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RADOR: News from Romania, 97-12-09
December 9, 1997
CONTENTS
[01] IMF Delegation Back in Romania
[02] Hard Times for the Romanian Economy
[03] New Jobs for Prof.Dr. Andrei Marga and Prof.Dr. Ion Victor Bruckner
[04] Seminar in Targu Neamt on Rromani Issues
[05] Romanian-Hungarian Business Council
[06] Central and East-European Summit
[07] Weather in Romania
[08] Currency Rates
[01] IMF delegation back in Romania
Mr. Poul Thomsen, the IMF chief negotiator for Romania, met the new
ministers in the Ciorbea Cabinet today at Victoria Palace. Mr. Thomsen
wanted to find out if the newly appointed ministers were to change the
economic policy of the Government, and what were the perspectives of the
future cooperation between the IMF and the Romanian Government. He also
expressed his interest in Mr. Mircea Ciumara's intentions concerning the
autonomous companies and their influence on the next year's budget. This
new visit of IMF representatives, which is the last this year, is very
important to the Romanian economy as the figures in the 1997 budget are to
be clarified. Poul Thomsen is accompanied by a delegation of World Bank
experts who are to examine the way the ASAL agreement for agriculture and
the FESAL agreement for industry were implemented. The new Romanian Finance
Minister Daniel Daianu and a BNR team have informed that they will ask the
IMF to accept new negotiations for a three-year agreement instead of one
year. RADOR, December 9
[02] Hard times for the Romanian economy
The Romanian currency, the leu is dropping head-on against the US dollar
and is soon to reach the psychological threshold of 8,000 lei to 1 USD.
Last Wednesday, the dollar was up 36 lei, at 7,925 lei. The capital market
sees no improvement either. The Bucharest Stock Exchange index, the BET,
lost 31 points last Friday, at 667.2. Daily tradings have hardly reached
half a million dollars. As far as the RASDAQ index is concerned, it saw a
slight upgoing move on Friday, when it reached 3.893 points, but then
dropped again by 142 points. Experts say the faster the privatisation and
investment laws will be implemented the sooner the capital market will
recover.
Investments in Romania's national economy fell by two thirds in the first
nine months of the year 1997 as compared to the same period last year.
Investment fell mostly in purchasing transport machinery and means. The
private sector, where financing is provided from the companies' own
resources, saw the most dramatic fall in investments, of 51.4%. RRI-RADOR,
December 9
[03] New jobs for Prof.Dr. Andrei Marga and Prof.Dr. Ion Victor Bruckner
Romanian Prof.Dr. Andrei Marga was sworn in as Minister of National
Education. Andrei Marga is former professor of contemporary philosophy and
general logics at the Babes-Bolyai University in Cluj-Napoca, Central
Transylvania. The new minister of national education is politically
independent. In his acceptance speech, he said the reform should be
developed more rapidly in high schools and higher education institutions.
Minister Marga highlighted that if new approaches were not promoted in two
months time, then the obsolete style and methods might become dangerous.
Minister Marga added the reform in Romanian education system should be
approximated to the interwar traditions, still viable.
On Monday, the 53 year old Prof.Dr. Ion Victor Bruckner was sworn in as
Health Minister. He is one of the experts who drew up the medicare and
medicaid chapter in the electoral programe of the Democratic Convention for
the November 1996 elections. In his acceptance speech, minister Bruckner
said a great deal of legal framework for health reform was already passed,
and the difficult task of implememnting it would fall to his hands. The new
health insurance will become operational on January 1, 1998. RRI- RADOR,
December 9
[04] Seminar in Targu Neamt on Rromani issues
The Moldavian town of Targu Neamt, North-Eastern Romania, is hosting an
international seminar devoted to the Rromani community. The seminar is
organised by the European Union, the UN Children Funds (UNICEF) and the
Minorities Department in the Romanian Government. The meeting is focused on
planning and providing social services to the Rromanis as well as on issues
concerning the integration of Rromani children in the Romanian education
system. RRI-RADOR, December 9
[05] Romanian-Hungarian Business Council
The Business Council of Romania and Hungary was settled during a meeting on
Monday. Participants included the Hungarian ambassador to Bucharest Szocs
Ferenc and the president of the Hungarian-Romanian Joint Chamber of
Commerce as well as some 100 enterprisers who have asked for registration
as members in the Council and have elected George Cojocaru as president of
the new body. Mr. Cojocaru is the current president of the Chamber of
Commerce in the Romania and the City of Bucharest. An agenda of joint
actions was established as well as the opening of branches in the capital
cities of the two countries. An information monthly bulletin is to be
published as well. RADOR, December 9
[06] Central and East-European summit
A summit of 11 heads of state in Central and Eastern Europe will be held at
Levoca, Eastern Slovakia, on January 23/24, 1998. President Kovach, who's
term in office expires in February, has invited the presidents of Germany,
Austria, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, the Czech Republic and
Ukraine to the historical town of Levoca for the conference on "Civil
Society - Hope of a United Europe". This will be the fifth summit of its
kind following an initiative of the Czech President Vaclav Havel. RRI-
RADOR, December 8
[07] Weather in Romania
Weather in Romania will be cold and cloudy in most of the country.
Snowfalls may be expected in northern regions. Temperatures wil range from -
6 centigrades in the morning to 8 centigrades at noon. RADOR, December 9
[08] Currency rates
1 USD = 7,932 lei; 1 DEM = 4,442 lei; 1 FRF = 1,327 lei; 100 JPY = 6,081
lei; 100 ITL = 454 lei; 1 XEU = 8,807 lei RADOR, December 9
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