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Info INSMonthly Newsle! er

august 2016Editorial Board:Andreea IŞFANMihail PETRUŢIUBogdan PĂTĂRLĂGEANUCătălin MÎRLOGEANUBogdan DRĂGHIAcomunicare@insse.ro

The Romanian Offi cial Statistics

at its 157 Years Aniversary 1-3

Interview with Mr. Achim IRIMESCU, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development 4-5

Event & NIS Brochure 5

The Debate on “The Jews of Romania in Offi cial Statistics” 6

The opening ceremony of the Romanian Government Offi cial Internship Program

SUMMARY

august 2016 volume 3 No 8 (29)

https://www.

facebook.

com/IN-

STATISTICA

The Romanian Offi cial Statistics at its 157 Years Aniversary

EVENT

On Friday, July 8TH, 2016, on the occasion of the events dedicated to the “The Statistician’s Day 2016” and the anniversary of 157 years since the foundation of the fi rst public statistical institutions in Romania, the National Institute of Statistics hosted the debate “the offi cial statistics, support for the political decision making”. It was an excellent opportunity to acknowledge again the mission of the statistical institution, formulated by Mr. Dionisie Pop Martian, one of the fathers of the Romanian statistics, since its creation:” statistics is the only safe fi eld on which a prudential government can justify the reasons of its reforms”.This year’s event argued the perennial character of our mission by some of the most authorized voices of the city, belonging to personalities among the country’s legislators, representatives of the executive and the academic and research university environment.The debates were attended by Mr.

Vasile Dîncu – Deputy Prime Minister, by the ministers Dragos Pîslaru and Sorin Sergiu Chelmu, by the parliamentarians Andreea Paul, Iulian Iancu, Aurel Vainer, and also by Mihnea Costoiu - rector of the Polytechnic University of Bucharest.As far as we are concerned, the National Institute of Statistics was represented by its President, Mr. Tudorel Andrei and by Mrs. Adriana Ciuchea and Mrs. Silvia Pisica, general directors of the most important areas for statistical research of the institution, the macroeconomics and the demographic and the social statistics.Opening the debate, the president Tudorel Andrei reiterated the main challenges and the priorities of the Romanian offi cial statistics, synthetically contained in the formula: ”more and better information, produced faster and at lower costs”.

(to be continued on page no. 2)

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The Romanian Offi cial Statistics at its 157 Years Aniversary(continued from page no. 1)

This involves improving the national system of collection and production of statistical data, with an increased use of the administrative data sources, sources which, for that matter, have been extensively used to solve the problems arising during the 2011 Population and Housing Census.The guests’ interventions, not at all formal, were not limited to words of congratulations, usual in such occasions of anniversary, but addressed openly the current and the future issues of offi cial statistics, of the Romanian society, in general, the speakers did not heisted to point out the inherent risks to be faced with if, in some domains, we will not vigorously act as of now, with intelligent and well substantiated strategies.The necessity for such national statistical system was fully supported by Mr. Vasile Dîncu - Deputy Prime Minister: “Personally, I want to submit for approval a law project that I am currently working on: the duty of all public institutions, which get data from public funds, produced through grants, through any form of land survey or studies, to make them public and to forward them in an initial phase to the INS. Some data may be useful, some other not, but it is important to open the horizon of the representation of the society”.At the same time, the Deputy Prime Minister congratulated the INS stating that “we are sympathetic with your work, very often anonymous and unfairly criticized sometimes. Often misunderstood (..) When we will succeed to realistically look at our own image, when the data will not irritate us as politicians and when we will take them as such, we will be glad to have data - even negative data - then Romania will be ahead. For the time being, you can go ahead of Romania and you can haul Romania in the process”.Likewise, Mrs. Andreea Paul – Parliamentary Deputy expressed her

willingness to support the President of the INS in his efforts to submit to the specialized commissions of the Chamber of Deputies all the projects related to the modernization of the INS, to the increase of the accuracy and relevance of the statistical data

and to the increase of the degree of their use as fundament for all the decisions of public interest.In his turn, the Parliamentary Deputy, Mr. Iulian Iancu stated that, given the great importance of the statistical information in the Romania’s development process, he would support any time such a request so that, through a normative act of the Government or Parliament, the statute of the INS and of its specialists to be brought at the same level with the other fundamental state institutions, such as the Romanian Court of Accounts, the National Bank and the Regulatory Authority for Energy.As for Mr. Aurel Vainer, Parliamentary Deputy, who in the early years of his career worked also in offi cial statistics, he recalled those times with the challenges and results highlighting the achievements in the quality and diversity of the country’s statistical data provided to the society.Likewise, the Secretary General of

the Romanian Government, Mr. Sorin Sergiu Chelmu, emphasized the Romanian statistics progresses in the recent years and the way data can contribute to the formulation of the government programs thoroughly argued.

