On June 7, 2024, in Chisinau, the Intermediate Conference on "Eastern Europe and the EU's democratic support during wartime" was held,  an event organized by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in partnership with Institute for Development and Social Initiatives (IDIS) "Viitorul", within the REDEMOS project - part of the Horizon programme - implemented by a number of eleven organizations from ten European countries.

The event brought together leading international experts, officials and researchers to discuss democratic development in Eastern Europe in the current context of the war in Ukraine and the role of the European Union and other international actors in supporting democracy in the region.

Dr. Mădălina Dobrescu, Coordinator and Principal Investigator at REDEMOS, NTNU, Trondheim, officially opened the event and welcomed all attendees. The keynote speech was delivered by the Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova, Dorin Recean, emphasizing the importance of solidarity and democratic support in these challenging times.

The first panel, titled "Democratic Development in Eastern Europe in Light of Russia’s War on Ukraine," was chaired by Prof. Dr. Tobias Schumacher, Professor of European Studies at NTNU and Deputy Coordinator of REDEMOS. Esteemed speakers included Ion Guzun, member of the Supreme Council Magistracy of the Republic of Moldova; Franak Viacorka, Chief Advisor to Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, President-elect of Belarus; Dr. Leyla Yunus, Director of the Institute of Peace and Democracy in the Netherlands; Prof. Dr. Richard Youngs, Professor of International and European Politics at Warwick University; Dr. Iryna Solonenko, Programme Director for Ukraine at the Center for Liberal Modernity in Berlin; and Nino Dolidze, Executive Director of the International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy in Tbilisi. The discussions focused on the impact of the Ukraine war on democratic processes in the region and the necessary measures to support democracy.

The conference continued with the second panel, "External Images and Self-perceptions of the EU, Its Actions, and Visibility in Eastern Europe," moderated by Rikard Jozwiak, Europe Editor at Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Panelists included Natalia Gavrilița, member of the Supervisory Board of the National Bank of Moldova; H.E. Ambassador Jānis Mažeiks, Head of the EU Delegation to Moldova; Dr. Koba Turmanidze, President of the Caucasus Research Resource Center in Tbilisi; Prof. Dr. Tina Freyburg, Chair of Comparative Politics at the University of St. Gallen; and Ion Manole, Executive Director of Promo-Lex in Chișinău. The panel examined external and internal perceptions of the EU and its actions in the region.

Lunch was followed by a presentation on "Diagnosing Political Regime Development in Eastern Europe through REDEMOS Tools: The Case of Moldova" by Prof. Dr. Marianne Kneuer and Dr. Sergiu Bușcaneanu from TU Dresden, providing a detailed analysis of how REDEMOS-developed tools can be used to understand the political development in Moldova.

The final panel, "Beyond the EU: The Role of Other International Actors in Eastern Europe and the Return of Geopolitics," moderated by Dr. Ragnar Weilandt, Research Fellow at REDEMOS, NTNU, featured H.E. Ambassador Thomas Mayr-Harting, Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-In-Office for the Transnistrian Settlement Process; Dr. Stanislav Secrieru, National Security Advisor to the President of Moldova; Laura Hruby, Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Moldova; Dr. Mareike Ohlberg, Lead at the Stockholm China Forum, German Marshall Fund; and Michaela Guerard Šimák, Head of the NATO Liaison Office in Moldova. This panel explored the role and influence of other international actors in Eastern Europe and recent geopolitical shifts.

The conference concluded with closing remarks by Dr. Tobias Schumacher, followed by networking coffee, providing an opportunity for participants to discuss and share their impressions.

This event served as an important platform for discussions and idea exchanges among experts and officials in international politics, aiming to promote democracy and stability in Eastern Europe during these turbulent times.

The international research project ”REDEMOS: Reconfiguring EU Democracy Support – Towards a sustained demos in the EU’s Eastern Neighbourhood”, which runs from January 2023 until December 2025, is directed by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and brings together a total of 11 academic and research institutions – six universities, four independent think tanks (including IDIS "Viitorul") – and one small and medium-sized enterprise from across Europe. This multi-annual, multi-million research project takes an in-depth look at the full range of political and governance regimes in the EU's eastern neighbourhood, from flawed democratisation in some countries to democratic regression and even repressive authoritarianism in others. REDEMOS aims to break new ground and suggest a comprehensive and transformative overhaul of the conceptualisation, policy-making and implementation of democracy in the EU's eastern neighbourhood.

