February 6, 2025 UPDATE
A roundup of local and international news.
Newsroom, 06.02.2025, 19:59
Government. The coalition government issued a decision establishing that the minimum gross salary will be updated on a yearly basis depending on the inflation rate and work productivity. The government’s spokesman Mihai Constantin explained that Romania would apply the European calculation mechanism, making the evolution of the minimum salary more predictable. As of this year, the minimum gross salary in Romania is around 810 euros. The cabinet also discussed a number of investment projects concerning the green transition and worth around 18 million euros, as well as this year’s priorities under the so-called Anghel Saligny Local Development Programme.
Slavery. 52 Romanian citizens who were kept in semi-slavery conditions on a farm in the Seville region were freed by the Spanish police. The authorities described their working and living conditions as “hard to imagine”. The group responsible includes four Romanian nationals who would bring in fellow citizens to do farming work, especially orange and olive harvesting. They promised them high pay, decent accommodation and free transport. However, once they arrived in Spain, the workers would see their ID papers seized and they would get less pay than they were promised, but had to work from morning till sunset. The victims were threatened with violence if they went to the police. The group responsible were arrested by the police in Andalusia and the 52 workers are in the care of the Spanish social services.
Work. Romanians are among the hardest-working European citizens, according to a Eurostat poll published on Thursday. The Bucharest-Ilfov region has the highest work intensity level among all European regions, while the north-eastern region of Romania is in 5th place. The Eurostat data also show that the highest rate of low work intensity is in the French territories outside Europe, in the French Guyana and La Reunion.
NATO. Romania will continue to provide the necessary support as host nation of the NATO battle group operating here, the country’s defence minister Angel Tîlvăr told the French Minister Delegate for European Affairs, Benjamin Haddad. Their talks in Bucharest on Thursday focused on cooperation within NATO, in particular the consolidation of the NATO battle group in Romania, with France acting as framework nation. On Wednesday, Haddad was also received by the foreign minister Emil Hurezeanu. The French official was on a two-day trip to Bucharest to convey his country’s solidarity with Romania in the face of foreign meddling. VIGINUM, the French service for protection against foreign digital interference, noted in a report cited by Radio Romania’s correspondent in Paris, that such activity interfered with the election process in Romania at the end of last year.
Budget. Parliament endorsed on Wednesday evening the draft laws on the state budget and the social security budget for 2025. The budget is based on a 2.5% economic growth forecast and a budget deficit of 7% of GDP. According to the finance minister Tánczos Barna, the conditions are thus met to support development through record-high investment, to ensure the payment of salaries and pensions, to protect vulnerable citizens and to restore balance in the country’s finances.
Restructuring. Over 400 administrative posts in Parliament are to be scrapped, after Romania’s Chamber of Deputies approved the reorganisation of its staff. Personnel cuts will be made to the office of the Chamber’s Speaker and those of the members of the Permanent Bureau, as well as other departments and directorates in Parliament. According to the leadership of the Chamber of Deputies, cutting 240 jobs will result in annual savings of about 7 million euros. Recently, the Senate also decided to cut almost 200 positions despite employee protests. The government has called for a reduction in spending in order to keep the budget deficit in check, but the opposition has criticised the move as lacking transparency and running counter to the legal provisions in force.
The Romanian Government Scholarships Program is now open for applications. Each year, the Romanian Government, through the Ministerul Afacerilor Externe/ Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Romania, provides a number of scholarships to citizens from non-EU countries with good results in education. Applicants can choose from any of the following three study cycles in accredited higher education institutions in Romania: Bachelor’s degree, Master’s degree and PhD. Scholarships are NOT awarded in the fields of medicine, dental medicine and pharmacy. The eligibility criteria, documents and detailed information can be found on the Study in Romania platform, using the Apply for MFA Scholarships button https://studyinromania.gov.ro/
Applications are to be submitted ONLY through the Study in Romania platform at https://scholarships.studyinromania.gov.ro/
Applications are accepted between 29 January and 12 March, 2025, with the selection results announced around 30 June 2025.
