The National Youth Council of Moldova (NYCM) evaluates annually the local youth budget at level 2 LPAs and, subsequently, develops a report on the evaluation of expenditure for the youth sector in the level 2 LPAs (district councils) and provides recommendations to streamline the management of such budgets.
Do LPAs invest more in the youth sector?
In 2021, only one out of the 35 district councils (level 2 LPAs) invested nothing in the youth sector. Nevertheless, at national level, we see an insignificant growth trend of the youth sector funding by level 2 LPAs, with a national average of around MDL 30.04 per young person, compared with MDL 23 per young person spent in 2020[1].
At the same time, fewer and fewer district councils report MDL 0 spending, while more districts have a good performance in terms of funding the youth sector and implementing the youth budgets, which underscores the bigger importance that the youth sector is deemed to have at local level.
‘We are glad to see an increased investment made in the youth sector at local level, but this is not sufficient to cover all needs of the young people. If we want to build a better country, we need to be ready to invest in its youth. This justifies once more the importance of budgetary participation,’ said Teodora Panuș, President of the National Youth Council of Moldova.
‘As a result of a comprehensive analysis of the youth sector in terms of sector spending, we are happy to notice an improvement trend, for instance in 2021 there was only one district that spent nothing for the young people, compared to three such districts in 2020,’ declared Roman Banari, Secretary General of NYCM and author of the report.
‘UNFPA advocates for every young person from the Republic of Moldova to fulfil their full potential, on the basis of education resources, participation and development. One in four people in the Republic of Moldova is a young person under 35 years of age and their potential must be fulfilled. Investment in the youth of today is investment into the future of the society,’ said Olga Gordilă-Bobeico, Youth Programme Officer, UNFPA Moldova. ‘The annual evaluation of expenditures for the youth sector is a useful tool that helps us understand better the situation of the youth sector at local level and priorities for the future.’
UNFPA is the lead UN agency in the youth sector of Moldova that continuously invests, in partnership with the Ministry of Education and Research and the Government of Switzerland, in developing youth infrastructure and improving youth services, including through the Network of Youth Centres in Moldova – a unique platform for youth engagement and development in localities.
The Report on the evaluation of expenditure for the youth sector in the level 2 LPAs was carried out with the support of the Joint Fund for Developing Youth Centres and Strengthened Participation and Civic Engagement of Young People, the Ministry of Education and Research, the Swiss Cooperation Office and UNFPA.
