AOAR: Projects of national interest should be assigned to private companies

“In addition to the multi-annual budget, we ask that the government and the Ministry of Finance make a list of goals of national or regional interest, which cannot be financed from public funds, suggesting that the business environment takes over these projects by concession, in a transparent and predictable fashion,” indicates the press release.

According to AOAR, this measure will help with the finalizing of a greater volume of important projects, especially in the field of infrastructure, and in social sectors, ensuring the possibility of developing businesses, attracting investors, creating jobs, and increasing state budget revenues.

“We ask that a joint motivated government-BNR [National Bank of Romania] position be taken, to explain the lack of interest of the Romanian authorities to initiate talks with major international lenders, such as the European Union, the European Central Bank [ECB], the European Investment Bank [EIB], or IMF [International Monetary Fund],” said the press release.

In the event that proper measures are not adopted rapidly, AOAR warns that the contraction of economic activity registered recently in all sectors with a significant ratio in gross domestic product (GDP) will result in a drastic drop in economic growth in 2009, which will be irreversible in the short-run.