Radio România Internațional

Tag: pensioners

  • September 2, 2024 UPDATE

    September 2, 2024 UPDATE

    Parliament – The last session of the current Parliament began on Monday in Bucharest, with parliamentary elections to take place on December 1. The Senate adopted, as the first chamber notified, the Government’s draft law on the donation of a Patriot surface-to-air missile system to third parties. The project will also be sent to the Chamber of Deputies, the decision-making body in this case. After the adoption of the law by Parliament, the Government will be able to issue the decision that will make the act of donation operational. Another bill is aimed at exempting from taxation the pensions below 3,000 lei (600 Euros), for which a decisive vote is expected on Tuesday in the Chamber of Deputies. The bill allows the people who benefited from pension increases as a result of recalculations not to lose any money following the raising of the current tax ceiling of 2,000 lei (400 Euros).

     

    Government – In its Monday meeting, the government issued an emergency ordinance to raise the ceiling for the social benefits granted to low-income pensioners whose pensions went up as a result of recent recalculations. The ceiling by which food allowances will be granted is to go up from 2,000 to 2,210 lei, that is some 440 Euros. An allowance of 1,400 lei to help with utility bills during winter will continue to be granted, regardless of the pension rises. The ceiling was also raised by which pensioners can benefit from 90% subsidies on medicines. In another move, the government is to start consultations with the representatives of people with disabilities to draft a special pensions law for this category that should take into account the low contribution levels recognized previously.

     

    Drills – Romanian military are taking part in the Ample Strike international exercise under way in the Czech Republic until September 20. They will carry out air support and air surveillance missions alongside other NATO troops. According to the Romanian defense ministry, 25 military and two helicopters are taking part in the exercise.

     

    Weather – Meteorologists have issued a code orange alert for heat wave valid, on Tuesday, in several counties in the west and south-west of Romania. Thermal discomfort will be high, and the temperature-humidity index (ITU) will reach the critical threshold of 80 units. Maximum temperatures, particularly high for this date, will be around 37 degrees Celsius. Also on Tuesday, a yellow code alert for heat will be valid in almost the entire country. The maximum temperature will reach 35 degrees C.

     

    Commissioner – The Social Democratic MEP (in the government coalition with the National Liberal Party – PNL), Roxana Mînzatu, is Romania’s official proposal for the position of European Commissioner, the PM Marcel Ciolacu announced on Monday. The social-democratic leader said that the EC president, Ursula von der Leyen, already had the interview with Roxana Mînzatu. He also said that he would discuss, in the next period, with the head of the European Commission about the portfolio that Bucharest will manage. The PM points out that the field would be established by Ursula von der Leyen, but assured that it would be a relevant one. The PNL leader, Nicolae Ciucă, says that the options are for the Enlargement portfolio or the Agriculture portfolio. The makeup of the future European Commission will be announced on September 11. Roxana Mînzatu has a degree in political sciences in English, she was a Braşov county deputy in the last legislature, and, in 2019 she was appointed Minister of European Funds.

     

    Bank – The foreign exchange reserves of the National Bank of Romania (BNR) exceeded 63 billion Euros at the end of August 2024, down by 0.62% as compared to the level of July 31, according to a communiqué of the Central Bank, sent to AGERPRES. The level of the gold reserve remained at 103.6 tons. Against the backdrop of international price developments, its value was 7.588 billion Euros.

     

    Visit – Pope Francis is starting his 45th apostolic trip abroad. Until September 13, the Sovereign Pontiff will visit Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore, states marked by strong religious, economic and social contrasts. Immigration, inter-religious dialogue, ecology, the role of the Church in relation to access to health and education are the main themes that the pontiff will address in his speeches and meetings. According to the Radio Romania’s correspondent in Rome, in Indonesia, the largest Muslim country in the world, the central theme will be the dialogue between Islam and Christianity. On September 5, there will be an interfaith meeting in the largest mosque in Southeast Asia, in the presence of representatives of six official religions, on which occasion the Pope will sign a joint statement with the Grand Imam Nasaruddin Umar. Pope Francis is the third Sovereign Pontiff to visit this archipelago, after Paul VI and John Paul II.

