The globally signifi cant biodiversity of Moldova is only partially protected through a system of protected areas covering 4.65% of the territory. Under current conditions, the Protected Area System (PAS) of Moldova is not effectively safeguarding the country’s unique biodiversity: a number of natural ecosystem processes, habitats and species are not adequately represented in the existing PAS; the capacity of the institutions responsible for the management of the PAS is generally weak; and the value of the PAS to the socio-economic well being of society is poorly understood and demonstrated. The project aims to build the capacity of protected area institutions in Moldova to more effectively establish and administer a representative system of protected areas in Moldova. It will seek to achieve this by: (i) reviewing, revising and reforming the conservation management tenure of the current protected areas; (ii) developing a strategic and operational decision-support tool to support the ongoing consolidation and expansion of the national protected area system; (iii) piloting the establishment of a national park, the fi rst in Moldova, in the Orhei district as a mechanism to rationalize and expand existing, but spatially and institutionally fragmented, protected areas; (iv) reforming and restructuring the governance of, and institutional arrangements for, protected areas; (v) developing national norms and standards, operational guidelines and fi nancing mechanisms for the PAS; (vi) developing protected area planning and management competence and skills of professional and technical staff in the protected area institutions; (vii) designing a national strategic framework for coordinating the implementation of conservation education and awareness programmes; and (viii) implementation of a focused outreach program in and around Orhei to support the piloted establishment of the National Park in the Orhei district.