The overall objective of REDEMOS is to develop a set of innovative policy tools to make EU democracy support policies more efficient, effective and sustainable. The anticipated project outputs will range from a holistic dataset summarising past democracy support actions and programmes to a set of working papers, policy documents, blog articles, visual reports, as well as workshops, conferences and more. Together with the participatory nature of the REDEMOS project, its results will be geared towards increasing citizens' involvement and participation in shaping future democratic structures in the EU's eastern neighbourhood.

The international research project REDEMOS is funded by the EU's Horizon Europe research and innovation program under grant agreement No 101061738. The Associated Partner University of Surrey has received funding from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) under the UK government’s Horizon Europe funding guarantee under grant number 10040721. The Associated Partner University of St. Gallen has received funding from the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI). Views and opinions expressed are, however, those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the EU, UKRI and SERI. Neither the EU nor UKRI or SERI can be held responsible for them.

This press release was developed in the framework of the project "REDEMOS: Reconfiguring EU support for democracy. Towards a strong demonstration in the EU's Eastern Neighbourhood' and does not necessarily reflect the view of the founder and co-founders or the REDEMOS consortium as such.

In July, 2023, the international research project ”REDEMOS: Reconfiguring EU Democracy Support – Towards a sustained demos in the EU’s Eastern Neighbourhood”,  became an integral part of the workshop ”Democracy Support Strategies in the European Union’s Neighbourhood”.

The event was marked as part of the 10th edition of the European Workshops in International Studies (EWIS 2023), which took place in Amsterdam between 12-14 July 2023 under the hospices of the European International Studies Association (EISA).

The workshop took place with the participation of three projects from the Horizon Europe Program of the EU: REDEMOS: Reconfiguring EU Democracy Support – Towards a sustained demos in the EU’s Eastern Neighbourhood; SHAPEDEM-EU: Rethinking and Reshaping the EU’s Democracy Support in its Eastern and Southern Neighbourhood; and EMBRACE: Embracing Change: Overcoming Blockages and Advancing Democracy in the European Neighbourhood.

”Bringing together three sister consortia, which working on similar issues related to democratic challenges in the European Union’s neighbourhoods, we embarked together on a journey to explore innovative frameworks for addressing these challenges and supporting democratic progress. The workshop was organized with the support of partners and members of the REDEMOS project team: Professor Theofanis Exadaktylos from the University of Surrey and Dr. Mădălina Dobrescu from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. At the same time, other participants from the REDEMOS consortium were: Dr. Marina Rabinovici from the Kyiv School of Economics, experts Diana Ranga-Enachi and Mihai Țurcanu from the Institute for Social Development and Initiatives (IDIS) "Viitorul" from the Republic of Moldova and Arusyak Aleksanyan and Ashot Aleksanyan of Yerevan State University", is mentioned in a press release issued by the REDEMOS project team.

The workshop sought to explore the nexus between current affairs and the challenges to democratisation and democracy at large, as well as to establish a platform to pooling collective insights, igniting diiscussions, and building synergies to advance our shared mission – to contribute to the consolidation of the democratic progress in the EU neighbourhood and beyond.

Diana Enachi and Mihai Țurcanu presented, during the workshop, the communication with tittle: " On the nowadays idea of democracy and how can Eastern Europe contribute to it". The authors made an analysis of the concept of democracy prevalent today in the West. They also looked at how liberal democracy, as a set of values ​​and visions, relates to other sets of values ​​and visions, particularly in Eastern Europe, which also claim to represent the idea of ​​democracy. The research also analyzes how liberal democracy relates to the idea of ​​democracy in general, but also to the different stages of its evolution.

The international research project ”REDEMOS: Reconfiguring EU Democracy Support – Towards a sustained demos in the EU’s Eastern Neighbourhood”, which runs from January 2023 until December 2025, is directed by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and brings together a total of 11 academic and research institutions – six universities, four independent think tanks (including IDIS "Viitorul") – and one small and medium-sized enterprise from across Europe. This multi-annual, multi-million research project takes an in-depth look at the full range of political and governance regimes in the EU's eastern neighbourhood, from flawed democratisation in some countries to democratic regression and even repressive authoritarianism in others. REDEMOS aims to break new ground and suggest a comprehensive and transformative overhaul of the conceptualisation, policy-making and implementation of democracy in the EU's eastern neighbourhood.

