Maia Sandu facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Quick facts for kids Her Excellency Maia Sandu
Sandu in 2024

6th President of Moldova
Incumbent
Assumed office 24 December 2020
Prime Minister	Ion Chicu Aureliu Ciocoi (acting) Natalia Gavrilița Dorin Recean
Preceded by	Igor Dodon
President of the Party of Action and Solidarity
In office 15 May 2016 – 10 December 2020
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Igor Grosu
13th Prime Minister of Moldova
In office 8 June 2019 – 14 November 2019
President	Igor Dodon
Deputy	Andrei Năstase Vasilii Șova
Preceded by	Pavel Filip
Succeeded by	Ion Chicu
Member of the Moldovan Parliament
In office 9 March 2019 – 8 July 2019
Succeeded by	Galina Sajin
Parliamentary group	Party of Action and Solidarity
Constituency	West of Moldova
Majority	49,955 (80.8%)
In office 9 December 2014 – 20 February 2015
Succeeded by	Petru Știrbate
Parliamentary group	Liberal Democratic Party
Minister of Education
In office 24 July 2012 – 30 July 2015
President	Nicolae Timofti
Prime Minister	Vlad Filat Iurie Leancă Chiril Gaburici Natalia Gherman (acting)
Preceded by	Mihail Șleahtițchi
Succeeded by	Corina Fusu

Personal details
Born	(1972-05-24) 24 May 1972 (age 53) Risipeni, Moldavian SSR, Soviet Union (now Moldova)
Citizenship	Moldova Romania
Political party	Independent (2020–present)
Other political affiliations	Liberal Democratic Party (2014–2015) Party of Action and Solidarity (2016–2020)
Alma mater	Academy of Economic Studies of Moldova (BBM) Academy of Public Administration of Moldova (MIR) Harvard University (MPP)
Salary	MDL 244,931 yearly
Awards	Order of Work Glory First Class Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise Order of Vytautas the Great with the Golden Chain

Maia Sandu (born 24 May 1972) is a Moldovan politician. She has been the President of Moldova since 2020. She is the first woman to hold this important position in Moldova. Before becoming president, Maia Sandu was the Prime Minister of Moldova in 2019. She also served as the Minister of Education from 2012 to 2015.

Maia Sandu founded and led the Party of Action and Solidarity. She strongly supports Moldova joining the European Union. Under her leadership, Moldova became a candidate country for EU membership. She also focuses on fighting corruption and improving Moldova's economy.

Early Life and Education

Maia Sandu was born on 24 May 1972. Her birthplace was Risipeni, in what was then the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic. Her parents were Grigorie and Emilia Sandu, a doctor and a teacher.

She studied management at the Academy of Economic Studies of Moldova from 1988 to 1994. Later, she studied international relations at the Academy of Public Administration in Chișinău. In 2010, she earned a Master's degree in public policy from Harvard University in the United States. Before entering politics, she worked as an adviser at the World Bank from 2010 to 2012.

Political Journey

Maia Sandu with Donald Tusk, President of the European Council, in Brussels in 2017.

Maia Sandu began her political career as the Minister of Education of Moldova. She held this role from 2012 to 2015. During this time, she worked on improving the education system.

In 2015, she was considered for the role of Prime Minister. She later started a political platform that became the Party of Action and Solidarity. In 2016, she ran for president as a pro-European candidate. She reached the second round of the election but was not elected at that time.

In the 2019 parliamentary election, her party formed an alliance. On 8 June 2019, Maia Sandu became the Prime Minister of Moldova. Her government worked to improve public order and strengthen ties with other countries. Her time as prime minister ended in November 2019.

Presidential Elections

Maia Sandu ran for president again in the 2020 Moldovan presidential election. Her campaign focused on fighting corruption and poverty. She also promised to reform the country's justice system. She won the election on 15 November 2020, with a majority of the votes. This made her the first female president of Moldova.

She was congratulated by leaders from the European Union, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Romania. She stated that Moldova would have a balanced foreign policy. This policy would be guided by Moldova's national interests.

Maia Sandu was re-elected president in the 2024 Moldovan presidential election. She won the first round and then defeated her opponent in the runoff election on 3 November 2024.

