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          A STRONG
          ECONOMY
           FOR ALL
         ROMANIANS


COUNTRY
PARTNERSHIP
STRATEGY
(CPS) for Romania for

2014-2017
What is the CPS?
The World Bank Group’s country partnership strategy (CPS) is a framework that aims
to support the Government of Romania in the fight against poverty, to reach sustainable
income growth for the entire population. As such, the CPS is an instrument for cooperation
between the Government of Romania and the World Bank Group.




                                                      Creating a
The strategy is structured on                    1

3
                                                      21st Century Government
          main                                        Supporting
          directions,                            2    Economic Development
                                                      and Job Creation
          called
          CPS pillars:                           3 ISocial
                                                    ncreasing
                                                           Inclusion




The CPS is the result of extensive consultations with a wide variety of stakeholders in the
government, the European Commission and international institutions, the private sector,
academia, think tanks, civil society, and representatives of local public authorities and
residents within Romania.
         1    Creating a 21st Century Government


Romania needs a strong public administration and service delivery system capable of
developing and implementing strategies for economic welfare and social progress. Romania
also needs to make better use of available European structural funds. Accordingly, the World
Bank will continue to support the creation of a 21st century government through various
projects to:

       Strengthen the administrative capacity

       Improve the tax collecting system

       Make better use of the European funds

       Reform the health system

       Support the budget




         2 Supporting Economic Development and Job Creation

Going further Romania needs more economic growth and the creation of
jobs. The business environment can be improved, as Romania currently ranks
73rd worldwide, behind other regional competitors such as Bulgaria, Hungary
or Poland. Therefore, the World Bank Group will support economic growth
and job creation in Romania by improving the business environment and
by developing the capital market, as well as by encouraging an efficient and
inclusive labor market.

The World Bank Group’s overarching goals are to end extreme poverty and boosting shared
prosperity. Achieving both goals will require the increased role of the private sector. The
International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, works directly
with the private sector and will develop local capital markets to create access to long-
term local currency finance and invests in private sector companies to create jobs and
opportunities where they are needed most.
          3 Increasing Social Inclusion

Romania needs to insure that prosperity is shared
                                                          Poverty risk
and no citizen is left behind. Poverty remains
a reality and the programs fighting it should
be developed taking into account the uneven
geographical distribution of poverty in the country.               16%       41%
The Southern and Eastern regions are significantly
poorer than the Center or the West. At the same
time, one of the most disadvantaged categories is
the Roma population. The disparities between the
Roma and the non-Roma are apparent from early
childhood, especially in the level of education. 61% of
the Roma people have attended primary school, 30%
have completed 10 years of compulsory education,
and only 9% have graduated high school. The limited
access to education comes with significant negative
consequences on the labor market. Because of the
low access to education and opportunities, only a
third of the Roma in Romania are legally employed.
However, over 55% of the incomes earned by the
Roma are the result of their work.


Gender Equality
The cross-cutting theme of the strategy is gender equality. Important gender differences
remain for instance, the rate of women’s participation in the labor market is lower - 56.2%
as compared to 71.6% for men.

Increasing social inclusion implies an enhanced package of integrated services for the
marginalized communities in terms of education, health, social security, infrastructure and
labor market.
Moreover, the World Bank will concentrate on promoting gender equality and the social
inclusion of marginalized communities.

The World Bank Group supports Romania through our country
partnership for the next four years to ensure a strong economic
growth in the best interest of every Romanian citizen.