Romania’s economic growth in the first quarter was robust and balanced, as it was based on private consumption, exports and private investments, said Catalin Pauna, World Bank economist in Romania.

“Unfortunately, the evolution of public investments is not in line with private ones, and this is due to a low absorption of EU funds. Let’s hope that in the next 2014-2020 programming period, public investments will grow,” Pauna said, cited by local Capital.ro.

Romania should concentrate on reforming its public sector, the World Bank economist added. This is very important, as the public sector in Romania manages about 35% of the GDP, namely about EUR 50 billion per year.

“It’s important that these amounts go to the areas where they can generate the highest economic yields,” Pauna said.

Tax collection as part of the GDP remains one of the lowest in Europe. Despite the change in policies and the promoted taxes, Romania hasn’t managed to collect more than 32-22% of the GDP. This shows that the administrative part in collecting taxes should be tackled, Pauna said.

editor@romania-insider.com