IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PRINCIPLES OF EFFECTIVE PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN MOLDOVA

Introduction. The article analyzes the basic principles of an effective public administration in the interests of sustainable development, lists the legislative acts confirming the commitment to these principles. Also, special attention is paid to the state programs for the implementation of the SDGs in the Republic of Moldova, to the special state bodies that are engaged in the implementation of the SDGs and their goals, as well as to the areas in which the Republic of Moldova cooperates with international organizations in relation to the SDGs. At the end of the article, the authors describe the main problems faced by the Government of the country in implementing the Principles of Effective Public Administration in the Interests of Sustainable Development and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Methods and materials. The research methodology is based on the following general scientific and special methods of cognition: the method of system-structural analysis, comparative, and formal-logical method. The article analyzes the materials and data provided by the national institutes of the Republic of Moldova, as well as the data and materials of international organizations, including: the United Nations, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the World Health Organization, the United Nations Children's Fund, the International Organization for Migration, the International Labour Organization, etc. Results: As a result of the study, it became clear that the Republic of Moldova is actively working towards the implementation of the principles of effective public administration in the interests of sustainable development of Moldova. Despite the difficulties faced by the Republic of Moldova, the country still managed to achieve significant results in this area. The documents adopted at the state level contributed to achieving the goals and meeting the main requirements for the pace and quality of economic development in the period up to 2030. Svetlana Rusu* Ion Partachi**


Introduction
T he Republic of Moldova is a country situated in Eastern Europe, with a population of 2 640 400 million people (2020) [13]. Moldova is in the global demographic trend of global aging of the world's population and the resulting demographic crisis in a number of countries, both developed and developing. Low birth rate, low life expectancy, aging population, about one third of the working-age population currently abroad, characterize demographic changes in Moldova in recent years.
On September 25, 2015, Moldova signed with other UN member states A / RES / 70/1 Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development. The implementation of all targets is mainly associated with effective public administration and includes the existence of effective legislation and government agencies that will create a favorable environment for the implementation of sustainable development goals (SDGs).