     

    Israel – The US President Joe Biden said on Monday that the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was not doing enough to reach an agreement to release the hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. A strike called by the main trade union confederation took place in Israel on Monday in protest against the delay in a cease-fire agreement in Gaza and the release of the hostages taken by Hamas. Employees of banks, hospitals and malls joined the protest, and flights were suspended at “Ben Gurion” Airport, the Israeli press writes. The strike call came after about half a million Israelis took to the streets in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and other cities on Sunday evening to ask the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to do more to bring home the 101 hostages who are still in Gaza, reports Reuters. The protests took place after six hostages aged between 23 and 40 were found dead in a tunnel in Gaza by the army that said that they had been killed recently. (LS)

  • Social measures in Romania

    Social measures in Romania

    Although there is a tendency to blame the economic and social situation in Romania exclusively on the conflict in neighboring Ukraine, the causes of the current problems that Romanians have to face are more numerous and go back to the distant past! Lets only remind of the two years of pandemic in which the economy stagnated more than it worked, other obstacles being the extension of the states of emergency or alert once every three months. And of the liberalization of the energy market, considered a hasty decision by some analysts, which had serious negative repercussions, especially on the most disadvantaged citizens. Inflation is breaking new records, and shops and agri-food markets have become, for some people, places for contemplating labels.



    Considered one of the silent social strata of Romania, given their impossibility to intervene in any way to correct their material situation after a whole working life, pensioners from the public pension system have nothing to do but accept what the State offers them monthly, which, in many cases, is below the minimum necessary for a decent living. “Pensioners live on their pensions and it seems reasonable that the level of this pension should be adapted to the situation” said recently Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis, who added that it’s totally unfair to make only the pensioners pay the price of some crises.



    However, the Romanian Government decided to grant pensioners with cumulated monthly incomes of less than 2,000 lei (about 400 euros) a single aid worth 700 lei (about 140 Euros). This aid will benefit only pensioners residing in the country, not those with a regular residence abroad, the Labor Ministry officials stated. On the other hand, the Senate, as the first notified chamber, adopted a governments emergency ordinance granting meal vouchers to all Romanians with low incomes: namely about 3 million citizens. The vouchers, worth about 50 Euros, will be used only for the purchase of basic food products. The postal distribution of the cards through which the financial aid will be granted will start next week, then the people will receive the promised money on the cards every two months.



    If the senators of the ruling coalition welcomed the decision, those in opposition considered the amount as derisory, saying that, through this measure, the executive only gives back to the Romanians too small a part of the money it takes through taxes, prices for utilities, food and fuels. Nevertheless, all the MPs voted in favor of the decision. Finally, the Chamber of Deputies decided to increase the value of a meal ticket for employees from 20 to 30 lei, so as to compensate, at least partially, for the price hikes. The Chamber also agreed that childrens camps in the country may be paid for with the parents holiday vouchers. (LS)

  • Social measures in Romania

    Social measures in Romania

    Although there is a tendency to blame the economic and social situation in Romania exclusively on the conflict in neighboring Ukraine, the causes of the current problems that Romanians have to face are more numerous and go back to the distant past! Lets only remind of the two years of pandemic in which the economy stagnated more than it worked, other obstacles being the extension of the states of emergency or alert once every three months. And of the liberalization of the energy market, considered a hasty decision by some analysts, which had serious negative repercussions, especially on the most disadvantaged citizens. Inflation is breaking new records, and shops and agri-food markets have become, for some people, places for contemplating labels.



    Considered one of the silent social strata of Romania, given their impossibility to intervene in any way to correct their material situation after a whole working life, pensioners from the public pension system have nothing to do but accept what the State offers them monthly, which, in many cases, is below the minimum necessary for a decent living. “Pensioners live on their pensions and it seems reasonable that the level of this pension should be adapted to the situation” said recently Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis, who added that it’s totally unfair to make only the pensioners pay the price of some crises.



    However, the Romanian Government decided to grant pensioners with cumulated monthly incomes of less than 2,000 lei (about 400 euros) a single aid worth 700 lei (about 140 Euros). This aid will benefit only pensioners residing in the country, not those with a regular residence abroad, the Labor Ministry officials stated. On the other hand, the Senate, as the first notified chamber, adopted a governments emergency ordinance granting meal vouchers to all Romanians with low incomes: namely about 3 million citizens. The vouchers, worth about 50 Euros, will be used only for the purchase of basic food products. The postal distribution of the cards through which the financial aid will be granted will start next week, then the people will receive the promised money on the cards every two months.



