January 3, 2025
News
In 2024, we strengthened Moldova’s social services through a series of impactful initiatives aimed at creating safer, more supportive communities. Our anti-bullying programme in schools across the country taught students empathy and respect through engaging workshops, while new sheltered homes in Glodeni and Soroca provided a safe space for independent living and mental health support. To ensure lasting impact, we also completed a key supervision training programme for caregivers.
1. We promoted positive role models to combat bullying in schools across Moldova
We teamed up with 16 schools across eight regions in Moldova to launch a programme aimed at reducing and preventing bullying. By bringing together students, teachers, and youth sports organisations we aimed to promote respect and non-violent communication.
Sport teachers from the National Sports Federation of Muay Thai Thai Boxing were trained to address bullying effectively, creating safer and more supportive school environments. Over 400 students took part in training sessions to recognise bullying, understand its impact, and practice effective responses.
Additionally, a powerful awareness campaign featuring six motivational video spots, reached an estimated 200,000 people across Moldova, promoting positive role models and non-violence. Through this initiative, we helped foster understanding, respect, and stronger school communities throughout the country.
2. We opened two Sheltered Houses in Glodeni and Soroca
In 2024, we opened two pilot sheltered housing facilities in Glodeni and Soroca, in Moldova, providing vital support to people on a journey toward independent living. These welcoming spaces, inspired by the Recovery House model, became home to 8 residents who began working closely with staff to develop skills needed for self-sufficiency.
These houses also provided an essential crisis support to 4 people living with mental health challenges, offering temporary housing and personalised guidance to help them regain stability and avoid hospitalisation.
Clients were actively involved in daily activities, and they engaged in meaningful activities to enhance self-confidence and create social connections.
3. We continued to promote the new social services: intergenerational groups and occupational therapy
This year, we continued our efforts to support two essential social services for health and social care centres in Moldova: Intergenerational Groups and Occupational Therapy.
Together with the Homecare Association, we established and maintained 8 intergenerational clubs in health and social care centres, providing a platform for young and elderly people to connect, learn from each other, and strengthen community bonds.
In 2024, we hosted numerous gatherings, bringing together young and elderly people to engage in activities like storytelling, board games, crafts, embroidery, knitting, sculpting, and digital literacy sessions. These meetings improved quality of life across generations and strengthened the sense of belonging and community involvement for participants of all ages.
4. We carried on providing telemedicine consultations for vulnerable people living in remote places
Delivering access to health care, especially for people living in remote areas, is the most important role within our telemedicine programme. This year, we pursued to improve the accessibility of remote medical consultations for Moldovan citizens through the use of telemedicine. Specialists and volunteers in the field of social care and primary health care continued to receive training sessions, educating themselves about the opportunities offered by the telemedicine platform. In the last 12 months, the 8 health and social care centres have provided approximately 720 remote consultations.
5. We have contributed to strengthening Moldova’s Supervision and Peer Specialist Capacity
In 2024, the deinstitutionalisation (DI) efforts in Moldova gained substantial support through a focused initiative on supervision and peer specialist training. This initiative aimed to build local capacity, enhance the role of peer specialists, and increase public awareness of the importance of deinstitutionalisation.
18 people were chosen for an intensive supervision programme led by the Czech Institute for Supervision, involving 160 hours of training, peer group work, and mentoring. The training combined in-person and online sessions across 2022-2024, allowing participants to practice and develop skills directly applicable to their supervisory roles.
By the programme’s end, 12 participants have completed all training requirements, including mentoring and over 70 hours of team and individual supervision for peer specialists. This programme significantly strengthened Moldova’s DI workforce, creating a supportive foundation for a more inclusive approach to care and supervision.