Principles of Effective Governance
for Sustainable Development Goal 16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels and provide for the implementation of the following tasks [5]: Target 16.5: Substantially reduce corruption and bribery in all their forms Target 16.6: Develop effective, accountable and transparent institutions at all levels Target 16.7: Ensure responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels.
Target 16.8: Broaden and strengthen the participation of developing countries in the institutions of global governance. Target 16.10: Ensure public access to inform and protect fundamental freedoms, in accordance with the national legislation and international agreements.
Target 16.a: Strengthen relevant national institutions, including through international cooperation, to build capacity at all levels, in particular in developing countries to prevent violence, combat terrorism and crime.
Target 16.b: Promote and enforce non-discriminatory laws and policies for sustainable development.
In the Republic of Moldova, the adaptation of the 2030 agenda began as a result of cooperation between the government, UN Moldova, as a key partner in the development of the Republic of Moldova and Expert-Group, which provided analytical support for the entire process. This task was to identify relevant and priority goals for the Republic of Moldova, as well as adapting the goals for achieving national specifics (without affecting the nature and spirit of the SDG objectives). It is important that the process was very transparent: all interested parties, decision-makers, development partners, representatives of the private sector and civil society organizations, as well as civil society leaders were invited to consultations.
The adaptation process consisted of five major stages: 1. Technical analysis of the links between the SDG targets and national policies. The main goal of this phase was to understand the level of coherence between the 2030 Agenda and domestic policy priorities.
2. Consultations between policymakers, development partners, the private sector and By 2030, Moldova is expected to become a country where poverty and corruption are eliminated, inequality is reduced, social inclusion and cohesion are strengthened, so that "no one is left behind", a country where human rights, gender equality and women's empowerment, the rule of law, environmental sustainability and the wellbeing of the population are respected and promoted.
Discussion and conclusions. In its ambition to achieve SDGS, the Republic of Moldova is facing a myriad of challenges. Despite the fact that significant progress was registered, there is still a lot of work to do at all levels of public administration. Moreover, it is also essential to enhance the system for SDGs implementation monitoring and evaluation. This 2030 Agenda requires a profound change that goes beyond the economic and political situation of the country. Moldova will achieve the key indicators of sustainable development and become a favourable country for the life of its citizens if only it will promote economic development policies of the country.
civil society organizations on the current and priority objects of SDGs. The main goal was to understand the views of as many stakeholders as possible about which SDG goals and targets should be adopted by Moldova and in what form (some goals need adjustment).
3. Analysis of all interdependencies among all SDG goals to identify central targets, the application of which creates the greatest number of positive effects on the other goals and thus accelerates the implementation of the entire 2030 Agenda. Thus, a set of "SDG central goals" has been identified and these should be considered by the government when prioritizing resource allocation. In view of their multiplier effect, it is recommended to include "core SDGs" in the National Development Strategy. The rest of the SDG targets, which are by no means less important, are recommended for inclusion in cross-sectoral and sectoral strategic planning documents.
4. Formulation of guidelines for mainstreaming the SDGs into the planning and policymaking process at all levels in order to make the 2030 Agenda operational.
5. Definition of a data ecosystem for the SDGs, which lasted in parallel with the stages of nationalization of the SDG goals mentioned above. A key precondition for effective implementation of the 2030 Agenda is a robust and transparent monitoring and evaluation system that can be implemented based on the set of SMART performance indicators assigned to each SDG goal. Since the definition of the relevant SDG targets, a thorough statistical analysis has been carried out in order to determine the appropriate indicators that will be used to measure performance in achieving specific goals." A year later, on July 27, 2016, the National Coordination Council for Sustainable Development was established by Government Decree No. 912 of July 25, 2016, whose members are appointed at the appropriate stage by ministries and government agencies. The implementation of the 2030 Agenda, as well as the development of the set of indicators for its monitoring, is boosted by the cooperation between the Government of the Republic of Moldova and the UN Country Office. At the initiation stage of the nationalization/discussion process, inter-institutional working groups were created which ensured maximum transparency of the process. Another moment that should be mentioned is the fact that the nationalization process took place through the prism of policy documents -National Development Strategy Moldova 2030 and Sectoral strategies. It is very important to note that the working groups created, in addition to representatives of ministries and branch agencies, also had representatives of civil society.
Since 2016, the Republic of Moldova has been taking a number of steps aimed at a comprehensive reform of the public administration system. According to Articles 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112 and 113 of the Constitution of the Republic of Moldova, ministries are the central sectoral bodies of the state. They implement, in accordance with the law, the policy of the government, its decisions and orders, manage the entrusted spheres of activity and are responsible for their activities.
On July 6, 2016, the Government approved the Public Administration Reform Strategy between 2016-2020. The strategy focused on five aspects of public administration: increasing administrative responsibility; improving the process of developing and coordinating state policy; improving public services; modernization of public finance, civil service and human resources management. The Approved Document differed from the previous policy of reforming public administration in that it not only limited itself to central government agencies, but also targeted local ones. The strategy was implemented in two stages: 2016-2018, during which the main attention was paid to the reform of central public administration authorities, and 2019-2020, aimed at reforming local self-government authorities.
For the implementation of the strategy on Public Administration Reform for 2016-2020, the government approved the Action Plan for 2016-2018. To implement the strategy of public administration reform for 2016-2020, the government approved the Action Plan for 2016-2018 to formulate and define the actions of the plan, taking into account the provisions of the government for 2016-2020, the program of activities, conclusions and recommendations of development partners of the Republic of Moldova, including the results of the study "principles of Public Administration", carried out by the OECD SIGMA Programme [12] between October 2015 and March 2016.
The principles of public administration reform are: -Legality; -Partnership and institutional dialogue; -Integrity; -Participation, impartiality and inclusion; -Openness and transparency; -Professionalism; -Focus on citizens; Право и управление. XXI век -Efficiency and effectiveness; -Vision and durability; -Responsibility. The Law № 93/2017 on official statistics of 26 May 2017 [19] is aimed at the stable development of the national statistical system in the medium term and provides the improvement of the statistical infrastructure and the improvement of certain statistical areas and methodologies. According to this law, the National Bureau of Statistics is reorganized by merging (absorption) with the public Institution "Information service of financial reports attached to the National Bureau of Statistics".
The National Bureau of Statistics, within 3 months from the date of entry into force of the decision: 1) was to reorganize the territorial subdivisions of statistics in accordance with the provisions of the legislation; 2) had to submit to the Government for approval the calculation methodology, the nomenclature and the size of tariffs for services provided for a fee by the National Bureau of Statistics.
It should also be noted that in recent years, the Republic of Moldova has made significant progress in the introduction and use of information technologies in public administration. To this end, the Government of the Republic of Moldova signed the Resolution № 314 on May 22, 2017[17] on the establishment of the Public Services Agency. The purpose of the Agency is to provide public services in electronic form, to form a system of interdepartmental electronic interaction and to create a basic state information system.
According to the official declarations and statements in 2020, the public administration of the Republic of Moldova is more efficient and responsible at all levels, serves only the interests of citizens using efficient financial resources and applies transparent catalyst and according to clear standards, important deduction of and according to country standards. [20], which adopts the NDS correlated with SDGs; adopts the necessary lows for SDGs; approves the financial resources in accordance with SDGs priorities; supervises the SDGs implementation by the Government and informs the public about the importance of SDGs 2. The Government of the Republic of Moldova [4], which ensures the implementation of domestic and foreign policies of the State and governs the public administration. Its aim is to approve intersectoral and sectoral policy papers correlated with SDGs; to approve regulatory acts and draft laws correlated with SDGs; to approve MTBF correlated with SDGs and to develop the State Budget correlated with SDGs.