In his turn, Professor Mihnea Costoiu noted the complexity of the statisticians’ activity, comparable as working procedures, rigor and involvement with the academia and university researchers.At the end of the event, the INS President, Mr. Tudorel Andrei, thanking the participants – guests, press, statisticians of yesterday and of today, appreciated that the event was a success, achieving the main targets established from the very beginning and determining the themes to be discussed.A special moment marked the end of the event, i.e. the awarding of diplomas to young statisticians who have achieved outstanding results, as well as diplomas for the entire career to some of the colleagues who are approaching the retirement.This ceremony was offi ciated by the president of the INS, Mr. Tudorel Andrei, together with Mrs. Adriana Ciuchea and Mrs. Silvia Pisică.

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- How do you asses the relationship between the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MADR) and the National Institute of Statistics (INS)? How would you improve this institutional relationship?- The agriculture is one of the very important sectors of the social and economic life, a fact obvious both for ordinary citizens and specialists. Certainly, the specialists appreciate this fact due to some collections of indicators usually elaborated, using very laborious methodologies, by state institutions, including the National Institute of Statistics (INS) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MADR).The abundance of these indicators and their presence on the worktable of the specialists can be a good “measuring device” of the cooperation between the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the National Institute of Statistics.Beyond the above said, it should be noted that the statistical cooperation relationship between the two institutions (MADR & INS) is developed in accordance with the stipulations of the Law no. 226/2009 on the organization and functioning of offi cial statistics in Romania and on the Governmental decisions regarding the Annual National Statistical Program (PSNA).In particular, the working procedures between the two institutions is governed by the terms and conditions of the cooperation agreements, regulating the content and the way to carry out the cooperation activities regarding the exchange of information in the fi eld of statistics. Established by the Convention between MADR and INS, the 14 permanent working groups guarantee that the activities are performed in accordance with the timetable of every survey.Among the important achievements of the cooperation between MADR and INS, let us mention the two General Agricultural Census, the one in 2002 and the other one in 2010, exhaustive surveys of national and European importance,.

The Accountancy Data Network in Agriculture is also of great importance at the national and European level, where the cooperation between the two institutions produces remarkable results that characterize the types of agricultural exploitation and are the basis for the policies within the PNDR.The presence of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development every year in PSNA, with a number of 11 statistical surveys, is also a fact that attests the good cooperation relationship established between the two institutions.It should be noted that the achievement of these important statistical works would not be possible without the participation of the territorial bodies of the two institutions, the County Directorates of Statistics and the County Directorates of Agriculture.It is known that the good results of statistical activities are provided, beyond the performance of the methodologies and the instruments, by the quality of the answers obtained from the respondents. In this sense, we understand to work together with the National Institute of Statistics and

with other partners in the National Statistical System for the common endeavour to develop and promote the statistical culture.

- What is the stage of the project on the Memorandum which was to be signed by the two institutions and how will it be implemented?- We were informed on the assessment of the National Statistical System (SSN) - Peer Review – held in 2015, whose report highlights the good results of the SSN, but also recommendations for the activity improvement of the producers of offi cial statistics.

- How useful are for you the data disseminated by the INS?- Nowadays, when the statistical information can be so easily accessed, no economic evaluation can be done without comparable, offi cial statistical data.So, the indicators characterizing the agriculture and the adjacent spaces, in synthetic form, nationally and in territorial profi le, punctually or in dynamic, are useful for the Ministry of Agriculture, both for effi ciency analysis of agricultural policies, as well as for the development of forecasts used in agricultural development strategies.

- How and for what reasons do you use the information?The information provided by INS are fi rst of all used to analyse the degree of satisfaction of the population’s food security, by reporting the national food production to the consumption standards established by FAO, for securing the food welfare of the population.The statistical information are also used for developing the strategies for the priority support of the poor sectors in terms of ensuring the consumption needs of the population, as well as for the sectors that produce high value added and with demands from the foreign markets.The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, in accordance with its duties and with the provision of the legislation in force, carries out

Interview with Mr. Achim IRIMESCU, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development

The relation between statistical information and food security

Photo Source: www.madr.ro

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measures and actions to encourage farmers to continue their activities, to grow and diversify their production and to modernise the holdings they own through the policies embodied in the framework of the Common Agricultural Policy.In this context, statistics are used for multiple purposes, such as:- establish the granting of some forms of support to farmers, according to the Common Agricultural Policy;- establish the framework for some decisions of the MADR management, as a result of some exceptional circumstances;- ensure the aid in case of drought through the “Emergency Ordinance no. 45/2015 on the establishment of a scheme of State aid to compensate damages caused by meteorological phenomena of severe drought from April to September 2015 “;- Provide some forms of support for fruit and vegetable producers affected by the Russian Federation embargo imposed on the import of food products;- Substantiate some strategic documents: “The strategy for the development of the agro-food sector on medium and long term 2020-2030”, document of public policy under inter-ministerial approval, or elements of short-term strategy per sectors;- Draft of general, synthetic overviews of Romanian agriculture;- answers to requests based on the Law No. 544/2001 on free access to information of public interest;- Substantiate the necessary data for the sub-program of conversion of orchards.

