DEZVOLTAREA ECONOMICĂ REGIONALĂ A ROMÂNIEI ÎN PERIOADA DE TRANZIȚIE

In Romania, regional policy is a relatively new phenomenon that was slow to develop in the transition period. Regional policy in Romania for all analytical purposes been notably absent in the 1990s and only started shaping up mainly as a response to EU requirements to integration. This was despite the significant problems of disparity and backwardness faced by many regional and local economies of the country – and the trend of widening inequality associated with the processes of transition and fast economic growth. As a consequence, the regional policy framework in Romania reflects strongly the EU influence and shows little sensitivity to, and appreciation of, the main regional and spatial problems that policy in the country should be addressing. This paper addresses the evolution, structure and effectiveness of the regional policy in Romania, by evaluating the nature of regional, examining the development of regional policy, and discussing the role played by the EU. This analysis provides useful conclusions regarding the strengths and weaknesses of Romania’s regional policy and helps highlight the main challenges for the future perspectives