Project: Securing integrity, efficiency and independence of the justice system in Moldova – #Justice4Moldova

Implementation period: March 2023 – February 2026

Donors: European Union and Soros Foundation Moldova

The overall objective of the project is to contribute to an increased role of civil society and media to support independence, integrity, efficiency, and accountability of the justice system in the Republic of Moldova.

Specific Objectives:

• Enhanced the capacity of the civil society and policy experts to advance the implementation of justice sector policies in a transparent and accountable manner in line with European rule of law and human rights standards and Association Agreement.
• Increase the independence, integrity and efficiency of justice and anti-corruption actors through scrutiny and support by civil society, policy and media organisations.

Theory of change:

The project addresses four key problems: (i) limited number of civil society and policy experts at the national level, to engage constructively independent policy development, monitoring, policy dialogue and advocacy of improved justice sector policies; (ii) deficit of vetting experts and investigative journalists able to conduct independent, joint evidence-based integrity checks and independent anticorruption investigations; (iii) limited capacities of justice and anticorruption actors, also affected by poor integrity, which limits their ability to deliver justice, address impunity and ensure the respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms; and (iv) low degree of public trust in justice system and anticorruption bodies.

Key outputs of the project:

First specific objective (SO1) of the project will support: an increased role of civil society experts in decision-making processes and monitoring of the justice sector and anticorruption policies; ability to conduct advocacy and awareness-raising activities in partnership with national and international policy and media organisations. Enhanced capacities of the civil society and policy experts is essential to strengthening the rule of law in Moldova in full respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms and in line with the Association Agreement and conditionalities to advance towards EU accession. The SO1 will be achieved through 3 key outputs:

• Output 1.1. 15 civil society and policy experts trained and equipped to conduct independent policy development, monitoring, policy dialogue and advocacy of justice sector policies. As a result, at least 3 new civil society and policy experts will be mobilized in the GEJ.
• Output 1.2. One national level public advocacy campaign and one European level strategic advocacy campaign implemented, to promote justice sector and anticorruption reforms implementation.
• Output 1.3. One awareness raising and information campaign #Justice4Moldova

The second specific objective (SO2) will first contribute to establishing more resilient, efficient and capable judicial and anticorruption bodies, with the support of national and international policy experts. And the justice and anticorruption actors will benefit from independent integrity checks conducted by independent vetting analyst and empowered journalists. Ultimately, it will support an increased level of independency, integrity and efficiency of justice and anti-corruption actors. The SO2 will be achieved via 3 key outputs:

• Output 2.1. Performance and capacities of justice and anticorruption bodies assessed and supported by civil society and policy experts.
• Output 2.2. 10 investigative journalists and 10 vetting analysts selected and trained to conduct independent investigation of high-level corruption case and integrity background check of justice actors.
• Output 2.3. Integrity checks of justice actors conducted by civil society vetting analysts and investigative journalists.

Target Groups:

• TG1: 15 civil society and policy experts that will be empowered to conduct policy and advocacy activities in the justice sector policies.
• TG2: 10 vetting experts will be trained to conduct independent integrity check of judges and prosecutors.
• TG3: 10 journalists will be trained and equipped to conduct independent investigation of high-level corruption cases.
• TG4: 10 media online, tv and radio organisations will become partners in implementation of the action.
• TG5: approx. 150 justice actors, in particular judges and prosecutors, will participate in project activities (including approx. 20 will participate in focus groups, 30 will be subject to independent integrity check and at least 5 justice actors champions of integrity and reforms will be identified).
• TG6: National authorities and justice and anticorruption bodies, EU and international stakeholders that will be part of the policy and advocacy activities of the project.
• TG7: approx. 2000 citizens/residents of the Republic of Moldova who will participate in public opinion survey on integrity in the justice system.

Final Beneficiaries:

• FB1: The citizens/residents of the Republic of Moldova who will benefit from a more integer, efficient and resilient justice and anticorruption actors.
• FB2: Civil society organisations and mass-media, which will benefit from enhanced capacities to advance the implementation of justice sector policies
• FB3: Justice and anticorruption institutions, which will benefit from justice sector reforms, including transitional justice measure, implemented in a transparent, inclusive and accountable manner. Implementing partners

Implementing organizations:

The project is implemented by a consortium formed by two organizations:

Institute for European policies and Reforms (IPRE) – is one of the leading Moldovan independent think-tanks promoting Moldova’s European integration, with proved track-record of monitoring Association Agreement implementation, with a particular focus on foreign policy and security, public administration, good governance, rule of law and justice sector policies in Moldova.

Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR) – is an international non-profit organisation, with over 20 years of experience in the EaP, delivering good governance, media development and civil society strengthening programs to advance democracy and human rights. In Moldova, IWPR has been providing support to local CSOs and journalists, supporting independent reporting and convening engagement events.