The Romanian Government has recently approved a program meant to modernize 10,000 km of national and local roads, connect villages to water and sewage systems and modernize the rural areas in Romania, the Regional Development and Tourism Ministry has announced. The program will take place between 2011 and 2020.

Telecom operator Cosmote Romania will bring the iPhone 4 to Romania in the following period, the company has announced, without mentioning the exact date of the launch. Cosmote is the third operator on the Romanian market to announce it will sell the iPhone 4 locally, after Orange Romania and Vodafone Romania. Orange actually launched the iPhone 4 in Romania on September 24, and Vodafone has recently said it will bring the terminal to Romania by Christmas.

The George Bacovia University in Bacău organizes a seminar on 'How to get a scholarship with Harvard' on November 26, from 12,00 hours, in the Aula Moldova hall of the George Bacovia University in Bacau, third floor, A wing. The event was initiated by the Romanian Member of the Parliament Tudor Chiuariu. The main guest of the event will be Alexandru Manaila, Harvard interviewer for Romania and Harvard College graduate, the class of 2007.

A hospital in Vienna cashes in EUR 500,000 each month from Romanian patients, according to Theodor Alexandrescu, director of Alico, quoted by Ziarul Financiar daily. Alexandrescu did not mention the name of the hospital.

The Romanian Senate's Committee for education adopted Saturday an amendment to the Education Bill

The Romanian Government approved the second budget revision this year, Prime Minister Emil Boc announced Monday. According to the revision draft, the budget revenue and expenditure estimates for this year were slightly raised, to EUR 38 billion and EUR 46.7 billion, respectively.

Romanian Health Minister Attila Cseke said Sunday that medicine graduates who have failed the internship exam may be allowed into the system with limited duties, in order to cover the personnel shortage. A bill currently being drafted by the Health Ministry could allow the graduates to help doctors in various departments.

Car market Daimler AG's shares will be available for Romanian investors on the Bucharest Stock Exchange platform starting November 23, without being actually listed on the BSE. The stock exchange has approved shares trading on the ATS alternative system.

Calendar of events for the week November 22-25: conferences, exhibitions, workshops, press conferences.

*Finance Ministry has to raise EUR 1 billion from banks on Thursday – in Ziarul Financiar
*Only 14% of Romanian got a holiday during July – September – in Ziarul Financiar
*OTP lost EUR 7 million in the third quarter. Pressure moves to mortgage loans – in Ziarul Financiar
*Sanofi- Aventis, close to finalizing move of ten products to Bucharest. Exports start in in February – March – in Ziarul Financiar
*Romanians spend EUR 100 million a year on construction tools – in Ziarul Financiar

A collection of art pieces made by Constantin Brancusi, which belonged to artists Nicoleta Dumitrescu and Alexandru Istrati, will be auctioned in Paris on November 30. The collection is estimated to be worth between EUR 1.5 million and EUR 2 million. The collection includes three sculptures, 20 furniture pieces and objects made by or transformed by Brancusi for his daily use, along with some of his personal items.

Romanian businessman Catalin Chelu and three other individuals, Gabriel Constantinscu, Antonel Cristi Bunu and Ştefan Niţache Badea were detained for 29 days on Sunday, November 21, for bribe and complicity to bribe, according to the National Anti-corruption Authority (DNA).