By Mari Megias
GROWING UP IN SOVIET MOLDOVA, Natalia Gavrilița (née Catrinescu) MPP 2005 says she “saw what an all-powerful, badly intentioned government can do to its citizens.” Three decades after Moldova declared independence, Gavrilița was sworn in as her nation’s prime minister.
She entered office with a bold promise: to root out corruption, advance European Union membership, and foster economic growth and energy independence. But only six months into her term, Russia launched its full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine—a major, unforeseen crisis that forced Gavrilița to recalculate policies in real time.
Her small country, whose border with Ukraine stretches for more than 750 miles, became a corridor for refugees—nearly two million people have crossed into Moldova since the war began, and some 130,000 remain, giving the country the highest per-capita refugee population worldwide.
A wave of economic upheaval followed. Inflation soared—prices at one point spiked by 35%—while gross domestic product contracted by 6%. Among the most urgent challenges was the need to diversify from Russian-supplied fuel. “Prices were very high because everybody was going through a supply shock,” she says. “We had to respond—not just for our citizens, but also for those seeking refuge.” Under Gavrilița’s leadership, in just one year, Moldova eliminated gas imports from Russia.
She also moved to overhaul her country’s safety net. “We quickly implemented a targeted social protection system that allowed us to compensate, at least partially, for the increase in prices, especially for the most vulnerable,” she says. “And when we received five times more refugees than the UNHCR [United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees] estimated our total capacity to be, we quickly extended to refugees many of the rights that our own citizens enjoy.”
“Reform is very complicated and takes many years. … With Russian interference and the mobilization of those who don't want the reforms to succeed, it continues to be a fight.”
Gavrilița often relies on insights and skills she gained at Harvard Kennedy School. “At HKS, I concentrated on math-based subjects, learning how to do program evaluation, to understand the capital markets—and also negotiations, mobilization, communication, ethics. I use all of this. In fact, the more I advanced in my career, the more I used the less-technical subjects.” HKS case studies and classroom discussions gave her confidence in her decision-making. “I learned strong frameworks that guided me to take decisions not just based on the consequences, but on their moral weight.”
HKS memories rushed back to her in 2009 when she was serving in Moldova’s State Chancellery. Amidst allegations that the governing Party of Communists had committed electoral fraud, a student demonstration ended in tragedy. Says Gavrilița, “I was working for a government that I didn’t support, but I was a public servant. On the 7th of April, a protest turned violent, and a young person was killed by the police. I resigned the very next day.” In this act of civil disobedience, she says her HKS education fortified her. “At that moment, I remembered the case studies and papers about public servants making choices and following their values.”
Even amid turbulence, her government made significant strides against corruption and toward transparency and efficiency. “Reform is very complicated and takes many years. … With Russian interference and the mobilization of those who don't want the reforms to succeed, it continues to be a fight. But ultimately, the big prize was that we applied for EU candidate status and became a candidate while I was prime minister.”
Gavrilița knows what it’s like to live in a totalitarian society and will do everything she can to sustain democracy. “Ukrainians are sacrificing their lives because they’re choosing between two models—one where an autocratic government can stifle any person, and one where there are systems of checks and balances, freedom, and institutions that can protect the individual.”
The shadow of the Soviet past and autocracy still loom over Moldova. But Gavrilița is hopeful that her country will continue to progress. “I encourage everybody to think about what we can do to make sure that our generation and our children’s generation can live in a free and democratic society.”
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Portraits by Bethany Versoy