Black Book of Public Money Waste
BLACK BOOK of public money waste in Republic of Moldova
Annual journalistic investigations on the waste of public money in the Republic of Moldova
The Black Book of Public Money Waste is an annual publication that provides truthful information about how public money is used in the Republic of Moldova. Its main purpose is to contribute to a better awareness of the fact that each citizen deserves to be respected for paying their taxes and duties and that the representatives of public institutions are responsible for the transparent and efficient use of such resources. Each edition consists of a series of journalistic investigations revealing cases of waste and embezzlement of public money.
The Black Book is a project of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom, implemented in partnership with the Association of Independent Press. It is issued annually in Romanian, English and Russian, then published and sent to public institutions in the Republic of Moldova, foreign representations and embassies, libraries and other interested persons.
We took up this project in order to offer to the Moldovan citizens information about how their money is used.
The first edition of 2019
The first edition was published in Chisinau in 2019, following the example of the Bulgarian investigative journalists. The Black Book is now one of the best known regional projects investigating the embezzlement of European funds.
It features cases when taxpayer money was abusively used through public spending on useless or bad quality projects. In many cases, staggering amounts were used with no justification and without meeting any public needs. This work also brings examples of officials’ low responsibility leading to poor achievements and delays.
The Black Book (2019 edition) can be read in English, here.
Second edition of 2020
The second edition of the Black Book, launched in November 2020, includes eight journalistic investigations that show, as in the previous edition, the fraudulent way in which public funds are wasted and misappropriated. These include hospitals, kindergartens and other social buildings that have never been put into operation, poor quality road repairs and abuses by officials that cause great damage to the public budget.
You can find the 2020 edition here.
We further focus on elucidating fraud in the use of European money or other funds emanating from international donors.
Third edition of 2021
The third edition of the Black Book presents eight other independent investigative reports, which reveal the inefficient management of public money and assistance provided to Moldova by international partners, including during the pandemic. Doubtful purchases made in the health system organised specifically for certain companies, interests in the medicine market, blood tests worth millions of MDL left unused, medical equipment bought with European funds with overpayments to companies set up even before the purchase. Other cases expose , fictitious employment in state institutions, non-compliant distribution of public housing, and non-functioning factories that "swallowed" millions of MDL donated by the Japanese government.
The investigations can be read in full, here.
The 2022 edition of the Black Book includes several investigations in areas not covered previously - abuses of forest land, serious negligence in the management of young forests, sometimes unjustified tax exemptions that result in missed budget revenues, empty investments in educational institutions with a shortage of students. Unlike previous editions, where some of the investigations were about the
construction of roads and buildings, this edition focuses on areas such as ecology, education and even sport. You can find the 2022 english edition here and a russian translation here.