The Estonian e-Governance Academy has partnered with NATO to align Moldova’s cybersecurity with Euro-Atlantic standards and institutions, with the aim of strengthening Moldova’s ability to deal with security threats in the cyber domain.
This cooperation will contribute to improving regional stability and security, particularly in the light of the consequences of Russia’s ongoing war of aggression in Ukraine.
As part of NATO’s Enhanced Defence and Related Security Capability Building Package, the e-Governance Academy will assess the current situation and growing needs of beneficiaries in the area of cybersecurity. This will serve as a starting point for future venues for cooperation and support. The first step will be a scoping mission to Chisinau and meetings with donors and beneficiaries to better understand the cybersecurity capabilities and growing needs of the Moldovan public sector.
Since 2022, the e-Governance Academy has been involved in increasing the cyber resilience of Moldova’s public, defence and critical infrastructure sectors, including through projects such as the European Union-funded Cybersecurity Rapid Assistance and European Peace Facilities.
These efforts led to the introduction of a cybersecurity law and the establishment of the National Agency for Cybersecurity in Moldova in 2023. Further legislative changes are expected to strengthen cybersecurity across the country’s institutions, in addition to ongoing capacity-building efforts, the academy said in a statement.
Strengthening Moldova’s resilience
NATO’s first defence capacity-building package for Moldova was unveiled in June 2015. At NATO’s Madrid Summit in June, Allies agreed on a package of tailored assistance to strengthen Moldova’s resilience and develop its security and defence capabilities.
This led to the subsequent endorsement of an enhanced defence capacity-building package by NATO defence ministers at their meeting in Brussels in February 2023. NATO’s assistance to Moldova is based on specific requests for assistance from the Moldovan authorities and is provided in full respect of the country’s constitutional neutrality.
Founded in 2002, the Tallinn-based e-Governance Academy is a non-profit think tank and consultancy organisation that creates and transfers knowledge and best practices in digital transformation.