- What is the most used type of information, from which sector (crop / animal production)?

- The information related to the vegetal sector and animal husbandry sectors are of equal importance. The value added of the agricultural raw materials increases as their processing degree increases. A signifi cant part of the grain production is effectively utilized through the livestock sector, so the two sectors should be addressed in an integrated system for both the development of the production relations and the increase of the economic effi ciency in agricul ture.

- Are there any other information you need from INS, necessary for your activity but not available at the moment?The current system of collecting and processing the statistical information requires a too long time from the moment the events occure untill the moment the statistical data are available.In this regard we follow up with interest the implementation of the IT application for agricultural registry, which in our opinion could provide real-time information and enable real-time analysis (on farm types, regions, etc.) and thus a better justifi cation of the agricultural policies and strategies.The National Rural Development Programme is in its second major stage of implementation, i.e. stage 2014-2020. During the process of monitoring and evaluation of the PNDR, common indicators must be completed by a series of specifi c indicators.Systematization of this area may constitute a specifi c object for enlarging the area of cooperation between our institutions, open working fi eld for our specialists.

(interview by Alina Oprea,

counsellor within the Directorate of

Communication)

EVENIMENT

The Romanian Statistical Review has been accepted to be part of the Web of Science Core Collection - Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI), a database of Thomson Reuters. Click here for more information on Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI).At the same time, the Romanian Statistical Review was included in the SOCIAL SCIENCES, MATHEMATICAL METHODS.

NIS BROCHURE

Sursă foto: www.madr.ro

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On Monday July 25, 2016, the opening ceremony of the Romanian Government Offi cial Internship Program took place. The list of participants included both interns (from this year and from previous years) as well as some of the leaders of the partner institutions of practice: Dacian Ciolos, Prime Minister of Romania, Mircea Dumitru, Minister of National Education and Scientifi c Research, Cristiana Pașca Palmer,

Minister for Environment, Waters

and Forests, Sorin Sergiu Chelmu,

Secretary General of the Government,

Maria Ligor, Delegate Minister

for the Relations with Romanians

from Everywhere, Andrei Popescu,

Secretary of State for Youth, Ministry

of Youth and Sports, Radu Puchiu,

State Secretary, Prime Minister’s

Chancellery.

During the ceremony the young interns

were encouraged and advised so that

the internships be successful both for

them and for the partner institutions.

Similarly with the previous years, the

National Institute of Statistics joined

the 45 central government institutions

where the 200 interns would work for

the next two months. Thus, in the

period July 22nd to September 22nd,

2016, the team of statisticians will

include the following persons: Ferariu

Georgiana Andreea (Directorate

General of Economic Statistics /

Department of Agricultural and

Environmental Statistics / Service for

Sampling, Database Administration,

Records, Structural Surveys) and

Tiru Ana-Maria Antoaneta (General

Directorate for Operations and

Management of Statistical Data

Sources / Methodology Department,

Classifi cations Statistical Registers

/ Administration Department). We

welcome the two new colleagues.

For two days, the National Institute of

Statistics hosted the Third Congress of

the Federation of Hebrew Communities

of Romania- Mosaic Cult, during which

there was also the debate on “The Jews

from Romania in Offi cial Statistics”,

a dialogue based on statistical data

extracted from the Hebrew population

censuses in Romania of the last

century and refl ected in the annals of

the institute.

Dr. Aurel Vainer, president of FJCR-

CM and dr. Tudorel Andrei, president

of INS, debated and raised numerous

questions and interventions among

those present at the event, all

emphasizing the value of statistical

information to assess the real presence

of the Hebrew population in Romania

and its contribution to the development

of the country.

The President Klaus Johannis and the

President of PSD, Mr. Liviu Dragnea,

sent messages to the Congress of

FJCR-CM.

Live messages were also presented by

the Minister of Education, Mr. Mircea

Dumitru, deputy governor of the

National Bank of Romania, Bogdan

Olteanu, interim president of the

Parliament’s Chamber of Deputies,

Florin Iordache, several members of

the parliament, secretaries of state

and representatives of international

Hebrew organizations present in

Romania. The event was attended by

the ambassadors of Germany and of

the State of Israel to Bucharest. High

prelates were also present belonging

to the Jewish faith, the Romanian

Orthodox Church and the Roman

Catholic Church. On the occasion of the

Congress, the Hebrew Communities

Federation of Romania - Mosaic Cult

(FJCR-CM) elected its new leadership

for the period 2016-2020.

July 25th, 2016, The National Library of Romania

The opening ceremony of the Romanian

Government Offi cial Internship ProgramThe 4th edition, July 22nd – September, 22nd, 2016

July 25th-26th, 2016, The National Institute of Statistics.

The Debate on “The Jews of Romania in Offi cial Statistics”