Enhancing the Development of Moldova through Engagement with Diaspora-Homeland Partnerships (IDF)

The overall goal of the IDF-project is to maximize the positive impact of migration on the country’s socio-economic development through Moldovan diaspora engagement. To this end, the project supports the capacity of the national institutions, aiming at strengthening the ownership and capacities for implementing diaspora programming and engagement policies. One such activity involves identifying diaspora leaders across various thematic groups and enabling the creation of “Diaspora Excellence Groups” to be actively involved in a continuous and productive diaspora-homeland partnership.

The project furthermore strives to enable the Moldovan diaspora and migrant communities to enhance their socio-cultural and educational efforts, while also fostering improved language and cultural education for children and youth in the diaspora. This objective shall be reached through offering technical and informational support for diaspora cultural and language training centers to provide better services and expand their local outreach. The project will also create a language and cultural training curricula and complementary didactic sets, based on international best practices.

In short, the project focuses on advancing the capacity of the Moldovan Government to interact with, and support the Diaspora’s initiatives, as well as increase the diaspora’s propensity of efficient and systematic engagement in activities benefiting the development of Moldova. It is also the aim of the project to support the effort of maintaining the diaspora’s national identity and their cultural links with their homeland. Capacity-building activities will contribute towards the development of specialized knowledge and engagement instruments of government staff and diaspora activists, serving to improve overall quality of work undertaken by these institutions and professional groups.