Where is Moldova - just down the road from Steyning, actually
"Where is Moldova" - wasn't that the first thing David Beckham said when England were drawn to play them in the 1990s? It's also a board game, a kind of European Monopoly. And it's possibly the place Michael Praed came from when he was a Prince in Dynasty, give or take a vowel.
So Moldova still has an aura of mystery about it. At least for me. That's why I went along to Moldova - Moving Ahead, a Wilton Park conference, last week. We fund projects there under the SPFRE. I managed to get along on Friday, because in this job, covering seventeen countries, the chance to focus on just one for a short time should not be missed
Wilton Park nestles beneath the South Downs, just off the A283 near Steyning, north west of Brighton. If you don't get the train to Shoreham-by-Sea and then taxi it, you need to drive through several small villages like Henfield and Poynings which I've always thought might well have been a model for some of the early scenes in Thunderball. I managed to get there unscathed, though - despite roadworks near the Adur flyover - and took my seat for the Friday sessions.
The highlight for me was the session on Transnistria - which brought together Transnistrians and Moldovans, Ukrainians, EU officials, an American, Russians and Romanians, to talk seriously about what they think is going to happen, why, and what needs to happen to change anything. Moldova would, I think, like to be a full member of the EU; Transnistria is more attached to Russia. Poverty in both is still high by European standards - it is one of the two countries where DfID has a programme which is not already winding down.
Our FCO project work is focussed on capacity building with the government and work on Rules of Origin for goods. It's a small but busy programme - seven projects totalling £280,000 - and we work actively alongside our fellow EU members, especially Lithuania - who co-hosted the Wilton Park conference. An excellent example of new member state skills and expertise being used with non-members.
So I think I know a little more about Moldova now. But at the end of the day there's not substitute for actually being there. I won't manage a proper project-related visit to Moldova during by time on this desk. But I think I'll put my name down to be an election observer in March 2009.
Posted at 16:43 20 October 2008 by Chris Frean | Comments[0]