The overall objective of REDEMOS is to develop a set of innovative policy tools to make EU democracy support policies more efficient, effective and sustainable. The anticipated project outputs will range from a holistic dataset summarising past democracy support actions and programmes to a set of working papers, policy documents, blog articles, visual reports, as well as workshops, conferences and more. Together with the participatory nature of the REDEMOS project, its results will be geared towards increasing citizens' involvement and participation in shaping future democratic structures in the EU's eastern neighbourhood.

The international research project REDEMOS is funded by the European Union's Horizon Europe research and innovation program under grant agreement No 101061738. The Associated Partner University of Surrey has received funding from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) under the UK government’s Horizon Europe funding guarantee under grant number 10040721. The Associated Partner University of St. Gallen has received funding from the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI). Views and opinions expressed are, however, those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union, UKRI and SERI. Neither the European Union nor UKRI or SERI can be held responsible for them.

Sustainable (organic) farming could be a solution to the many problems in the agricultural sector. The implementation of such a concept requires efficient management of agricultural crops, careful monitoring of soil resources, and of the dynamics of crop growth. All this would be possible if drones were applied. The views were expressed at a round table focused on options and ideas for smart agriculture in Moldova. The event, organized by the Institute for Development and Social Initiatives (IDIS) "Viitorul", showcased two studies: "Agro-industrial complex: benchmarks for investment and export growth" and "The use of drones in the development of smart agriculture".

IDIS "Viitorul" expert Viorel Chivriga, who presented the study on the agro-industrial complex, stated that the vegetable sector is characterized by low yields and very low yields in most agricultural crops compared to European countries. It iss vulnerable to natural hazards. In years of drought, with frosts and other natural disasters, there was lacking an effective mechanism to reduce the impact of such risks in agriculture. At the same time, the Moldovan agricultural market is characterized by instability, strong price fluctuations, lack of balance between supply and demand of products, labor shortages, and frequent threats to the country's food security.

Viorel Chivriga also stated that the livestock sector has undergone colossal metamorphoses during the transition to a market economy. Between 1980 and 2022, the cattle herd shrank from a 1.1 million headcount to a 104,000 headcount. The pig population has fallen from over 2 million to almost 348 000. The number of sheep is estimated to have fallen somewhat more slowly, from 1.2 million animals to 433.8 thousand. Increases are recorded in the number of goats, from 19 thousand to 140 thousand; rabbits, from 365 thousand to 385 thousand; and bee families, from 168 to 191 thousand families.

A relevant sector for investments and investors is the small-scale primary industry for processing raw materials of plant and animal origin. In the first case, the ongoing trend of reorientation of exporters to other markets is visible but slow and thus endangering the surplus of particularly perishable products existing on the domestic market. Another sector that is of interest for investment is the livestock sector, whose production does not even come close to meeting domestic demand. Possible areas for investor interest are the creation of irrigation systems, the provision of renewable energy, and services to farmers - for farm monitoring to intervention in case of need.

As far as organic farming is concerned, the expert stated that the approach has been little promoted and has even disappeared from the authorities' attention recently. The areas that are now certified as organic are fewer than they were estimated to be around 2010. "The Ministry of Agriculture today is absent from the ongoing organic farming processes. To focus on organic farming we need to have a market. We do not provide the right information to the population about organic agricultural products," said the expert.

According to Dorin Afanas, IDIS "Viitorul" associate expert, who presented the study on the use of drones in the development of smart agriculture, sustainable agriculture could be one of the solutions to the many problems in the sector today. It aims at production with competitive results, with an environmentally friendly attitude, using integrated systems based on the scientific, balanced use of all technological components. The expert also stated that the implementation of such a concept requires efficient management of crops, careful monitoring of soil resources and the dynamics of the vegetation state of crops, and depending on the needs identified, plants can be provided with the optimal amounts of water or chemical inputs (e.g. fertilizers and pesticides). "Out of the numerous area of applicability of unmanned aerial vehicles, the research of this paper focuses on the implementation of these systems in agriculture. There is a wide variety of applications of unmanned aerial vehicles in agriculture, which perform work fully automated or even autonomously, from the field inspection phase, and treatment, to the creation of field productivity maps. Unmanned aerial vehicles are also known as drones. Physical work is replaced by intellectual work, with a reduction in human resources, and providing the conditions for increasing productivity, reducing production costs, and minimizing negative environmental impacts" said Dorin Afanas.

