The national program "Cultural Voucher" will be popularized in all the education institutions across the country so as to increase young people’s interest in local cultural products. To this end, every young man or woman,  who has an electronic signature, will receive 1000 MDL from the Government. The topic was discussed at the Open Discussion event organized by the Institute for European Policies and Reforms, GIZ Moldova and the e-Governance Agency (EGA) on October 3, 2023 and hosted by "Aristotel" high-school. The event was dedicated to the digital opportunities created by the Government for the Moldovan young people, with a focus on the usefulness of the digital signature and how to get the Cultural Voucher.

The event was attended by representatives of the Parliament and relevant ministries, and alongside the students of the host institution, by young people from other four high schools in Chisinau - "V. Alecsandri", "N. Dadiani", "Gh. Asachi" and "M. Eliade". The young participants were briefly introduced to the government’s digital ecosystem by Andrei Prisacar, Deputy Director of EGA, who encouraged them to use digital solutions in different life scenarios.

The digital opportunities brought up for discussion related to the digital identity (electronic signature and electronic document), the public services portal, the cultural voucher, artificial intelligence and prospects for its integration in public service delivery, Personal Cabinet, MDelivery – delivery of documents in and outside the country.

The participating experts from EGA, IPRE, the Ministry of Economic Development and Digitalization, the Ministry of Education and Research, the Ministry of Culture, teachers and students concluded that the Cultural Voucher uptake should be improved:

- by making the digital signature more accessible;

- through intensive communication with the education institutions on the digital opportunities available for young people;

- by extending the age of beneficiaries from 18 to 20;

- through a dialogue with the young people who used the cultural voucher for various cultural products.

Through the Public Discussion platform, the society will be systematically informed and engaged in the debate on the Government's digital agenda, cyber security and e-transformation of the Republic of Moldova, Digital Transformation Strategy 2023-2030, digital services and platforms, etc. The aim of this project is to raise awareness about the benefits of the digital transformation and use of electronic public services, improve digital literacy among individuals and businesses, boost digital progress in the public system through debate and engagement.

The first event of this kind took place on September 14, 2023 in Chisinau and focused on the uptake of digital services and the main challenges related to it and the key issues concerning the development of digital services in the Republic of Moldova.

 Other activities planned by the above-mentioned project are:

- 12 policy briefs focusing on research and exploration into the implementation of public policies and institutional reforms in digital transformation and cybersecurity;

- 12 online/offline public discussions entitled “Digital Moldova”, on issues related to the digital agenda, cybersecurity and e-transformation of the Republic of Moldova;

- thematic submissions to regional events organized on the Eastern Partnership platform, including the Eastern Partnership Network for Electronic Governance and Digitization and the Regional Digital Transformation Academy, in close cooperation with GIZ Moldova;  

- 4 public events at local level bringing together the relevant public authorities, private sector and civil society and meant to promote and popularize the use of digital services. The public events will be held offline in different towns across the country.

The Public Discussion sessions can be watched online on Privesc.eu and the Facebook pages of EGA and IPRE.