Chisinau, 21 August 2024 - Today, the General Inspectorate of Police (GIP) hosted the handover ceremony for specialized equipment donated by IOM Moldova to the national authority, with the attendance of Gavin Buchan, the Ambassador of Canada to Romania, Bulgaria and the Republic of Moldova, Adrian Efros, Minister of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Moldova, Ester Ruiz de Azua, Chief of Mission of IOM Moldova, and Viorel Cernauteanu, Chief of the General Inspectorate of Police.

This support was provided as part of the project "Strengthening National Policing Capacity in the Republic of Moldova" funded by the Government of Canada through the Peace and Stabilization Operations Program, which strengthens community safety and cohesion through expanded collaboration between IOM, the General Inspectorate of Police, local community representatives including migrants and refugees and non-governmental organizations, focusing especially on municipalities in border areas. 

"The donations will help modernize and make our police forces more efficient, allowing us to better serve and protect our communities. The project is a demonstration of the partnership between our nations and a motivation for new initiatives. We look forward to continuing to work with the Government of Canada to address the challenges we face and to build a safer and more resilient future through new projects." said Adrian Efros, Minister of Internal Affairs

“Canada's Support for Moldova’s democracy, sovereignty, and security is a top priority for Canada. This project will help Moldova offer its people a more secure life by enabling the General Inspectorate of Police to better respond to the needs of local communities.”  stated Gavin Buchan, the Ambassador of Canada to Romania, Bulgaria and the Republic of Moldova

“This contribution will help protect the safety, well-being and rights of host communities, migrants, and refugees and will enhance the operational capacity of the state institution while strengthening the community trust in law enforcement institutions” said Ester Ruiz de Azua, Chief of Mission of IOM Moldova. 

Viorel Cernăuțeanu, Chief of GIP: "All these goods will facilitate the efficient work of police officers, their reaction time, integrity and, of course, quality documentation during the service. A big thank you to the partners for their continuous support to the National Police and for streamlining the quality of law enforcement officers' work."

The donation includes 10 patrol vehicles to improve police response to emergencies, 40 body cameras to enhance police accountability and help prevent corruption, 40 rugged tablets to strengthen the ability of officers deployed in the field to access databases in real-time, 5 state-of-the-art smuggling detection kits to enhance cross-border crime detection and 20 workstations. 

Background:

The project Strengthening National Policing Capacity in the Republic of Moldova is funded by the Government of Canada through the Peace and Stabilization Operations Program and implemented by IOM Moldova between 1 September 2023 – 28 February 2025. It aims to enhance peace, security, and stability through rebuilding trust between law enforcement officials and communities and improving migrant and host community safety in the Republic of Moldova. Project beneficiaries are National and local authorities, host communities, civil society, Ukrainian refugees, third country nationals who seek safety in the Republic of Moldova
 

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For more information, please contact: 
Riccardo Severi, Communications and Public information Officer, IOM Moldova, rseveri@iom.int