    If the senators of the ruling coalition welcomed the decision, those in opposition considered the amount as derisory, saying that, through this measure, the executive only gives back to the Romanians too small a part of the money it takes through taxes, prices for utilities, food and fuels. Nevertheless, all the MPs voted in favor of the decision. Finally, the Chamber of Deputies decided to increase the value of a meal ticket for employees from 20 to 30 lei, so as to compensate, at least partially, for the price hikes. The Chamber also agreed that childrens camps in the country may be paid for with the parents holiday vouchers. (LS)

  • June 3, 2022

    June 3, 2022

    UKRAINE 100 days have passed since the start of the Russian invasion in
    Ukraine. Since February 24, Russia has captured a sizeable part of its
    neighbouring country’s territory, but the Ukrainian army has put up a tougher
    resistance than most experts had expected. Russian forces now control around
    20% of the Ukrainian territory, the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said
    in his midnight address, which has become a tradition since the start of the
    war. He added that the entire occupied territory is now a disaster area, and
    Moscow is fully responsible for this. Violent clashes continue, especially in eastern
    Ukraine, where Russia tries to capture Donbas. The fiercest battles are
    currently fought in the town of Severodonetsk, the most important one still
    controlled by the Ukrainian forces in Luhansk region. Russian forces have
    resorted to intensive shelling, including on civilian targets, having
    completely destroyed several Ukrainian cities, such as Mariupol, captured after
    3 months’ fighting, and Severodonetsk, where two-thirds of the homes are in
    ruins. Russia has suffered substantial losses, over 30,000 dead and thousands
    of pieces of equipment according to Ukraine, but it still retains superiority
    in the field. Moscow is also superior in terms of heavy weaponry, but as of
    recently Ukraine is receiving this type of weapons from its Western supporters.


    MILITARY Romanian troops and Allies from 5 European
    countries and the USA are taking part in a multinational exercise at the
    Smârdan NATO Centre in eastern Romania. As part of the exercise, today a drill
    is organised in which NATO military use land and air equipment. Taking part in
    the training operation, which started on May 24, are over 1,000 Romanian
    troops, joined by military personnel from France, Belgium, Bulgaria, Italy,
    Portugal and the US. The training session is designed to enhance
    inter-operability, so as to enable the Multinational Brigade South-East Command
    to manage forces deployed to NATO’s south-east region to protect the Alliance,
    the national defence ministry explains.


    AID The government of Romania will grant
    EUR 140 in aid next month to pensioners whose retirement benefits do not exceed
    EUR 400. The measure was approved on Thursday and is designed to help the most
    vulnerable pensioners cope with the recent price rises. The government is also
    working on an emergency order increasing the value of meal vouchers.


    JUBILEE Britain is celebrating these days the Platinum Jubilee of Queen
    Elizabeth II, the monarch with the longest reign in the history of the country.
    The Royal Family convene today for a religious service at St. Paul’s Cathedral,
    celebrating the Queen’s 70-year rule,
    however the sovereign will not be present after experiencing discomfort while
    watching Thursday’s parade at Buckingham Palace. On Thursday London hosted a
    large-scale military parade, with 70 aircraft, some of
    them used during WWII, flying over the crowds.


    FILM The 3rd edition of the Romanian Film
    Festival in Washington, the largest event promoting Romanian cinema in the USA,
    begins on June 3rd at Miracle Theatre. Organised by the Embassy of
    Romania to Washington and the Romanian Cultural Institute in New York, the festival
    is devoted to the 25 years since the signing of the Strategic Partnership
    between Romania and the USA. Screened as part of the event, under the heading Reinventing
    realism: the Romanian New Wave, are 12 feature films: Blue Moon,
    Berliner, The Windseeker, Poppy Field,
    Mikado, Unidentified, #dogpoopgirl, Luca,
    Man and Dog, Lebensdorf, Otto the Barbarian, and Miracle. The festival
    will come to an end on June 19. (AMP)

  • Government takes social protection measures

    Government takes social protection measures

    April comes with good news for Romanian children, who will receive increased allowances as of this month. In early February Parliament approved a raise in child allowances from around 18 euros to roughly 32 euros per month for children aged 2 to 18, as well as for youth over 18 years who are still high school or vocational school students. Allowances for children up to 2 years, and for children with disabilities up to 3 years, are also raised from 42 to 63 euros a month. The increase was introduced by means of an amendment to the 2019 state budget law, tabled by the National Liberal Party in opposition.



