Legal and regulatory framework for communal service provision barometer (April 2021)

The Project on civic engagement in local governance „MĂ IMPLIC” presents the first edition of a mapping of gaps, conflicts, and constraints in the legal and regulatory framework which prevent the provision of good quality and affordable communal services by the local public authorities in the Republic of Moldova.

This analysis of shortcomings in the legal and regulatory framework in the field of communal services is the result of a mapping exercise performed based on documentary analysis and review (strategies, laws, decisions, studies, articles, etc.) followed by interviews and discussions with relevant stakeholders (mayors and other representatives of the local government, service operators, Association Moldova Apă Canal, experts in the given field, central public authorities). In this first edition, only (1) water supply, sanitation, and (2) solid waste management were analyzed. Other communal services will be added in later editions.

The analysis aims to provide a comprehensive overview of problems in the legal and regulatory framework in a format that allows identifying priorities for solutions. Such solutions shall be discussed in a policy dialogue format between central government institutions that set the conditions and local government which has to implement them. The tool can also serve as an inter-institutional monitoring tool, showing the evolution over time of various aspects of communal service’s legal and regulatory framework. Moreover, this type of monitoring could incentivize government institutions to take action to improve the situation in the field of communal services. On the other hand, it could help to identify areas for improvement to be supported by the development partners through technical assistance, financial resources for investments, etc. For these purposes, the analysis will be repeated in regular intervals and the findings will be updated to the actual status, turning a snapshot analysis into a barometer-like monitoring tool.

In the first edition of the Barometer, we found that almost no changes to the legal and regulatory framework have been made during the past 12 months (“trend”). The notable exemption from this inactivity is the drafting of a methodology of tariff calculation and approval for SWM services which is expected to be finalized and adopted soon. The analysis further shows that in about one quarter of the identified issues the actual status does require urgent improvements. Here, the current practice of service delivery cannot be improved because of conflicts, contradictions, insufficiencies in the current legal framework. (“Urgency”)

The full document can be downloaded at: https://ma-implic.md/download/barometer-of-communal-services-april2021/

The project on civic engagement in local governance “MĂ IMPLIC” aims at ensuring that the rural population of Moldova has equitable access to quality communal service provision. The project „MĂ IMPLIC” is financed by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and implemented by Skat Consulting Ltd.