Romania had one of the highest contracting rates for EU funds in the region but only managed to get a little over half of the money allotted to it by the European Commission in the 2007-2013 period, according to KPMG, writes romania-insider.com.
Romania had a 106% contracting rate of the EU funds allotted to it, at the end of 2014, the fourth highest of ten countries in the region. However, it only managed to get 52% of the money, its payment ratio being by far the lowest in the region.
Romania had EUR 19.2 billion allotted from the EU budget for the 2007-2013 period, from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), Cohesion Fund (CF) and European Social Fund (ESF). The country came up with projects worth a total of EUR 20.3 billion, but managed to get less than EUR 10 billion by the end of 2014.
Romania can still receive payments from the 2007-2013 funds until the end of this year. By the end of May 2015, the EU fund absorption rate went up to 54% and the Government targeted at the beginning of this year an 80% absorption rate by end-2015. The projects that are not finished by then will lose their EU funding.
Hungary and the Baltic states had the highest EU funds absorption rates at the end of 2014, of over 85%.
Romania’s slow progress was due to the delay in implementing EU-funded programs, as well as the many irregularities and corruption suspicions in the procurement process for the projects implemented by public authorities, which determined the European Commission to suspend payments for some programs at times.
Read more on romania-insider.com.
Showing posts with label corruption. Show all posts
Showing posts with label corruption. Show all posts
Saturday, June 20, 2015
Friday, June 19, 2015
Bucharest District 1 Mayor Under Arrest for Corruption
Anti-corruption Directorate in Ploiesti held Bucharest District 1 mayor Andrei Chiliman on Thursday night (June 18), after hours of questioning in a corruption case.
They charged him with leading an organized crime group and accessory to influence peddling, according to an official DNA statement, cited by romania-insider.com.
According to the prosecutors, Andrei Chiliman and three other associates used their influence to help some companies get public contracts from the District 1 City Hall in exchange for a fee of 10% to 15% of the contract value.
Some 30% of the money went to Chiliman while his three associates got 15% each and 10% went to Chiliman’s party, according to DNA. The remaining 15% would be used to pay off various other people who had to approve the contracts.
DNA said that Andrei Chiliman and his associates allegedly received some EUR 8.7 million from two companies that got a contract for thermal rehabilitation of blocks in District 1.
Andrei Chiliman is the second district mayor in Bucharest who has been arrested this year, after Marian Vanghelie, the District 5 mayor, who was also charged for corruption.
Read more on romania-insider.com.
They charged him with leading an organized crime group and accessory to influence peddling, according to an official DNA statement, cited by romania-insider.com.
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| Andrei Chiliman. Photo: enational.ro. |
Some 30% of the money went to Chiliman while his three associates got 15% each and 10% went to Chiliman’s party, according to DNA. The remaining 15% would be used to pay off various other people who had to approve the contracts.
DNA said that Andrei Chiliman and his associates allegedly received some EUR 8.7 million from two companies that got a contract for thermal rehabilitation of blocks in District 1.
Andrei Chiliman is the second district mayor in Bucharest who has been arrested this year, after Marian Vanghelie, the District 5 mayor, who was also charged for corruption.
Read more on romania-insider.com.
Thursday, June 4, 2015
Adviser to Bucharest Mayor, Arrested for Bribery
An adviser to Bucharest Mayor has been arrested when he got bribed by a denouncer businessman.
According to a judiciary press release, quoted by the news agency Mediafax, Wigler Solomon has been caught taking 25,000 euros on Wednesday evening from a businessman.
The same source said that the businessman claimed that between 2012 and 2015, he paid over 200,000 euros as bribery to Mr. Solomon.
The bribery was supposed to facilitate the local council's approval of the construction of three supermarkets in the Romanian capital Bucharest.
Mr. Solomon couldn't be contacted for comment.
Local media said that the denouncer businessman is associated with a company which develops some projects with the German food chain Kaufland.
In a press release, the Bucharest City Hall said that Mr. Solomon has been suspended from the office.
Wigler Solomon is a "personal adviser" to Mr. Sorin Oprescu, Mayor of Bucharest.
According to Mediafax, Wigler Solomon's wealth statement for the year 2013 stated that the mayor's adviser had 65,000 square meter domain in Popesti-Leordeni, near Bucharest, two houses and an apartment in Bucharest, three BMW and Audi cars, watches, jewelry and works of art worth 1.9 ml. euros.
According to a judiciary press release, quoted by the news agency Mediafax, Wigler Solomon has been caught taking 25,000 euros on Wednesday evening from a businessman.
The same source said that the businessman claimed that between 2012 and 2015, he paid over 200,000 euros as bribery to Mr. Solomon.
The bribery was supposed to facilitate the local council's approval of the construction of three supermarkets in the Romanian capital Bucharest.
Mr. Solomon couldn't be contacted for comment.
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| Bucharest Mayor Sorin Oprescu. Photo Credit: jurnalul.ro |
In a press release, the Bucharest City Hall said that Mr. Solomon has been suspended from the office.
Wigler Solomon is a "personal adviser" to Mr. Sorin Oprescu, Mayor of Bucharest.
According to Mediafax, Wigler Solomon's wealth statement for the year 2013 stated that the mayor's adviser had 65,000 square meter domain in Popesti-Leordeni, near Bucharest, two houses and an apartment in Bucharest, three BMW and Audi cars, watches, jewelry and works of art worth 1.9 ml. euros.
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