Table of contents
Summary
Under Moldova’s proposed local government reform, Taraclia will be transformed from a district (raion) into a standalone municipality with a directly elected administration, rather than being merged into the new South region. Prime Minister Vasile Tofan announced the change in recognition of the region’s ethnic Bulgarian majority—representing about 64% of the district’s population—and Moldova’s commitments to minority protection.
Key details of the decision and context:
- Administrative Restructuring: Moldova is replacing its 32 raions with three large regions (North, Centre, and South). Taraclia joins Chișinău and Bălți as the country’s third municipality, while Gagauzia retains its autonomous status. Parliament is scheduled to vote on the package this autumn.
- Demographics & Culture: Around 38,000 citizens in Moldova identified as ethnic Bulgarian in the 2024 census, concentrated in Taraclia and neighboring towns. Bulgarian language education remains widely offered throughout the area.
- Bilateral Cooperation: The decision reflects ongoing cooperation between Moldova and Bulgaria. Notably, the former Taraclia State University was integrated in 2024 as a branch of the “Angel Kanchev” University of Ruse (which officially took ownership of the campus in July 2025), enabling local students to complete EU-accredited degrees locally.
Press release
Sofia, 1 October 2026 — Taraclia, home to the largest Bulgarian community in the Republic of Moldova, will become a municipality with its own second-tier administrative status under the local government reform presented today by Prime Minister Vasile Tofan.
The reform replaces the country’s 32 districts or raions with three large regions — North, Centre and South — while Taraclia is transformed from a raion into a municipality, alongside the two existing municipalities: the capital Chișinău and Bălți, Moldova’s second largest city. The Gagauz autonomy retains its autonomous status. Parliament is expected to adopt the legislative package this autumn.
The decision takes account of the ethnocultural and linguistic particularities of the area and of Moldova’s commitments to the protection of national minorities. In practice, Taraclia keeps a directly elected administration of its own, rather than being part of the new South region.
“The Bulgarian community is part of who we are as a country. Taraclia has preserved its language, its traditions and its ties with Bulgaria for two centuries, and Moldova is stronger for it. The Government wants the people of Taraclia to build their future at home, in a thriving community, as citizens of a European Moldova. This reform gives Taraclia the status, the resources and the tools to do that,” Prime Minister Tofan said.
Some 38,000 citizens of Moldova declared Bulgarian ethnicity in the 2024 census. Bulgarians make up about 64% of the population of Taraclia district and form the majority in the town of Taraclia, Tvardița, Corten and Valea Perjei, with further communities across the south of the country. The new status builds on a decade of growing cooperation between Moldova and Bulgaria aimed at strengthening the identity and culture of the Bulgarian community in Moldova. Under an agreement between the two governments, the former Taraclia State University became a branch of the “Angel Kanchev” University of Ruse in 2024, giving students in southern Moldova access to a European Union degree at home; the branch enrolled more than 200 students within weeks of opening, and Ruse University took ownership of the campus in July 2025. Bulgarian is taught in schools across the area, and Bulgaria has been a consistent supporter of Moldova’s European Union membership bid.
Photograph: Proposal regarding the future administrative structure of the Republic of Moldova (source: tv8.md)
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