The European Union and the Council of Europe will carry out two projects aimed at improving the justice system in the Republic of Moldova under the Partnership for Good Governance (PGG) 2019-2021. These two projects were presented today in Chisinau during the 1st PGG II Local Steering Committee meeting.
“Our actions in partnership with the Council of Europe will contribute to the implementation of key reforms in the country, for the benefit of the citizens. The goal is to reform the justice sector and to prevent and combat threats to the rule of law”, stated Ambassador Peter Michalko, Head of the European Union Delegation to the Republic of Moldova at the opening of the meeting.
“The Partnership for Good Governance is a key instrument for the exchange of best practices in the six countries of the Eastern partnership. In addition, the newly introduced Quick Response Mechanism will allow for legal expertise from the Venice Commission on key reform areas “, explained William Massolin, Head of the Council of Europe Office in the Republic of Moldova.
Petru Alexei, Head of the Council of Europe Unit, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of the Republic of Moldova, said: “EU 2020 deliverables on the implementation key judicial reform (Objective 10) and on the rule of law and anti-corruption (Objective 9) are considered essential to restore the trust of the citizens in public institutions to establish a good framework for investment and to assure the regional stability in the Eastern partnership countries”.
The first project, with a budget of 600,000 euros, will assist the Moldovan authorities in strengthening the efficiency and quality of the judicial system. Its aim is to facilitate a system for monitoring the progress of judicial reforms and to allow the adoption of justice sector policies based on evidence. Other objectives are improving the collection, reporting and analysis of data on the efficiency and quality of the courts and the enforcement system, and consolidating the mechanisms for judicial transparency and accountability.
In addition, this project aims to improve the system of enforcement of court decisions in civil and administrative cases, as well as to improve the professional capacities of bailiffs and the tools at their disposal. The implementation of the project will be based on the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice´s (CEPEJ) methodology and tools for evaluating the day-to-day functioning of judicial systems and the quality and efficiency of the public service of justice.
The second project, with a budget of 655,000 euros, aims to strengthen the Equality Council´s practice, to improve the courses provided by the Lawyers Training Centre, and to enhance the capacity of judges and prosecutors to deliver high quality justice – in particular in discrimination cases – by applying European standards. It will be implemented via training courses, round tables, conferences and other capacity-building activities.
The EU provides 80% of the funding of the two projects, whilst the Council of Europe provides 20% and is in charge of their implementation.
In addition to these two country-specific projects, the Republic of Moldova is also taking part in four regional projects aimed at fighting against economic crimes, strengthening the profession of lawyers, combatting discrimination and facilitating access of women to justice with a total budget of 2.4 million euros.
Press release on the Council of Europe Office in Chisinau, Moldova
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