Over 7,700 companies have been sold during this period, and over 2 million jobs were lost, said Cristina Chiriac, president of the National Association of Entrepreneurs, cited by local Agerpres.

Less than 25% of the privatized companies still exist today, and the social effect was the loss of 2 million jobs.

The small and medium-sized companies should take over this social responsibility, of hiring the people dismissed from state institutions and companies. However, authorities continue to neglect the SME sector, said Chiriac.

The privatizations have failed, because the state chose to privatize these companies by direct sale, and not through the capital market, which is a more transparent process, both for the state and the investors, said Dan Paul, president of Romania’s Brokers Association. (Source: Romania-insider.com)