The grant agreement between the Government of the Republic of Moldova and the Japanese Government on the implementation of the project "Agriculture Conservation  - develop a sustainable system on management of soil in Moldova" was signed today by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration, Andrei Galbur and Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of Japan in Chisinau, Masanobu Yoshii.

The purpose of this project is the acquisition of agricultural technology and equipment for agriculture conservation which has a budget of 500 million yen (about 4.8 million US dollars).

The grant is provided by the Japan in the frame of the Program for Social and Economic Development, a instrument of the Official Development Assistance (ODA) of Japan.

In this respect, the minister Andrei Galbur express his gratitude to the Government of Japan for the assistance offered to Moldova in priority sectors: agriculture, health, education, environment and culture.

Previously to the official ceremony, the minister Andrei Galbur and the Ambassador Masanobu Yoshii had a courtesy meeting and exchanged views on the project, to be managed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry.

Parties have expressed their confidence that the implementation of the project will help to reduce soil degradation on long term in Moldova and our country will become more competitive in agriculture.

The Agreement will be signed on 16 March 1992, the eve of the 25th anniversary of the Moldovan-Japanese diplomatic relations. During this period, the financial assistance offered by Japan to Moldova constitutes over 150 million US dollars. At the bilateral aspect, Japan is the third largest donor of Moldova, after the European Union and the United States.