The main institutions responsible for the implementation of the sustainable development in Moldova are: 1. The Parliament of the Republic of Moldova
3. National Coordination Council for Sustainable Development is the main and the most important platform for high level coordination and monitoring of the adaptation and integration of SDGs in national policies. The members of the Council are: government members, representatives of State Chancellery, of academia and of associative sector, being chaired by the Prime Minister. Under the Council, there are sectoral groups created in the state authorities involved in strategic planning. The NCCSD is responsible for ensuring the localization process for the SDGs included in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; the process of coordination and monitoring of adaptation and implementation of SDG targets at the national level; the coordination the assessment of the efficiency, effectiveness and impact of SDGs localization in national policy documents; the collaboration with development partners in order to raise awareness of importance of SDGs from the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the involvement of the entire society, and to implementation of these objectives in the Republic of Moldova; the approvement of the composition of sectoral working groups from public authorities which participate in developing sectoral and regional plans, programs, concepts and strategies, other sectoral policy documents approved by the government, and in performing other national and international commitments related to SDGs implementation.
4. Inter-ministerial Committee for Strategic Planning which was established in order to optimize the strategic planning. The Committee has a wide range of responsibilities to ensure a coherent national strategic planning system related to financial resources and the European integration agenda. Its main role during the nationalization of the SDGs is to approve development priorities for national policy documents, medium-term budgetary frameworks and o social development assistance. More precisely, ICSP ensures consistency between the strategic priorities set out in the program documents and the actions taken by the central specialized public administration authorities to achieve them; coordinates the development and monitors the implementation of the Activity Program of the Government, National Development Strategy and other strategic documents; monitors the activity of the Group Coordinating the УПРАВЛЕНИЕ: ПРОБЛЕМЫ И ПЕРСПЕКТИВЫ Development of Medium-Term Expenditure Framework, the National Council for Regional Development and other Government committees involved in strategic planning; ensures the correlation of the developed policies with the commitments undertaken by the Government, especially with the European integration agenda; ensures the correlation of foreign assistance programs with the identified strategic priorities; ensures that central public authorities develop sectoral and intersectoral policies from the perspective of a balanced regional development. [18] is responsible for establishing the general framework that defines the Government priorities, providing methodological and organizational support to the public policy planning, developing and implementing system at the level of ministries and other central administrative authorities. The Policy Coordination and Foreign Aid Unit operates under the State Chancellery, whose key functions are to determine government priorities; analyses and ensure the alignment of policy documents and regulatory acts with the country's strategic priorities; establish a methodological and organizational framework for the public policy planning, developing and implementing system at the level of ministries and other central public authorities; harmonizes the national strategic documents and the action plans implementing them, Medium-Term Budgetary Framework and other policy papers and commitments, so that they may provide to the Government and to the Central Public Administration Authorities a clear understanding of priorities; manage the entire cycle of programming the foreign assistance and harmonize it with the budgetary cycle and with policy planning. In order to perform these duties, the Unit monitors the National Development Strategy and the Activity Program of the Government, develops and monitors the Government Action Plan, coordinates the preparation of strategic development programs by the authorities, endorses policy documents. Simultaneously, the Unit coordinates the nationalization, implementation and monitoring of SDGs, and performs the duties of NCCSD secretariat. Thus, the State Chancellery, through the Department for Policy Coordination and Foreign Aid, acts as a filter in the alignment of program documents and public policies with the SDGs prior to their approval by the Government, while simultaneously monitoring the implementation of the SDGs at the national level.