Presidency (2020–present)

Maia Sandu was sworn in as president on 24 December 2020. The ceremony took place at the Palace of the Republic. She called for national unity, speaking in several languages of Moldova. Thousands of her supporters celebrated her inauguration.

Working for Moldova

Parliament and Government

As president, Maia Sandu worked to form a stable government. She held discussions with different political groups in the parliament. Her goal was to create a government focused on economic growth. She also aimed to clean up state institutions from corruption.

In 2021, she called for early parliamentary elections. These elections, held on 11 July 2021, resulted in a victory for her party. This allowed for a new government to be formed.

Health and COVID-19

During the COVID-19 pandemic in Moldova, President Sandu focused on getting vaccines for Moldova. Romania donated many doses of the Pfizer–BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine and Oxford–AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. Moldova also received vaccines through the COVAX program.

Maia Sandu received her vaccination in May 2021. She had waited until there were enough vaccines for the country's population. Moldova worked with the World Health Organization to review its pandemic response.

Fighting Corruption

A main goal of President Sandu's government is to fight corruption. Since 2020, Moldova has shown improvement in its efforts against corruption. This includes better legal measures to prevent financial crimes.

In 2021, she created an independent committee to monitor corruption. This committee includes experts and is supported by the European Union and the United States. These efforts aim to make Moldova's government more transparent and fair.

Protecting the Environment

Maia Sandu with Ilham Aliyev, President of Azerbaijan, at the COP29 climate conference in Baku in 2024.

Moldova is very affected by climate change. The country faces frequent droughts and floods. These events harm harvests and people's livelihoods. President Sandu has spoken about these challenges at the United Nations.

Moldova is developing a National Climate Change Adaptation Programme. This plan focuses on preparing for climate risks. It also aims to promote renewable energy and energy efficiency. The goal is to build a greener and more resilient Moldova for the future.

Moldova's Place in the World

European Union and the West

Maia Sandu strongly supports Moldova joining the European Union. She believes this will help Moldova grow and develop. In March 2022, she signed Moldova's application for EU membership. This was a big step towards European integration.

She actively supported a referendum in October 2024. This referendum asked citizens if they supported Moldova's path to the European Union. The 'Yes' vote won, showing public support for this direction.

Relations with Neighbors

President Sandu has worked to strengthen ties with neighboring countries. Klaus Iohannis, the President of Romania, was the first foreign leader to visit her. Romania has provided significant support to Moldova, including medical aid.

She also visited Ukraine in January 2021. There, she met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. They agreed to create a Presidential Council to discuss shared issues. Moldova has offered support to Ukraine, especially after the 2022 conflict. Moldova closed its airspace and welcomed many people fleeing the conflict.

Relations with Russia

Maia Sandu has expressed readiness to discuss important issues with Russia. These include trade and the settlement of the Transnistria conflict. She has stated that Moldova's foreign policy is guided by its national interests.

She has also spoken about challenges from outside influences. These influences aimed to create instability in Moldova. Her government has worked to counter such efforts and protect Moldova's stability.

Transnistria

The Transnistria conflict is an important issue for Moldova. Maia Sandu believes that foreign military forces should leave the Transnistrian region. She has stated that Moldova seeks a peaceful and diplomatic solution to this conflict. She believes the conflict was created to prevent Moldova from gaining full independence.

Personal Life

Maia Sandu lives in an apartment in Chișinău. She is fluent in Romanian, English, Spanish, and Russian. She holds both Moldovan and Romanian citizenship.

Honours and Awards

Honors

Moldova: Order of Work Glory (23 July 2014)
Ukraine: First Class of the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise (23 August 2021)
Lithuania: First Class of the Order of Vytautas the Great (6 July 2022)
France: Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour (7 March 2024)

Awards

2020 Award of the Group for Social Dialogue (Romania, 27 January 2021)

Images for kids

Maia Sandu with US Vice-President Mike Pence in Washington, D.C., 18 September 2019
Maia Sandu meeting with NBM governor Octavian Armașu, 23 March 2021
Maia Sandu meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv, 27 June 2022
Maia Sandu meets with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Chișinău, 21 August 2024.
Salomé Zourabichvili, Maia Sandu (second left), Volodymyr Zelensky and Charles Michel at the 2021 Batumi International Conference