Travelling to all EU countries just with ID card is one of the immediate advantages of the accession of Romania. But, despite the efforts made till now, the process of integration will last a long time involving the whole economic and political system. Simona Lupu, Task Manager at the European Commission Representation in Romania and student of the MEIR master at the EURAC, explains us some steps of this process.

As a staff member of the EU Commission Representation in Romania, you also followed the pre-accession process. How was seen in Romania this preparation period?
For the citizens and for all the 8 governments that have ruled the country since after 1989, EU accession was the priority and all made efforts to meet the requirements for the accession process, initially to meet the political criteria and start negotiations and then  to meet the economic and acquis criteria during the negotiation. This will was strongly declared by all the parties and in general I think it was also transposed in facts, especially in terms of legislation.

Which were the main difficulties?
First of all, the implementation of the acquis needs an administrative capacity which was very often lacking. There was a high need to reform the public administration and make an effort towards decentralization. Due to the heritage of the past, the country was very centralized, everything was decided at the national level and everyone had to obey. Changing this mentality towards a stronger responsibility has been quite problematic. A job in the public administration sector is also not very attractive because it is not well paid, so it is clear that even if there has been an economic development, to change the public administration is a very long process.

How was welcomed the idea of becoming part of the European Union?
Romanians were among the most enthusiastic regarding EU integration but this not necessarily meant it was an informed support to the accession. Lots of people thought everything would be just positive: "Being part of the EU, we will have the standard of living as other EU countries and that will come with the day of the accession". But that is not true. You need to have political, economical and social reforms that take more time and not necessarily come together with the implementation of the acquis.

There is instead the risk that prices increase sooner that salary.
True, salaries are improving but not at the same rate as prices increase, and this causes a discrepancy. The average nominal earning per month is at this  moment is 320 Euro which is still much lower than the average salaries in other Western European countries.

Another big apprehension of the EU Commission was related to corruption. How to create a new system of legality?
There are 2 aspects, one is perception of corruption which is definitely high and the other is the actual corruption which is not so easily measurable. To fight corruption you need transparency and much simplified administrative procedures. Corruption can be reduced also by educating people to follow the legal ways: people should be given a system in which they have the possibility to act legally, that means the procedures should be simple and well known to citizens.

In the past lots of Romanians have left the country for work, now is Romania going to become a country of immigration?
It is actually becoming. In the last year Romanian economy has had a high growth rate, around  7 % and that means new job opportunities were created. For years around 3 millions Romanians went away to look for a job because of lack of opportunities in the country. The change from a state controlled to a market economy generated lots of restrictions: factories were closed and people had to leave. But now in some sectors like construction or services, the labor market has needs that cannot be met anymore. There are two solutions for this: Romanians migrant workers to come back as the salaries especially in these sectors are raising fast but also people from abroad to come here to work.

Which were the main changes recorded in these first half a year as EU member?
A part from the cosmetic change of open borders so that anyone can travel to EU countries just with ID or go to the airport and go directly to the EU line, real changes will come together with the reforms which are under implementation but not completed. Romania receives important financial allocations under Structural and Cohesion Funds and these should help the country catch up in terms of economic development and improved standard of living. Also, Romania is part of the Lisbon process for Growth and Job. If the growth rate is rather high and there is an increased labor market participation still this is low compared to the EU average. The Government is working with the support of the European Commission like other new countries to develop a National Action Plan for Reform. The accession is just a date but the integration is a process which will go on for long time.

Till now Romania has attracted foreign investors, also from Italy, thanks to low manufacture costs. Is there the risk that after the accession it won't be too expensive ?
Romania is very attractive as an investment place. In the last years foreign direct investment ranked among the highest in the region.

But this was during the preparation. Do you think it will continue also in the future?
Yes,  I think it will continue for a number of years. Labor costs are still lower than other EU countries and there are opportunities due to the dynamism of the economy and in terms of positioning towards the rest of the world. With a total population of 21 million people, Romania is surely attractive for investment.

And what will be the monetary politics: will Romania adopt the Euro?
Romania has already developed the convergence program and according to this it is planned that in 2014 it will adopt the Euro.

04.07.07

Interview by Stefania Campogianni

Simona Lupu is Task Manager at the European Commission Representation in Romania and is attending the Master in European Integration and Regionalism (MEIR) organized by EURAC and University of Graz.