State Chancellery
6. The Ministry of Finance submits the Medium-Term Budgetary Framework for ap-proval to the Government, which plays a key role in the strategic planning process as it links the policy framework with the resource framework. Thus, the Ministry approves all program documents in terms of the resources planned for their implementation; organizes and coordinates the MTBF development; determines the expenditure limits by sectors; reviews the sector expenditure strategies; coordinates the distribution of sectoral expenditure limits by components of national public budget and by central public authorities; develops the MTBF, consults, and submits it to the Government for approval. To regulate and standardize the complex process of budgetary planning according to the development priorities, the Ministry of Finance develops detailed methodological rules on preparing, approving and amending the budget, which should be followed by central administrative authorities. As a result, it is necessary to make references to the Sustainable Development Goals at every stage described in the methodological rules in order to mainstream the SDGs in the budget process.
7. Local public authorities develop, implement, monitor, and evaluate public policies, submits budget proposals to the Ministry of Finance, and ensure the fulfilment of the international commitments within their remit. Thus, the central public authorities are directly responsible for nationalizing and mainstreaming SDGs in the sectoral and intersectoral policy documents, and for implementing and monitoring the SDGs. At the level of central public authorities, the public policies and the policy documents are developed and coordinated by the internal sub-divisions in charge of the corresponding policy areas. These units should incorporate commitments made under the 2030 Agenda into sectoral policies. At the same time, policy analysis, monitoring and evaluation divisions established in each ministry play an important role in this process. They provide methodological support during the development of policies, align the public policies under development with the national policy documents, and correlate the developed public policies with the framework of available financial resources. According to their mandate, the Policy Analysis, Monitoring and Evaluation divisions are responsible at the institutional level for incorporating the SDGs into sectoral policy documents and then monitoring their implementation. Like in the case of the State Chancellery, the Policy Analysis, Monitoring and Evaluation divisions are aimed to ensure the coherence between sectoral policy documents developed by authorities, the national priorities, budgetary Право и управление. XXI век framework and the international commitments, such as the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development [11].

Cooperation with International Organizations
The Republic of Moldova is working together with the United Nations to contribute to the development and protection of human rights and to improve living conditions in the country, as well as to achieve goals for future international cooperation.
These key events and strategic aspirations lie at the heart of the United Nations Partnership Framework for Sustainable Development (PFSD) with the Government of Moldova for the period 2018-2022, which aims to help Moldova achieve the SDGs by supporting the European integration drive through the rights and an inclusive approach. To make all this possible, Moldova cooperates with a number of international organizations: [6].

UN Country Team Moldova -Resident Agencies Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nation (FAO)
The FAO's office in Chisinau was opened in 2015. In 2014, the Government of Moldova adopted the National Agriculture and Rural Development Strategy (NARDS) for the period of 2014-2020. The priorities of NARDS are the following: Increase competitiveness of the agrifood sector through modernization and market integration; Ensure sustainable management of natural resources in agriculture; Improve standards of living in rural areas. In addition, the Government is implementing the National Strategy on Environment for 2014-2023, which focuses on sustainable development, environment protection and disaster risk management.
International Labour Organization (ILO) [8]. The ILO in Moldova has been active since October 2005 with a focus on major nation-wide challenges identified with its constituents and emphasized in its. The ILO has supported recent reforms, including public sector pay reform and the modernization of the public employment service (PES). It supported the first time ever Local Employment Partnerships to generate jobs and improve livelihoods in rural communities. ILO builds knowledge on better working conditions with regard to working time, contractual arrangements and employment protection. ILO helps Moldova meet reporting obligations to ratified International Labour Standards (42 ILO Conventions), including the 8 Fundamental Conventions.
International Organization for Migration (IOM) [7]. The IOM Mission in Moldova opened in 2001, whereas Moldova officially became an IOM Member State in 2003. The Mission's main commitment follows the principle that humane and orderly migration benefits migrants and society.
As a leading international organization in the field of migration, according to mutual agreements between IOM and the Government of the Republic of Moldova, the IOM Mission to Moldova works with its partners in the international community mainly in the following four areas: Migration & Development; Prevention and Protection (Counter-Trafficking); Migration Management and Facilitated Migration.
IOM works in partnership with the Moldovan government, international intergovernmental organizations as well as local NGOs on all aspects of migration, including developing capacities to manage migration flows, developing international cooperation, leveraging migration for development, better protecting the migrants' rights, providing guidance on migration legislation, improving migration management and border management and combating trafficking in human beings. [21] was established in Moldova in 2008. UN Human Rights in Moldova assists the UN Country Team in Moldova, the authorities, the judiciary, the parliament, national human rights institutions and civil society through technical advice and capacity building activities to protect, respect, fulfil and mainstream human rights in the country.