"The use of drones is becoming increasingly familiar throughout the world, increasingly practiced in the development of agriculture, in the management of agricultural land. Drones have become a revolutionary tool, and we need to take into account all these positive aspects of drone use and implement the system in Moldova. We need to bring modern trends here, at home" said Liubomir Chiriac, Executive Director of IDIS "Viitorul".

Valentin Ciubotaru, director of AO BIOS, stated that he had recently conducted a study on organic farming and developed the organic farming program in Moldova, but had to be guided by both the National Development Strategy and the Agriculture Development Strategy, as the latter did not transpose the provisions of the National Development Strategy as required by European directives. "We are now EU accession candidates and we should harmonize all these frameworks. If at the national level we have a strategy, why is it not reflected in the Agricultural Strategy? This is a problem. In the Republic of Moldova, there is, unfortunately, a lot of falsification concerning the certification of organic products and basically, this idea of organic farming is compromised. In the end, it is our health that is at stake" said Valentin Ciubotaru.

Former agriculture minister Vasile Bumacov, now director of CNFA Moldova, stated that drones have a future when it comes to high-value agriculture and the ministry must facilitate their use. "I believe that farmers in our country love modern approaches. Farmers were among the first engaged in technology transfer and they will continue by employing drones in agriculture. But companies need to be prepared not just to import this technology, but also to train the farmer," stated the former agriculture minister.

Mihaela Cojocaru, Communication and Knowledge Management Specialist at the International Fund for Agricultural Development's Consolidated Programme Implementation Unit, noted that under the SKiM project, several events related to knowledge management have been organized involving three countries - the Republic of Moldova, Morocco, and Sudan - to promote knowledge management, including in agriculture, and to bring innovational approaches in agriculture.

The roundtable was held in the framework of the project "Strengthening Knowledge Management for Greater Development Effectiveness in the Near East, North Africa, Central Asia and Europe (SKiM)" funded by the International Center for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas (ICARDA) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The project also collaborates with international partners such as CIHEAM-Bari, PROCASUR, Virginia Tech, as well as National Agricultural Research Systems (NARS), governments, and agricultural extension services in Moldova, Morocco, and Sudan.

A delegation from the Republic of Moldova, it’s about presidents and vice-presidents from two Local Action Groups (LAG’s) and members of Institute for Development and Social Initiatives (IDIS) ‘’Viitorul’’, did a study visit in Tartu town, from Estonia, between December, 8-10. 2021. It was organized in the ‘’Development of rural areas in Moldova using the LEADER / CLLD approach’’ project, implemented by IDIS ‘’Viitorul’’, Estonia Development Cooperation and two LAG’s from Estonia, it’s about "Tartu County Development Association" and "Pärnu Bay Partnership", with the financial support of the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

During the visit was visited Tartu Center for Creative Industries, where the participants found about activities of the Tartu County Development Association. Also, they went to Elva municipality, which is part of the city of Tartu, where they discussed with local authorities, visited farms in the areas, and the local farmers market. As well, they went to visit the Tartu Science Park and had an onion tour. At a samovar house and an onion farm, participants ate onion and tea pie. So, they visited Peipsimaa Center, wherein a workshop they made inscriptions on drums for shopping. Then, they had a local wine tasting and visited Alatskivi Castle. 

The purpose of the visit was to get an overview of the work of the Tartu County Development Association, to summarize the ongoing project, and to prepare a new cooperation project, which will be launched next year. Also next year, part of the team members from Tartu, Estonia, will pay a new visit to the Republic of Moldova.

The project "Development of rural areas in Moldova using the LEADER / CLLD approach" was signed in 2018. Through the project, IDIS "Viitorul" contributed to the creation of two Local Action Groups "Lunca Nistrului" in Ștefan Vodă district and "Subregion CULA" in Ungheni district. The LAGs meanwhile gathered members and received funding for the implementation of about 20 local projects. The project was implemented in two stages. In the first stage, four beneficiaries from "Lunca Nistrului" and five from "Subregion Cula" received financial support. In the second stage, financial support was provided for four beneficiaries from the "Dniester Meadow" and for five from the "CULA Sub-Region", including the LAGs. At the same time, during this period, IDIS "Viitorul" organized training seminars, information visits for all project beneficiaries. On October 1, 2021, in Chisinau, a mini-exhibition was organized in which the local products made within the “Cula Subregion” LAG, Ungheni district was presented and promoted.

