Sweden increases support to Moldova

“Moldova has shown great resilience in the face of challenging circumstances, such as disinformation campaigns and hybrid attacks from Russia – not least in connection with the recent elections. The Moldovan people have shown what they want, and the country’s Government has made impressive progress in terms of reforms on its path to EU accession. Continuing to support Moldova’s EU accession path and efforts to protect democratic principles, and counter Russia’s hybrid attacks, is a priority for the Swedish Government,” says Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Benjamin Dousa. 

The election observation mission – conducted by the Organisation for Security and Co-operation (OSCE) – reported serious attempts to undermine the Moldovan election’s integrity in connection with the latest presidential election and the country’s referendum on EU accession. To strengthen Moldova’s resilience, Sweden is providing just over SEK 20 million to the ‘Strengthening democratic resilience in Moldova 2024–2028’ project, which is co-financed by Norway and Canada and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). It aims to improve Moldova’s capacity to audit political funding, parties and electoral campaigns, as well as to make electoral institutions more resilient to challenges related to cyber and information. 

In addition, Moldova’s judicial system plays an important role in enhancing trust in democratic institutions by combating illegal campaign funding. That is why Sweden will provide SEK 59 million to another project that focuses on increasing capacity and transparency in the judicial system. The project is carried out by the International Development Law Organization (IDLO). 

In 2024, Sweden has also supported two strategic initiatives with a focus on elections in Moldova, including a project being carried out by the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA), which supports Moldova’s Election Commission in its efforts to uncover and audit illegal campaign finance and online information influence activities. 

During the joint Nordic-Baltic foreign ministers’ mission to Moldova on 15 October, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed in support of the country’s capacity to cope with crises and hybrid threats. In addition to the above, Sweden also recently approved an additional SEK 50 million to the project ‘Strengthening Security Sector Governance in Moldova’. This support, which totals approximately SEK 74 million for 2024, aims to strengthen Moldova’s crisis management capacity.