    The Labour Minister, Marius Budai, explained: “An ordinance passed by the Government concerning the increase of child allowances comes into effect this month, but the increased amounts for April will only be paid in May. As many as 3.6 million children will benefit from this decision.”



    The Labour Minister also announced that all pension benefits for this month will be paid until April 15th, enabling pensioners to prepare for Easter. In an interview to Radio Romania, Marius Budai said that the pension recalculation process is going as planned, with over 30,000 cases already finalised. These involve people having worked in difficult conditions, and who will now receive increased pensions.



    Marius Budai once again: “The process will carry on, and until September 30, as per current legislation, all the 100,000 pensioners subject to these provisions will receive their pension recalculation decisions, together with the outstanding amounts and of course, they will continue to receive the new, increased pensions in the future. As of September 1, the pension point value is set to go up from 1,100 to 1,265 lei, so obviously all the 5 million pensioners in Romania will be getting this 15% pension increase.”



    But not everybody sees the glass half full. The former Social Democratic PM of Romania, Victor Ponta, who has recently set up a new political party, Pro Romania, warns that the 3 billion euro loan recently taken out by the Government comes with the highest cost in the history of the country, and is intended for current expenses, rather than major investments.



    Victor Ponta: “We will pay 2.2 billion euro in interests for this loan. And as you know, this 3 billion euro loan will cover current expenses. This means pensions and salaries, and this means that we will have nothing left once this money is spent.”



    All that will be left of this loan is, as Victor Ponta put it, a 5.2 billion euro debt that all of us will have to repay.

  • 11 June, 2015

    11 June, 2015

    Romanian President Klaus Iohannis takes part in Brussels in the summit meeting between the EU and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States. The aims of the meeting are consolidating political dialog, developing economic ties and stronger cooperation, which Romania supports fully, according to President Iohannis speaking upon departure. This summit is attended by heads of state and government from 60 countries. On the first day, the EC announced it would grant yet another 118 million Euro to its counterpart countries to boost investment and cooperation in the region. A new agreement was also signed between the EC and the Interamerican Development Bank.





    The World Bank has revised its economic growth forecast for this year downwards, to 2.8%, 0.2 lower than before. For Romania, the bank anticipates above average growth: 3% in 2015, 3.2% in 2016, and 3.5% in 2017.





    Romanian retirees members in the Unirea National Federation protested on Thursday in Bucharest, demanding a national action program to ensure pensioners in Romania have decent living conditions. According to the federation, pensions in real terms in 2014 are lower than even in 2009, with fewer and fewer treatment vouchers each year. The federation claims that the general state of health among seniors is lower and lower because of poverty, with rising mortality and morbidity, with the number of civilian retirees dropping from 6 million 12 years ago to 5.18 million at present.






    Romanian Minister of Internal Affairs Gabriel Oprea met his counterpart from the Republic of Moldova, Oleg Balan. At the meeting, the former said that Moldova was a privileged partner for Romania, specifying that fighting cross-border organized crime was still a priority for the two countries, adding that Romania would open up more positions for Moldovan students to attend the Romanian Police Academy. The Romanian deputy PM assured the Moldovan minister of Romania’s full support in his country’s bid to join the EU. In turn, Oleg Balan welcomed all the support granted by the Romanian authorities to the efforts to reform the Moldovan police.





    Citizens from NATO member states believe Moscow is responsible for triggering the Ukrainian crisis and see Russia as a threat to its neighbors, as indicated by a Pew Research poll quoted by press agencies. 39% of respondents believe that the situation in Ukraine was provoked by Russia, while 18% believe the responsible party is the pro-Russian separatist faction. About half of the people polled said that Russia was a threat to neighboring countries. Moscow’s aggressive action in the ex-Soviet space was harshly condemned on Wednesday in the European Parliament.





    The Romanian national football squad is today traveling to Belfast, where on Saturday evening it will be taking on the national team of Northern Ireland. The game counts towards the Euro 2016 preliminaries, and is rated a final of sorts in Group F, which also includes Hungary, Finland, Greece and the Faeroe Islands. With four wins and a draw in their first five fixtures, the Romanians top the table with 13 points, followed by Northern Ireland, with 12. The last time when Romania took part in a final tournament of a European Championship was 2008.