The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/ AIDS (UNAIDS) [9]. UNAIDS is leading the global effort to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals. Together with other countries, the Republic of Moldova participated at the UN General Assembly in 2011 where the Political Declaration of Commitment to eliminate HIV/AIDS was signed. The joint Monitoring and Evaluation framework of the National Programme on Prevention and Control of HIV/ AIDS and STI in the Republic of Moldova has been implemented starting from 2005.
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) [28]. UNDP works in nearly 170 countries and territories, including the Republic of Moldova, helping to achieve the eradication of poverty, and the reduction of inequalities and exclusion. It helps Moldova to develop policies, leadership skills, partnering abilities, institutional capabilities and build resilience to sustain development results. UNDP in Moldova is guided by its Country Programme Document, and the UN-Moldova Development Assistance for 2018-2022, which is in line with the priorities of the Government of Moldova. UNDP Moldova's country Programme for 2018-2022 has three major focus areas: Inclusive growth; Effective governance; Climate change, environment and energy; and three cross-cutting areas: Gender equality; Crisis response; Development impact. UNDP is supporting Government's efforts in spearheading the nationalization of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and integrating the 2030 Agenda into the country's national development framework. With UN support, the Government of Moldova assessed the progress on achieving the SDGs and presented its first Voluntary National Report at the High-Level Political Forum in July 2020. United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) [25]. UNICEF has been working for the realization of the rights of children and women of Moldova since 1995. Partnerships with the government, parliamentarians, civil society, media, business and others have resulted in advances in the realization of children's rights in a number of areas and the increased commitment of duty bearers to the fulfilment of their obligations as per the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). UNICEF's work addresses issues of all children in the country to improve their health, education, development, and protection.
During its current Country Programme, UNICEF aims to build, jointly with partners, on past successes to ensure that all children have access to basic services; that all children grow up in a caring and loving family; obtain a quality education, and develop to the best of their potential.
UNICEF supports both the government and civil society to ensure social inclusion of children and their families who are at risk of exclusion due to geographic disparities, poverty, ethnicity, disability, gender, and lack of parental care.
UN Women [28]. Since 2010, UN Women in Moldova works at the intersection between gender equality and media. In partnership with the Independent Press Association of Moldova and a range of different media outlets, it seeks opportunities to raise awareness of gender equality among the media, including through specialized workshops and toolkits to help them practice gender-sensitive reporting. Its main aim in Moldova is to combat violence against women in Moldova. The organization works closely with UN agencies in Moldova, under the leadership of the UN Resident Coordinator, to support efforts by the Government, Parliament, civil society, media and communities to promote gender equality and the empowerment of women.
World Health Organization (WHO) [30]. The WHO Country Office, Republic of Moldova, was established in 1995, in Chisinau, to provide continuous support to health authorities and partners in improving population health through evidence-based, sustainable public health and health care interventions as well as to advise on health in all policies. Over the years the Office has been the focal point for all WHO activities in the Republic of Moldova. The priorities for the Country Office are set out in the biennial collaborative agreement between WHO/ Europe and the Republic of Moldova.
Moreover, Republic of Moldova cooperates with National Agency of regulation of nuclear and radiological activities (IAEA) [

Implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals
Moldova is moving towards the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. The Government of Moldova, with the support of UN Country Team, has prepared 2 reports on the nationalization of the SDGs (targets and indicators) in the country in 2017. The Reports are published on the website of The State Chancellery [32].
The Republic of Moldova conducted a light Rapid Integrated Assessment (RIA) of its national policy documents (such as strategies, programs and plans). This exercise was intended to contribute to identifying gaps and weaknesses within the national policy framework about implementation of the SDGs.

