On September 9, 2011 "sheltered housing" service was launched in Balti, Moldova. This service, meant for people with mental disorders, was implemented by the Association SOMATO from Balti together with Global Initiative on Psychiatry within the project "Development and testing sheltered housing for people with mental illness from Moldova", funded by European Commission and OSI.

Within the "sheltered housing" service in Balti, for the first time in the country, two apartments and two houses were opened for 16 people with mental disorders. The premises were allocated by Balti municipality, while all renovation and furnishing works were funded by the project donors. Moreover, in this project 80 people with mental illness from Balti benefited of assistance at home. Two cycles of trainings for people involved in project implementation and one study visit to Holland were organized.

During the service opening ceremony, the president of the Association SOMATO, Jana Chihai, mentioned that among the biggest difficulties people with mental illness face is the lack of conditions for independent and free living. "Sheltered housing" service is a good opportunity for our beneficiaries to live an independent life, to integrate into society and to decide by themselves what is most important in their everyday life", said Jana Chihai.

According to the official data, in Balti there are more than three thousand people with mental illness, including over 200 children and 190 teenagers. 

Project "Developing and testing sheltered housing for people with mental illness in Moldova" was launched at the end of 2008 and is to be finished by the end of 2011. The project is funded by the Delegation of European Union to Moldova; the co-funders of the project are Mental Health Initiative/Open Society Institute (Hungary) and Balti city hall. The project is implemented by Global Initiative on Psychiatry, Hilversum and Association SOMATO from Balti.

This project is funded by the European Union.