Project "Restoration of the La Nihalcea Area for the Preservation of Biodiversity and the
Strengthening the Ecotourism Potential" aims at improving ecological situation of the pond, together
with raising its eco-touristic attractiveness. The goal was accomplished through restoration of La
Nihalcea and construction of recreational facilities in the area.
La Nihalcea, the object of the project, is a part of the ponds system widespread in the area. Its
management and preservation is important for biodiversity and protection of local fauna and flora.
Our project focuses on assessment of the ecosystem and its needs in order to provide local community
with the easy tools for habitat protection. La Nihalcea is a system of connected ponds, located in one
of the most valuable natural regions in Europe, in the Dniester valley in the South East of Moldova.
The shores of Nihalcea are surrounded by both wild orchards and thickets, made of wild roses,
blackthorn, rowan and dogwoods. It co-creates a system of oxbow lakes, marshes and riparian forests
on the border of the steppes that make up a unique biotope.
La Nihalcea reservoir is affected by a number of factors. During summers water becomes murky and
taken by vegetation, which leads to partial dry out of the water. The quality of water is under pressure
from agriculture and other diffuse sources. Changes that are now seasonal, will eventually result in
reduction of the pond size thus reduction of wildlife, including its diversity.
The implementation was done of actions favoring preservation of extraordinary landscape of La
Nihalcea Pond in Southern Moldova, an ecological need assessment has been conducted, due to
analyze the impact of severe drought from 2020 and insufficient rainfalls from previous years on water
levels.
Need assessment has been prepared with professional assistance on the field provided with
participation of international experts and local NGO: Purcari Communities and Mi?carea Ecologist?
din Moldova as part of the project ?Smart Water & Wetlands: Establishment and triggering of
BALT+EaP Network for local water governance?, implemented by Tullstorpsån" and supported by
Svenska institutet.
Project supported networks and the needs-tailored joint initiatives in the region on local integrated
participatory water governance, contributing also to the environment protection and ensuring
conservation of ecologically sensitive wetland areas.
The technical works done was aiming at restoration of the pond buffer zone for eradication of the
species, reduction of riparian zone erosion as well as lowering the content of fertilizers in the waters.
The following factors impeded the implementation of project activities and the attainment of expected
results: (a) some of the procedures were not flexible; (b) the flow of financial information between the
different entities was difficult. This hindered proper planning and reduced efficiency.(c) The COVID-
19 pandemic has had an unprecedented impact on all levels of organization the process around the
world including "Restoration of the La Nihalcea Area?.
One of the biggest challenges in this kind of project is to apply sufficient strategy so as to achieve
enough coherence within the project itself. A strong strategic vision and coherence gives this kind of
project more relevance, given the huge needs and the slow process of change. The evaluation also reveals some lessons learnt that could be useful for the following purposes: (a)
to improve the process of design and inception of regional projects; (b) to develop better
implementation plans; (c) to improve monitoring and reporting; (d) for better consideration of the
implications of an regional project in terms of organization, coordination, collaboration ; and (e) to
improve the development of exit strategies, knowledge management and knowledge-sharing. . The
lessons learned and good practices in actual project implementation will in turn be used as tools for
the future planning and implementation of Purcari Communities projects.
The processes supported by the project will be sustainable. Furthermore, most of the staff of the
regional commissions believed that some of the activities and processes would continue after ending
the project. The project in general has been effective in terms of activity completion, and in terms of
its contribution to the goals and objectives outlined in the project document.