An EMCDDA delegation is in Chisinau today for a visit to the Republic of Moldova under the EU4Monitoring Drugs II project (EU4MD II). The visit is organised in close cooperation with the Moldovan Ministry of Health, Ministry of Internal Affairs and the EU Delegation to the Republic of Moldova.
The purpose of the two-day visit is to review ongoing cooperation between the EMCDDA and its Moldovan partners. The delegation will learn about the state of play on the creation of a national drug observatory, a national Early Warning System on new psychoactive substances (NPS) and the collection of drug-related data.
On the agenda this week are talks with representatives from the Parliamentary Committee on Social Protection, Health and Family and from various Ministries (Health, Internal Affairs, Foreign Affairs, Justice, Social Protection, Education and Research). The EMCDDA delegation will also meet representatives from the National Anti-Drug Commission, National Agency of Penitentiaries and the national customs and security services.
During the visit, the delegation will discuss the detection of NPS in the country with the Forensic and Judicial Expertise Centre of the General Police Inspectorate. The talks will also cover the future European network of forensic and toxicological laboratories, to be set up under the agency's new mandate, which will enter into application on 2 July 2024.
Additional meetings will take place at the National Institute of Public Health and the Ministry of Education and Research to explore the implementation of the European School Survey on Alcohol and Other Drugs (ESPAD) in the country in 2024.
Moldova has been participating in the EU4MD project since 2019, through expert group meetings, network activities and training events.
The EMCDDA and the Ministry of Health of Moldova signed a Memorandum of Understanding on 17 July 2012.
About EU4MD II
EU4MD II is one of the EMCDDA's international cooperation projects. Focusing on the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) area, it runs for a five-year term (January 2023–December 2027). The project aims to:
- strengthen cooperation and share expertise on monitoring the drugs problem with the countries in the ENP area;
- boost the technical expertise and capacity of the ENP partners to develop and contribute to contemporary drug monitoring and response systems;
- increase the capacity to collect and exchange data to co-produce strategic analyses on emerging trends and threats in drug markets bordering the EU; and
- enhance the preparedness of ENP partners to respond to emerging drug-related health and security threats in the ENP region.
