions involved in
this process to a fruitful cooperation with the SIGMA team of experts and to the
Government of Moldova to promote Public Administration Reform for a more fair and
transparent governance in the country.
The European Commission is the EU's executive body
Contacts:
Kogalniceanu 12, MD 2001
Chisinau, Moldova
Tel: + 373 22 505 210
Fax:+373 22 545 421
The European Union is made up of 28 Member States who have decided to gradually
Delegation of link together their know-how, resources and destinies. Together, during a period of
the European Union to Moldova enlargement of 50 years, they have built a zone of stability, democracy and sustainable
development whilst maintaining cultural diversity, tolerance and individual freedoms .
The European Union is committed to sharing its achievements and its values with
countries and oeooles bevond its borders.