BUCHAREST, February 15, 2010 - A World Bank (WB) team led by the Country Manager in Romania, Francois Rantrua, has met in Bucharest with representatives of the Romanian Ministry of Public Finance and representatives of the Project Management Units (PMU) to discuss the Desk Portfolio Review, on Monday, 15 February 2010. It was a working meeting of the new management with the WB partners in Romania meant to introduce innovative working approaches, to support all stakeholders in carrying out the projects successfully.
The current WB portfolio in Romania contains projects implemented by the Romanian ministries and agencies in the fields of economy, health, hazard mitigation, agriculture, energy, mining, environment, justice reform; the representatives of the respective Romanian PMUs took part in the discussions. In his opening address Francois Rantrua said: “Monitoring is pretty simple, based on a series of indicators and on a tracking system. So let’s see what we can do together and what we can improve”. He added that transparency is important and it is good to have all the parties around the table. “According to the Country Partnership Strategy, the partnership with the Bank should reflect Romania’s priorities as EU member state. We welcome the Development Policy Loans program, supported by technical assistance, as part of the package agreed with IMF and EC”, stated Angela Carabas, Director General of the Treasury and Public Debt Department of the Ministry of Public Finance. She added: “Post crisis, the Bank has expertise and knowledge that could be used in Romania in specific sectors to be mutually agreed upon”.
The participants presented the main achievements and the challenges so far, as well as they have voiced concerns and formulated practical working conclusions. The overall note of the event was positive, both the Bank and its partners showing a renewed commitment to continuing and improving their work together.
The Bank has played a significant role in supporting Romania's transition up to EU accession, both in terms of its financial and intellectual contribution to the reform efforts. Between 1991 and 2009, the World Bank supported a total of 55 operations in Romania, with a total commitment of about US$6 billion. At end December 2009 Romania’s active portfolio ranked fifth in the Europe and Central Asia region (after Turkey, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine). Currently Romania’s World Bank financed portfolio consists of 13 active projects, with a corresponding net commitment of US$ 1.13 billion, and several analytical and advisory activities. The current Country Partnership Strategy for FY 2010 – FY 2013 was approved in July 2009.
