Moldova President Nominates Businessman Vasile Tofan to Replace Prime Minister

Moldova’s president nominated businessman Vasile Tofan as prime minister on Saturday to replace Alexandru Munteanu. Munteanu resigned on 3 July after serving less than eight months. He said he could not carry out his mandate according to his principles and convictions.

President Maia Sandu said Tofan’s main tasks after parliamentary approval would be to advance Moldova’s integration into the European Union, strengthen the resilience of state institutions and society, and revive the economy. Tofan turns 44 on Sunday. He graduated from Harvard Business School and holds a degree in public management from the Netherlands.

He is managing partner at Horizon Capital, a private equity firm focused on Ukraine and Moldova, and has chaired the board of Moldova’s Purcari winery. Igor Grosu, head of the Action and Solidarity Party, announced on Friday that he had selected Tofan as the party’s candidate. Grosu said Tofan shares the party’s objectives of EU accession, institutional reform and economic growth.

Tofan has two weeks to submit his government program and cabinet nominations and secure the required parliamentary support. The EU launched the first round of accession negotiations with Moldova and Ukraine last month, two years after both countries became official candidate countries on 23 June 2022.