Romania must urgently mobilize to meet the challenges that lie ahead

From the “European Policies and Business in the New Economy” event

• What does the new model of globalization look like, in the context created by a combination of unwanted and unforeseen events, such as the pandemic, the energy price crisis or the armed conflict between Russia and Ukraine?
• Sometimes it seems that we know how to manage, other times it seems that everything has gotten out of control. Opinions are divided, Europe is doing everything it can to keep the balance, but it will most likely need to be reinvented.
• Where is Romania in all this repositioning? At the moment, the specialists say that we are adrift, but if we mobilize we have all the chances to become a strategic player in the energy area, but also in the food area. The Black Sea is the one that can give a new breath both to our economy and to those around the country.

One thing is certain: the New Economy needs several directions governed by certainty, political stability, energy security and the coherence of European and domestic public policies.

Of course, the condition is that all those involved, from ordinary citizens to decision makers, understand the essential role of European policies reoriented towards creative change, the restructuring of the capitalist economy and the current practice of the most advanced and bold ideas and technologies that they will fundamentally transform the relations between the means of production.

Throughout this transformation process, EM360 and Sustainable Romania have created a framework for discussion between decision makers and representatives of the business environment, along with important names of the academic environment.

The event “European Policies and Business in the New Economy” brought, among other things, to the forefront the importance of small and medium-sized enterprises, given that they represent the dominant European economic fabric. SMEs bring in more than half of the European added value. Romania also went in this direction. In 2021, small and medium-sized enterprises increased their contribution to the national budget by 13%. But we need to see how we protect them, because in times of crisis they are fragile in the face of challenges. Victor Negrescu, Member of the European Parliament, explained what opportunities the European Union offers them at the moment.

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However, the measures and trends dictated by the European Union must not be 100% mastered. They must be adapted to each country, depending on the specific context, otherwise they will not be able to produce their expected effects, regardless of the field to which we refer. Maria Grapini, Member of the European Parliament, explained that Romania cannot really develop if it does not understand this essential mechanism.

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Romania is light years away from the reality of Europe. What are we missing? Performance, vision, innovation, in short, says Gabriel Vlăduț, CNIPMMR vice president. And finally, innovation, together with the training of professionals, would bring real benefits primarily to small and medium-sized companies, which are the backbone of the economy.

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However, the fact that the business environment is not sufficiently involved in discussions with the state related to a business strategy is caused by a lack of trust. And this is happening against the background of another lack: that of education. Romania has the lowest percentage of adults involved in continuing education, regardless of the field, and this is felt economically, says Calin Ile, president of the Federation of Hotel Industry in Romania.

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The problems are not only at the business level, but also among the citizens, for whom the financial pressure has already intensified. The rising cost of living is a huge shock and does not seem to be a temporary one, according to macroeconomist Laurian Lungu. He explained that if wages do not increase in Romania, people will feel more and more the pressure of daily living.

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And at the macro level, today we pay interest on loans almost comparable to the investments we make from the state budget, which is inadmissible, according to Cristian Păun, ASPES researcher. The “two-speed” Europe we are talking about these days is already a reality, says the professor, because the EU has been divided for many years between the euro and the non-euro. And in Romania, the imbalances are not only felt, but are also out of control. The solution for recovery would be reforms that put pressure on state spending, Păun points out.

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Even if we look beyond the mioritic picture, things are not very good. The East is at the forefront at the moment in terms of threats, being close to the armed conflict in Ukraine. How should Romania manage the economic pressure, already felt, but also how could it control the price of energy, explained the MEP Cristian Bușoi during the event “European Policies and Business in the New Economy.

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In addition, the green transition that is still talked about as a lifeline is still viewed in Romania with skepticism and as a cost. The country report shows that our country ranks last in the EU in terms of the added value we can generate from natural resources. However, in order to see the real opportunities, behavioral changes are needed, just as they must happen in the case of digitalization, is the opinion of the MEP Dragoș Pâslaru, present at the debate organized by EM360 and Sustainable Romania.

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I was also talking about a food crisis at the beginning. It is a real concern at European level, given that 35 million Europeans do not have access to a hot meal even once every 3 days. The challenges of the sector are very big, especially against the background of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, so the mobilization at the level of the European Parliament is in full swing. MEP Daniel Buda spoke about the plans there, during the debate “European Policies and Business in the New Economy”.

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What must be remembered is that the big loser of the current global crisis is the European Union, so it must rebuild its policies, said in the debate Professor Mircea Coșea, PhD in economics.

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The event enjoyed the support of the Federation of Employers of Oil and Gas as a strategic partner and institutional partners – ASPES and RomEficiența. Media partners: Agerpres, Economist, Economic Club, Financial Intelligence, Money, The Diplomat-Bucharest, Budget, World of Justice and World of Money. Media monitoring partner: Klarmedia.

The New Economy supports the permanent dialogue between the decision-making environment, the business environment and specialists from the main fields of activity, in order to take the best measures, coherent and applicable, to ensure the continuity of industries with the greatest contributions to GDP dynamics. more profitable areas for economic recovery. The New Economy is an approach initiated by Sustainable Romania and EM360, which invites construction, action, vitality – things we really need for the reconstruction of the economy.