AM POSDRU general manager Cristian Ababei on Monday said Romania received an official notice from the Commission on August 7 announcing the pre-suspension of payments for the HR development program. Ababei also said that, under the valid laws, Romania has two months to apply the Commission’s recommendations. He added the deadline expires on October 6 and the authority managing the HR development program has prepared a set of measures that will be sent to the Commission this week.
The Commission’s audit report targets the evaluation and selection process, which reveals systemic flaws, faulty project selection and the fact that the Romanian eligibility rules are ambiguous, as they allow an inefficient allocation and use of resources in implementing the projects.
Labor Minister Mariana Campeanu said 29.27% of payments for the HR development program have been made so far, but the absorption rate of EU funds reaches only 7.73%. She also said the Commission might stop sending refunds to Romania, which could lead to a new suspension of the program.
Razvan Cotovelea, state secretary within Romania’s Ministry of European Affairs, said the current results within the HR development program are the effect of the events between 2010 and 2011 and stressed the Labor Ministry’s task to correct the flaws in the upcoming months is almost impossible.
Cotovelea added, however, that the payments toward beneficiaries will still be made from the state budget and the money will be refunded by the Commission when all problems are solved.