While generations X and Y sought to emigrate and find a job outside Romania, the current generations are willing to build at home.
The effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine have generated multiple effects on economical development, in such a powerful way that they have changed the economic patterns and flows that states and economic actors have dealt with for the past 30 years.
Whether we mean the energy crisis, inflation, rising prices and interest rates, the global economic expansion changed its DNA and states have started to think more regionally. Trade was tempered by the national interests of states, which attempted a milder or more aggressive form of protectionism, depending on the strategic commodities required.
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Energy dependence has not only translated into interdependence with positive and growth effects between the states of Europe, but also through blackmail from Russia to the states of the Western and Eastern European democratic block. Thus, a structural reset of the flow of goods and the routes of supply chains has emerged.
All this time, Romania has been a silent player who has respected its commitments to international partnerships and who has remained, in a world tumultuous and dominated by strategic realignments, a reliable member of NATO and an enthusiastic partner of the European project.
With the homework done, in the most sensitive aspects, related to security and political stability, the performances were not slow to appear either. Romania’s GDP has doubled in the last 10 years. It experienced the fourth highest economic growth in the EU. Purchasing power increased by 25 per cent, and Romania’s convergence process accelerated starting in 2015.
Power broker
Howsoever, in a generally favourable investment landscape, foreign investments in Romania are among the lowest in Europe. What could be the explanation? Romania has not properly promoted its potential among its allies.
Friendshoring is not only the solution for Romania, but especially for allies looking for growth markets and supply markets with high potential and low political risk. The big economies need to look more carefully into their own democratic club.
What makes us attractive? Three essential resources: human, energy, reliability.
While generations X and Y sought to emigrate and find a job outside Romania, the current generations are willing to build at home. Along with the increase in living standards, the migratory flow to other more developed countries, especially those in the EU, has decreased.
Romania’s energy independence allows investors to eliminate a real risk factor, a vulnerability that has changed the strategic priorities of the states. The possibility of developing greenfield investments in an energy-efficient (green) and digitised way adds an extra point on the attractiveness map.
The third resource, reliability capital, which is generated by democratic, economic and social resilience, plus the innovative potential not maximised so far due to underfunded research and development sector, not only puts Romania in a leading position when it comes to predictability, but generates the premises to become a real power-broker in Eastern Europe.
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