On 12 May 2021, the new IEP project “inforMD — against disinformation in the Republic of Moldova” launched with an online kick-off workshop. The aim of the workshop was not only to introduce the project to representatives of Moldovan civil society and media working on the topic of disinformation and fake news but also to jointly identify synergies.
Iulian Groza (Director, IPRE), Dr. Funda Tekin (Director, IEP) and Inna Shupac (Director, IPIS) jointly introduced the event. Funda Tekin stressed the relevance of the project and referred to a recent European Parliament report that called on Moldovan authorities to strengthen resilience against disinformation and manipulation of information both online and offline. This is exactly where the inforMD project starts off. The aim is to strengthen resilience in the Republic of Moldova by implementing concrete capacity building, exchange and information measures that promote the formation of networks and facilitate learning processes. Young people and students in particular are the target group of the inforMD training series on disinformation awareness and are considered key multipliers within the project.
Furthermore, it was emphasised that the problem of disinformation is by no means a problem that only affects the Republic of Moldova. The phenomenon of disinformation is a global trend and requires transnational cooperation in order to take sustainable action against it, for example, through projects such as inforMD. In this sense, the project will focus on the mutual exchange of experiences and expertise with Germany and other EU countries as well as the countries of the Eastern Partnership.
After a detailed presentation of the individual project activities by Stanislav Ghiletchi, project manager at IPRE, the focus was on the exchange with the representatives of Moldovan civil society and media. They informed about current projects and plans, shared their experiences and knowledge regarding anti-disinformation work in the Republic of Moldova in recent years. Points of contact and synergies with the inforMD measures were found, e.g., for the implementation of the mapping study on the legal framework in the fight against disinformation as well as for the interactive “anti-disinformation” training series for young students.
The kick-off workshop showed the importance of early networking, direct exchange and the identification of synergies between all relevant stakeholders in order to strengthen civil society cooperation in the field of disinformation.
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