CHISINAU, February 8 (Itar-Tass) — Moldova’s economic growth will slow down from 6 percent to 3.5-4 percent in 2012, the country’s Economics Minister Valeriu Lazar said on Wednesday representing a program for stabilization and restoration of national economy.
He warned that a second scenario is possible, when Moldova’s economic growth may reach 1.5-2 percent in case of Europe’s deepening crisis.
The authorities have already taken some anti-crisis measures through reducing the budget deficit and increasing investments into infrastructure, Lazar said.
The Moldovan government also takes efforts to diversify sources of the republic’s economic growth.
“If earlier Moldova stood on one foot – money transfers from abroad, now we are taking efforts to make it to stand on its own two feet – export of goods and services,” Lazer said.
The minister added that the share of money transfers in the republic’s GDP reduced from 33 percent in 2008 to 21 percent in 2011. Risks emerged taking into account the fact that two thirds of money remittances flow to Moldova from Russia, although earlier most of them came from the EU member-states.
In the future Moldova expects lower financial assistance from abroad and to fill in the budget the government will have to increase taxes, he said.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development also reduced Moldova’s economic forecast from 4 percent to 3.5 percent.