Romania Profile
The way we are seen
Romania is located in south-eastern central Europe, in the northern part of the Balkan Peninsula. Its neighbors are Bulgaria, Hungary, Serbia, Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and the Black Sea.
Area: 238,391 square km
Climate: temperate, continental
National Day: December 1
Official language: Romanian
Population: 21,698,000 (as of March 27, 2002)
Religions: Orthodox 87 per cent, Roman Catholics 5 per cent, Reformed 3.5 per cent, other 4.5 per cent
Government system: Constitutional Republic with a multi-party parliamentary system. Bicameral parliament.
Administrative division: 40 counties, 262 towns and 2,687 communes (with 13,285 villages)
Capital city: Bucharest, a municipality divided into six administrative sectors with a population of over 2 million inhabitants.
Harbors: Constanta, Mangalia and Sulina on the Black Sea and Tulcea, Galati, Braila, Giurgiu and Drobeta Turnu Severin on the Danube River.
International airports: Bucharest Otopeni and Bucharest Baneasa, Constanta ( Mihail Kogalniceanu Airport ), Suceava, Arad, Sibiu, Timisoara.
Free trade zones: Sulina, Constanta, Galati, Braila (located on Black Sea or Danube river)
International membership: UN; International Monetary Fund (IMF), The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD/World Bank); International Finance Corporation (IFC); Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA); European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD); Bank for International Settlements (BIS); World Trade Organization (WTO); Central European Free Trade Agreement (CEFTA); European Union – associate member
Education: schools - 13,978; high schools - 1,295; Institutions of Higher Learning - 102; Universities - 485 (1996)
Health statistics: 18.1 doctors for 1,000 inhabitants (1996)
Agricultural area: (as of December 1996) arable land – 63.2 per cent; pastures – 22.9 per cent; hayfields – 10.1 per cent; vineyards and orchards: 3.8 per cent
Forests: 6.24 million hectares
Roads: 14,683 national roads (including European highways and roads); 58,477 country and communal roads
Currency: leu / plural lei, also RON ( 1 pound ~ 5,25 RON )
Taxation: corporate tax – 25 per cent; personal income tax – max. 40 per cent; VAT – 19 per cent
Unemployment rate: 8.2 per cent
