site.btaStudents from Taraclia and Gagauzia Meet Moldovan President

Fifty secondary school students from Moldova's Taraclia District and the Autonomous Territorial Unit of Gagauzia met with Moldovan President Maia Sandu in Chisinau.

The students toured the presidential building, learned about its history and visited the former chamber of the Moldovan Parliament as well as the Presidential Library, which houses a collection of gifts received by the country's leaders over the years, the presidential press service said.

The group later left for Iasi, Romania, where they will take part in a Romanian-language summer camp until August 29. The programme includes intensive courses, interactive training sessions and tours of the city.

President Sandu emphasized the importance of learning Romanian for integration, as well as for broadening educational and job opportunities.

In total, about 200 students in grades 9-12 from Taraclia District and Gagauzia are participating in the project. The camp is organized with the support of Romania's Education and Research Ministry and the Romanian Embassy in Chisinau.

Valentina Olaru, State Secretary at the Education and Research Ministry, noted that knowledge of Romanian, the official state language, plays a key role in the personal development and social integration of students enrolled in Russian-language schools.

Moldova has 1,218 schools: 958 teach in Romanian, 202 in Russian and 57 in both languages. In Taraclia District, where the population is predominantly Bulgarian, instruction is primarily in Russian. Courses in Bulgarian Language and Literature and in History and Culture of the Bulgarian People are taught a few hours per week.

According to the 2014 census, Moldova's population is composed of about 75% Moldovans and 18% ethnic minorities, including Bulgarians, Gagauzians, Ukrainians, Russians, Roma, Armenians and Poles.