Romania and Moldova share some similarities in their population dynamics determined by their historical, geographical, and cultural connections. Both Romania and Moldova have experienced population decline in recent decades due to high levels of emigration and fertility fall. Both countries have implemented various policies to address population decline which often include incentives for larger families, support for childcare, and measures to encourage emigrants to return, but as statistical data on population dynamics and demographic forecasts show, these measures do not give the expected result and the problem of determining the most effective policy measures for fertility recovery is still relevant.
While Romania and Moldova share these common demographic challenges, their distinct historical, political, and economic contexts have led to differences in the scale and nature of these challenges. Romania is a member of the European Union, and this fact influences its governance structures, policies, and economic development. Moldova is an EU candidate country and former part of the Soviet Union, which leaves an imprint on the political, social, and cultural context.
Our research project tries to tackle this two-faced relationship between fertility and support policies, addressing the following problems:
1) There is no comprehensive comparative analysis of fertility in Romania and Moldova. Both countries have not been included in most comparative analyses related to Eastern Europe, usually due to data quality
2) There is no comprehensive comparative analysis of the fertility policy measures and their socio- economic background in the two countries
3) In both countries the existing policy measures did not give the expected result and the problem of determining the most effective policy measures for fertility recovery is still relevant.
Research objectives (corresponding to these problems identified):
1) The comparative analysis of fertility dynamics in Romania and Moldova regarding the transition of fertility from the traditional early model to the late one (addressing problem 1)
2) Comparative research of demographic policies in the region, and of their impact on short-term and long-term population dynamics (addressing problem 2)
3) The Policy Toolkit of policy measures and their impact on fertility rates, settled in an accessible template (addressing problem 3)