Keystone Human Services International - Community based children and family services available on an international basis.

Keystone Human Services International Moldova Association (KHSIMA)

About Moldova

Located in Eastern Europe on the northeast rim of Romania, the Republic of Moldova occupies a landmass approximately the size of the U.S. state of Maryland and has a population of about 4.3 million. The terrain of Moldova is composed of forest and steppe – a rolling, treeless plain much like the North American prairie – with a temperate continental climate. A primarily agricultural region, Moldova specializes in wine grapes, fruits, vegetables and tobacco, but political turmoil in the past few decades has eradicated any sense of economic stability.

Considered part of Romania until 1940, Moldova became a Soviet republic in 1944 after being annexed and re-conquered twice in the course of WWII. The republic declared its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991 but still absorbs the conflict and tension of the dissolved socialist state, as Russian forces continue to occupy eastern regions of the republic and Moldovan citizens learn to adapt to the new challenges of a market economy. Moldova relied heavily upon Russia for a bulk of its economic activity, and as international relationships fluctuate, the republic faces many obstacles not only in economic but also in political and social realms. Moldova is currently the poorest per capita nation in Europe – the average monthly wage for a Moldovan is U.S. $120.

With economic hardship and political turmoil often come cultural strife and human rights abuse, as individuals struggle to maintain community and family units. In the case of Moldova, national hardships manifest themselves in high rates of crime, domestic violence and human trafficking. According to recent reports, poverty has driven one in six adults in Moldova to leave the rural regions to find work abroad or in an urban center, leaving their children to fend for themselves in the villages. One in nine children in Moldova grows up without at least one parent, and those who are left alone often fall victim to human traffickers. Persevering to survive in the face of danger and neglect, these children are in desperate need not only of tangible resources but also of the guidance, life training and emotional support required for healthy adolescent development.

Overwhelmingly neglected in international human rights activism, the children and families of Moldova captured the attention of Keystone Human Services International with their indefatigable strength in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. Through distribution of resources and continual relief efforts, KHSIMA hopes to address Moldova's profound need for "advancement of the human spirit."