The government has approved the signing of a 70m-euro loan agreement with the Council of Europe Development Bank for the implementation of the "Emergency Response to COVID-19 and SME Support" project.

The project will have two components:

1. Health, for which EUR 40 million is foreseen. This money will be used to finance the emergency purchase of equipment and consumables, the rehabilitation and transformation of medical units and the mobilization of additional expertise.

2. Support for medium-sized companies (SMEs), for which EUR 30 million is foreseen. The money will be allocated to the re-accreditation of SMEs affected by the crisis.

The Government of the Republic of Moldova estimates that the financial resources under the loan will cover the expenditure related to COVID-19 in the budget period 2020-2022. Accordingly, the disbursement deadline is 30 June 2022.