President Maia Sandu’s opening speech at the European Union–Republic of Moldova Investment Conference

Dear Commissioner Kos,
Dear Prime Minister,
Excellencies,
Dear partners and investors,

Welcome to Chișinău, and welcome to the EU-Moldova Investment Conference.

Your presence here is a message. A message that Moldova is a country the world now looks at with more confidence and more interest.

Moldova is changing - and that change is creating opportunities.

A few years ago, not many believed in us. We were called too small, too fragile, and too close to the war. We were told our European choice would not survive the pressure.

It survived - because we stood by it.

When others tried to buy our elections, to flood our country with dirty money and lies, to turn our people against their own future, we held our ground. And Moldovans chose Europe - freely, clearly, against the odds and the pressure.

We took on corruption that once seemed untouchable. People who believed they stood above the law learned that no, they don't, and no one will.

Our financial sector, which was once robbed, has had its integrity restored, and we are bringing it in line with European standards.

We are reforming every sphere of life at a pace few thought possible. The European Union calls Moldova the best student in the class - the fastest-moving candidate.

Behind that pace is our commitment. We said we would do the work, and we are doing it.

Our EU path is now firmer than ever. Moldova's place in the European Union has the support of all 27 member states. So when you invest in Moldova, you invest in a country whose future is anchored in Europe, in rules that are becoming European rules - on competition, on fair treatment, on the protection every serious investor expects.

As we align our laws and institutions with the largest single market in the world, we ask you to look at where Moldova is heading - and to arrive early and walk this path with us.

Many have made this journey. Country after country joined the European Union - small economies, recovering economies, economies others underestimated. They opened to Europe, they reformed, and European investment followed.

Within a generation they transformed: incomes rose, industries grew, and people who once left to find work found their future at home. It is a pattern, repeated across our continent, and it is the same pattern Moldova is living today. Those who invested in those countries early did not regret it.

And this is not a leap of faith. European investment in Moldova has grown by nearly 30 percent in the past four years.

The European Union is opening its market to us. It is also the largest investor in our transformation. The EU Growth Plan - close to 2 billion euros - will translate into roads, energy infrastructure, modern industry.

It rewards reform with access to finance, and it ties those funds to concrete projects happening now, in the sectors where Moldova can truly compete:

These are opportunities open today, for partners with the ambition to seize them.

And we have the people to build with - dynamic, working in several languages, and increasingly choosing to come home, because the future is finally here.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Our commitment is clearest in energy.

Four years ago, Moldova depended entirely on a single supplier for its gas and electricity. That dependency was used against us and we ended it, something no government had dared to do in three decades. We diversified our supply. We connected our grid to Europe. We grew renewables from 3 to 25 percent of our domestic electricity mix. We did this in the middle of a crisis, with a war next door. We are turning our greatest vulnerability into a source of strength.

Today energy prices are high again, this time because of the conflict in the Middle East. But we know what we have to do, and we are doing it - investing in domestic generation, in storage, in the grid, and in energy efficiency.

Moldova today is defined by this commitment.

The commitment to defend democracy, the commitment to uphold the rule of law, the commitment to join the European Union and stay part of the free world.

That same commitment goes into our ambition to make Moldova one of the most business-friendly countries in Europe. Cutting bureaucracy. Backing investment with real support - including state aid for companies that build and manufacture here.

Building industrial parks where you can start fast. Opening the door to the European single market, where you can build in Moldova and sell to 450 million consumers. Or to Ukraine.

Once the reconstruction of Ukraine starts, Moldova will be a natural hub for logistics, services, manufacturing, and energy. So when you invest here, you invest in the future of this entire part of Europe.

And my commitment to you is that you will not navigate Moldova alone. This government will stand beside investors - to cut through the red tape, to solve problems before they become obstacles.

Dear friends,

We are a small country. And it means we have to try harder, move faster, and work harder than anyone to earn your confidence. We are doing exactly that.

People ask me what guarantees Moldova can offer an investor. My answer is our record. We move fast. We deliver on our commitments. We have proven it under the hardest conditions a small country can face. And we will prove it to you.

Be part of the Moldova story.

Thank you.

Pentru cetățenii noștri și pentru companiile de acasă, vreau să reafirm: drumul european înseamnă investiții, locuri de muncă și un viitor aici, acasă.

Astăzi salutăm la Chișinău tot mai mulți investitori privați, bănci de dezvoltare și prieteni din Uniunea Europeană care vor să ia parte la succesul economic al Moldovei.

Munca noastră de zi cu zi este să transformăm parcursul european al Moldovei în oportunități reale pentru oameni - pentru ca toți moldovenii să aibă parte de pace, siguranță și bunăstare, acasă, în familia europeană.