Romania’s Ministry of Public Finance is committed to maintaining macroeconomic stability not only for Romania but also for the region. Gheorghe Ialomitianu, former Minister of Public Finance, explains, “We promote fiscal reforms at the local and regional level as well as the national level. We are working closely with the National Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to ensure the stability of Romania’s financial system over the medium and long term.”
The Ministry of Finance played a leading role in a recent programme to help Romania recover from the effects of the global financial crisis. “This programme has been very successful and Romania has regained the trust of European markets thanks to the reforms we have made,” former Minister Ialomitianu points out.
Re-launching the Romanian economy
Investing in the future is crucial for Romania in its drive to create more jobs and maintain economic growth. Gheorghe Ialomitianu says, “We are re-launching the Romanian economy. Our objective for 2012 is to allocate over 7% of Romania’s total GDP towards investment. We also aim to get the budget down to less than 3% of GDP and to continue to reduce the costs of the public sector, which have dropped from 9.5% in 2008 to 7.4% in 2011; we aim for 7.2% for 2012.”
Infrastructure – particularly Romania’s road network – is a top target for the government’s investment programmes. Gheorghe Ialomitianu explains that Romania’s Ministry of Transport will focus on promoting public private partnerships for infrastructure projects, creating many new opportunities for foreign investors and companies. “The Ministry of Finance’s role in these projects will be to make sure they meet EU laws and standards,” he adds.
Romania offers many advantages for investors, the former Minister of Finance believes. He points out that in addition to macroeconomic stability, Romania has low cost skilled labour, a growing consumer market, a favourable tax regime, and a business friendly government. In fact, investors whose businesses will create new jobs can count on financial support from the Ministry of Finance. “I have signed many agreements with foreign companies this year to provide them with financial assistance to launch new projects,” former Minister Ialomitianu says.
The Ministry of Finance has also developed online systems to reduce red tape for investors. To potential investors in Romania, Gheorghe Ialomitianu concludes, “Romania is open for investment, and the foreign companies which are already operating here have been very profitable.”