Право и управление. XXI век
The RIA [15] showed that, overall, the national policy agenda is only partially aligned to the SDGs, and a third of the SDG targets are not included in any national policy papers. A total of 169 SDG targets was analysed, and special focus was put on 126 quantitative targets. After mapping the national policy agenda and comparing it with the SDGs, it was found that only 11 percent of SDG targets were aligned to the national policy papers, therefore, these do not require any adjustments in terms of SDG alignment. In addition, most of the SDG targets (57 per cent) are only partially aligned to the policy papers of the Republic of Moldova -only a few components of these targets are included, and so the relevant national strategies need to be adjusted to better reflect the spirit and details of the SDG targets. At the same time, national policy papers do not reflect about one third of the SDG targets at all.
The government of the Republic of Moldova presented the first Voluntary National Review Report [31] at the High-Level Political Forum in 2020. The VNR of the Republic of Moldova has been developed in a joint effort and participation, of public authorities, civil society organizations, young people, business environment, as well as the support and expertise of the agencies of the United Nations in the Republic of Moldova, and reflects the advances, challenges, and opportunities of the country in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Also, the Republic of Moldova officially participated in two laboratories: Laboratory № 7 and № 15, where it presented the national experience in the implementation of the SDGs. The first was a laboratory organized by the Population Division of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (Population Division of UN DESA), which was held on 9 July 2020, entitled "Reflecting Data on Demographic and Migration Trends in Voluntary National Assessment Reports". During the workshop, the experience of the Republic of Moldova was shared with respect to major policies of the population (and in particular in the fields of public health, and reproductive health, aging, migration, and diaspora, and the empowerment of young people), which have been discussed in the context of the VNR, but it is also about the challenges and lessons learned on the use of the data, the recently revised by the NBS on population and international migration in the context of the Republic of Moldova.
The second VNR laboratory, hosted by the Republic of Moldova, was held on 15 July 2020, with the theme "national experience on the VNR development process: Republic of Moldova". The workshop was organized in the form of an interactive discussion between representatives of the government, the private sector and the National Youth Council of Moldova on the experience of the Republic of Moldova regarding the integration of the 2030 Agenda within the national policy system, the lessons learned in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals in the last 5 years.
The culminating event for the Republic of Moldova was the 16th session of the UN High-Level Policy Forum for Sustainable Development organized on 16 July 2020, during which the Deputy Secretary General of the government, Adrian Ermurachi, officially presented the first Voluntary National Review Report on the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Key messages on the challenges and priorities of the state in implementing the SDGs included: people and their skills are the main capital of the country, but it is compromised due to demographic decline; inequalities persist and the risk of poverty remains high; the vulnerability of the health system, demonstrated and following the Covid-19 pandemic, makes it necessary to reform this sector; dependence on external energy sources must be reduced, including through the promotion of energy efficiency; modest use of innovation and research limits the country's ability to intervene appropriately in solving economic problems; Environmental Protection is threatened by limited institutional capacities and financial resources; the implementation of the SDGs is conditional on the level of funding, while the monitoring of their implementation is influenced by the partial availability of data.

Main problems and challenges faced by local authorities during the implementation of Sustainable development principles
In implementing the Principles of Effective Public Administration for Sustainable Development and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, the Government of Moldova faces the following challenges: 1. Insufficient alignment between national policies and the SDGs.
2. Reduced accessibility of data. Most of the statistical data needed to monitor the SDGs are available through the publications/ web pages of the National Bureau of Statistics and other ministries and agencies involved in the process. However, these are indicators or data that cannot be found in the publications of branch institutions, the reasons are diverse, either the lack of primary sources, or the reason why information is available for a limited period of time.
3. Data Quality. Data quality is an important factor that also influences the quality of the SDG Monitoring Process. The establishment of the quality assurance system for the production of statistical data at SNB level and the entire national statistical system will facilitate the production of statistical indicators. Quality in this case implies compliance with methodological provisions at all stages -from planning and collecting data to their dissemination 4. Lack of metadata related to data collection methods. Lack of information about calculation methodology, sources of information, lack of definitions and concepts related to indicators prevents the determination of data quality and comparability, between countries and periods. This limits the possibility of assessing whether the indicator meets the globally agreed definitions or is internationally comparable.

Conclusion
With only 9 years left until the 2030 deadline, Republic of Moldova needs to inject a sense of urgency. Achieving the 2030 Agenda requires immediate and accelerated action by country, together with collaborative partnerships between governments and stakeholders at all levels. This ambitious Agenda requires a profound change that goes beyond the business situation as usual. The challenges and questions that need to be addressed are of a different nature: political, legislative, economic and, of course, statistical. Only by combining all efforts, at all levels of government and public administration, Moldova will achieve the key indicators of sustainable development and become a favourable country for the life of its citizens.