There are 32 LAGs in the Republic of Moldova, involving approximately 350 administrative-territorial units (35% of rural areas) and around 1200 local institutions/organizations, including LPAs. LAGs are at different stages of development: some LAGs are in the process of being created, others have already implemented/are implementing local development projects. 

"Cula Subregion" LAG from Ungheni district (Cornești town, Cornești, Rădenii Vechi, Bumbăta, Alexeevca, Teșcureni, Măgurele, Boghenii Noi, Sinești, Hârcești, Curtoaia, Condrătești, Năpădeni, Cornova, Romanovca villages – about 23000 population, the creation of which was facilitated by IDIS "Viitorul"), represents a vast territory in a picturesque area crossed by important national and international roads. The LAG consists of 34 villages, organized in 13 town halls. The localities are sparsely populated and quite scattered, which increases the actual costs of building and maintaining road infrastructure and social services delivered locally.

"Lunca Nistrului" LAG from Ștefan-Vodă district (Căplani, Carahasani, Crocmaz, Palanca, Purcari, Olănești, Tudora, Viișoara villages – about 20000 population, the creation of which was facilitated by IDIS "Viitorul"), is located in the southeast of the Republic of Moldova, on the border with Ukraine. There are many wine companies in this area, most of them produce wines with the protected geographical indication "Ștefan-Vodă". The subregion has a favorable geographical position for the development of the local economy, it has traditions and experience in growing multiannual crops.

The project ‘’Development of rural areas in Moldova using the LEADER/CLLD approach’’, was implemented by IDIS ‘’Viitorul’’, Estonia Development Cooperation, "Tartu County Development Association", "Pärnu Bay Partnership", with the financial support of the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, from development cooperation and humanitarian aid funds. 

More photos from the visit can be viewed here.

From February 26 to March 1, IDIS "Viitorul" hosted a mission of the Yone Kyi Yar Knowledge Propagation Society (YKY) from the Republic of Myanmar. The mission included the Operations director, Zaw Htet Aung and the Programme director Myo Htet. Representatives of the institute from Myanmar visited our country in order to strengthen their knowledge in the dialogue between the authorities and the private sector, as well as in the monitoring of the electoral process.

"Collaboration of civil society with public authorities must take place in a partnership relationship, in a constructive dialogue. And our institute, through the expertise and projects we are implementing, is trying to open the way for this dialogue. The exchange of experience between NGOs from different contexts and countries is absolutely necessary for the democratic process”, declared Viorel Pirvan, the legal expert at IDIS "Viitorul".

In this respect, Zaw Htet Aung and Myo Htet appreciated the contribution of IDIS "Viitorul" in the Europeanization of the public sector and the promotion of the national business.

The mission visit agenda also included a series of working meetings with representatives of various civil society organizations, such as Transparency International Moldova, Promo-LEX Association, CALM, Center for Policies and Reforms, Center for the Analysis and Prevention of Corruption, but and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Republic of Moldova.

Thus, representatives of the Yone Kyi Yar Knowledge Propagation Society mentioned that from each organization they met accumulated information, experience and good practice that they will implement in Myanmar to improve the communication with public authorities and support the values of democracy. They also admitted that in their country, the public-private dialogue is not at the highest level, and relations between economic agents often suffer from a lack of competitiveness.

"Meetings with organizations fighting corruption have made us understand more about strategies and tools against this phenomenon. For example, Transparency International uses caricatures as an anti-corruption tool, which is very effective in reaching out the mass community and easily understandable", believes Myo Htet, Programme director of the Yone Kyi Yar Knowledge Propagation Society.

In turn, the Operations director at the same institute, Zaw Htet Aung, stated "We learned a lot of things from CALM. Our country faces many challenges in decentralization, and the information provided by CALM representatives will be shared with public officials at local and regional level. Also, the discussion with the Promo-LEX team brought good understandings of why NGOs should work with international partners in order to be more effective in local politics and activities”.

The mission of "Yone Kyi Yar" Knowledge Propagation Society is to promote democracy and knowledge-based society in Myanmar.