Women Mayors Share Experiences in Colonița: “After this Study Visit, I don’t Regret that I Became a Mayor"

Guided by this quote in her life and career, Angela Zaporojan, women mayor in Colonita, hosted a study tour for 15 women mayors at their first mandate. In result, women mayors, who are from Criuleni, Drochia, Ungheni, Falesti, Leova, Cimislia districts, learned about the implemented projects that have changed the people`s live from Colonita village, but also what's the secret in attracting funds.

Angela Zaporojan, mayor at her second mandate in the Colonita village, believes that these exchange visits offer tips and tricks to women on how to gain more skills in local public administration. For example, Elena Hreaşcă, mayor of Navarnet village, Falesti district, was about to resign from the position, as she was facing many difficulties. But this study visit, she says, gave her the confidence to move forward and not to regret that she became mayor. "I have great plans ahead and I hope to accomplish them for the 2,800 people who have elected me to this position," noted the mayor.

Subsequently, woman mayor from Colonita recounted how she, together with the councilors, solved the problem of ecological bomb from the village, by consolidation and landscaping the river floodplain. Then she organized an information tour to the social-cultural institutions of the village, which, thanks to attracting funds, became the visit cards of Coloniţa.

Elena Hreaşcă remained inspired by the project of designing the river floodplain in the village and wants to start such kind of project in her locality. "We have also rivers that are getting bigger and bigger from day to day and represents a danger to people," she said. Which is why Elena hopes to liaise with the women mayor from Colonița and to be advised by her.

Another woman mayor from Borogai village, Leova district, Elena Saviţchi, who leads a village with 4200 inhabitants, says that such visits are beneficial to her, because she needs useful tips and exchange of experience. "We, all the mayors, are dealing, in fact, with the same problems. I am impressed that here the work is underway after a pre-established plan. And I would like to follow the same working method and to focus on people's needs, because, in the end, I was elected to this position for people", points out Elena Saviţchi.

On the other hand, Angela Zaporojan says that women mayors should not be discouraged at their first challenge they meet. "If you don’t succeed in the first day, try again. And if you have opponents, remember that they're keeping you in force, they motivate you to do the right thing and not make mistakes," she argues. And the most important advice from Angela to women mayors at their first mandate is to create, in the first place, a good team and to work only with professional people, regardless of political color. "Women should not forget that they will succeed anyway – if not today, then tomorrow.”  And the ingredients of my success, she says, are persistence and kindness. "People need to be convinced that you are a role-model. And if your enemies see that you do your work properly - they will give up. Do not forget that you are an example for all," confessed the woman mayor.

Afterwards, the visit`s itinerary included the official opening of a playground, which was followed by a visit to the Cruzesti village, where Violeta Crudu, women mayor at first term, was the host. Violeta Crudu mentioned that “the exchange of good practices during the study visits is also very useful to her and helped to put in practice more and more ideas.”

The study visit is organized by the Congress of Local Authorities in Moldova, with the support of UN Programme "Women in Politics", which is implemented by the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in partnership with East Europe Foundation and Center “Partnership for Development", financially supported by the government of Sweden.