Cutting Away Red Tape
For Petru Dogocher, a mayor of a village in Orhei district in central Moldova, it used to take months to hand-write applications to the country’s various agencies, and then wait for a response, before proceeding with any construc-tion or expansion activities for his village. Dogocher’s problem was solved with the enhancement of the One Stop Shop (OSS) in Orhei, following earlier USAID assistance. The One Stop Shop is Moldova’s most ambitious effort to provide corruption-free access to construction permits and other authorizations that are re-quired by as many as 14 local authorities – including health, police, and fire departments -- in Orhei district.
“Just in 2008, I applied for four construction authoriza-tions for the village and all I had to do is come to one location – the OSS -- write a single application, and in two weeks I received the authorization I applied for,” Dogocher said.
USAID’s Business Regulatory and Tax Administration Reform project (BIZTAR) provided assistance to Orhei OSS in improving electronic exchange of data with 14 local authorities. The OSS, managed by a local nongovernmental organization, is available for more than 4,100 businesses from Orhei where they can obtain trade and construction authorizations. They receive authorizations within two weeks, all without having to visit any government agency thus limiting opportunities for corruption, reducing the red tape involved in starting and operating a business.
Since 2005, the Orhei OSS has processed more than 500 applications following the principle : from “many doors for one service” to “one door for many services.” The OSS is widely known and recognized as a new form of contact and efficiency in government service in Orhei district. “The OSS helped me in saving time and resources in getting construction and trade authorizations, because the different public services in the district are decentralized, and are located in different places,” Dogocher said.
When necessary OSS facilitates the creation of an intera-gency committee to inspect the site or building, having consulting and advisory functions. “The Orhei OSS offers services both to individuals and businesses, and is well known by all the public authorities and the entrepreneurs in the district. We are happy that the OSS eliminates the labyrinth of administrative procedures needed for the business authorizations. We believe it creates a more fertile environment for businesses, encouraging new investment, and generating economic growth,” said Ina Negruta, the coordinator of the OSS Orhei.
