Between August 29-31, the delegation of the National Association of Entrepreneurs represented by Cristina Chiriac – President of ANAA, Nicoleta Munteanu – Vice President of ANAA, Viorica Puscas – Project Manager, together with other businesswomen from Romania, members of the association, made a work trip in the Republic of Moldova.
During the 3 days, several meetings were organized with important representatives of the Moldovan business environment as well as with representatives of state institutions and the Government.
The first meeting was on August 29 at the Romanian Embassy in the Republic of Moldova. The meeting was attended by Mr. Cristian-Leon Turcanu, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Romania in the Republic of Moldova, Mr. Adrian Berezintu, Minister Counselor and Mr. Claudiu Chelcea, First Secretary. During the meeting, the Wingate project was presented and the representatives of the Romanian embassy in Chisinau congratulated ANAA for the initiative and showed their availability and support in promoting the Wingate project in the Republic of Moldova.
On the same day, the ANAA delegation had a meeting with the leadership of the Organization for the Development of Entrepreneurship – ODA, which is subordinate to the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Moldova. The institution’s mission is to support the development of the domestic entrepreneurial environment, including small and medium-sized enterprises, by promoting the entrepreneurial culture, providing financial and technical assistance to companies, issuing financial and state guarantees, as well as ensuring business support infrastructure. On behalf of ODA, Mr. Dumintru Pintea, director of ODA, was present at the meeting, along with his team.
On August 30, the ANAA delegation also met with the board members of the Association of Women Entrepreneurs from Moldova. Sseveral aspects of the partnership framework were discussed, as well as good experiences aimed at promoting the Wingate project were shared. A beautiful opportunity to salute women who inspire and motivate through their own examples.
During the meeting, an exchange of views was made on challenges and proactive solutions to support business women, defend their rights and promote gender equality. Several projections of possible joint cooperation initiatives were also highlighted, with the aim of supporting the growth of female potential and its internationalization, the exchange of good practices and international expertise on the dimension of gender equality, the economic empowerment of women, the development of human capital by promoting skills and entrepreneurial culture, etc.
Also on August 30, ANAA signed a partnership agreement for the promotion of female entrepreneurship in the Republic of Moldova and Romania with the Moldovan Women’s Platform. Mrs. Iulia Costin, President of PNFM spoke about the common challenges faced by women in the Republic of Moldova and those in Romania in terms of business development and the importance of strengthening the community of women leaders on both banks of the Prut for partnerships and mutual support.
The day ended with a Wingate Project presentation and networking event attended by over 100 successful entrepreneurs and amazing women eager to fight and gain as much knowledge as possible. We have created an amazing community and we are happy that we manage to grow it sustainably and harmoniously with each individual event!
On August 31, exactly when the Republic of Moldova was celebrating the Day of the Romanian Language. The Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova, Mrs. Natalia Gavrilita, presented to the ANAA delegation the measures taken to reduce gender gaps in politics and public administration, their effects and a set of priorities for the future.
“I appreciate the efforts your organizations made in Romania to support the interests of female entrepreneurship, as well as the agenda dedicated to supporting the importance of entrepreneurial education. Our attention is now focused on the economic field and the priority is the introduction of a mandatory quota on the board of state companies. I believe that together we will achieve better results to put into practice the complex objectives of gender equality”, said Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilita.
In the political space, the authorities of the Republic of Moldova managed to regulate the double gender quota with very good results. The 40% representation quota and the provisions for placing on the lists increased the number of women in the legislature of the Republic of Moldova in 2021, being the largest number of female deputies elected in the history of Moldova – 40.6% of the total deputies. Before the 2021 elections, the share of female MPs was 25%. This fact determined a significant increase in the level of gender equality in the political field, observed Gavrilita.
Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilita showed her interest and total openness to supporting and encouraging women entrepreneurs. We have established a set of common goals and will work together to achieve them. Our targets aim to increase the number of women in leadership positions, reduce the gender pay gap, strengthen future gender equality and entrepreneurship education. We will collaborate to calibrate the legislation regarding mandatory gender quotas in the boards of state companies, but also in the institutional environment. I congratulate the Chisinau government for imposing gender equality in politics and public administration, and I consider that they are an example of good practice for Romania”, said Cristina Chiriac, president of ANAA.
The official meeting with Prime Minister Natalia Gavriliță was the last in a series of events and meetings aimed at promoting successful businesswomen from Central and Eastern Europe, the Wingate Project, to bring together leaders from the public and private sectors in an effort to to support female entrepreneurship.