In its 2012 Transition Report, the bank highlighted several key priorities for the Romanian economy, including further improvements to the investments climate and to the quality of the transport network, and recommended the government ramp up its privatization program.
“Heightened efforts are needed to remove red tape and licensing problems, which are cited as problems by enterprises in business climate surveys,” EBRD said.
Furthermore, important privatizations in key sectors should be advanced, as the implementation of the process assumed with Romania’s international creditors has been slow.
“The government has expressed its commitment to proceed with the sale of important assets, but implementation should be accelerated if sales are to be achieved next year,” the report noted.
The local infrastructure also needs significant improvements, the bank said.
“Now that the appropriate legislation for private sector involvement is in place, the authorities should step up efforts to attract private investment and know-how to key transport projects.”
The energy sector represents another challenging area for the Romanian economy, as the deregulation process has been witnessing delays, EBRD noted.
“Romania has faced infringement action by the European Commission over the persistence of regulated prices, but the government has committed to phase these out over time,” it said.