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FAMP ANDRONICEANU Armenia and OHANYAN Gurgen
CCASP IMF POLICIES AND THEIR EFFECTS ON EDUCATION IN ROMANIA

Besides, Romania in 1993 signed an association agreement with European Union as a first step towards

integration with European society. Yet, collaboration with such institutions and higher targets of
integrations supposed substantial changes and structural reforms. Particularly, the IMF has famed by its
conditionality attached to the loans, which entails privatization and marketization of economy. The IMF

goal is to solve balance of payments problems of its member-states and to contribute to sustainable
economic growth. Yet, its conditions vary from fiscal adjustment to structural reforms in education and
health care. Since the collapse of socialist regime, first SBA with IMF signed in 1994 under Nicolae

Văcăroiu government, meanwhile first full compliance with IFM conditionality and continuity of tranches
was recorded in mere 1999 under technocrat prime-minister Mugur Isărescu. Education sector along with

other sectors of economy was privatized transforming higher education from totally controlled and
government-funded institutions to privatized and internationally commercialized ones. Particularly,
Eisemon et al (1999) note that Romania was the leader in Europe by operating 73 private higher education

institutions in late 1990s.Moreover, Ginsburg et al (2005) highlight that enrollment in higher private
institutions was significantly increased from 0 percent in 1989-1990 to 31.9 percent in 2000-2001.
Continuing the reforms in education sector, Romania became first post-socialist country, which created

the legislative framework for distance education. Within this framework, Bucharest University of Economic PROCEEDINGS OF THE 11 TH ADMINISTRATION AND PUBLIC MANAGEMENT INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ”Strategic Management for Local Communities” 30 th – 31 st October 2015 Bucharest
studies opened its branch in Piatra-Neam? in 2001. Moreover, several public universities began to launch
their own open distance education programs. Notwithstanding the dynamics of reforms, assessment of

Romanian Education performance before the adhesion to the EU by World Bank experts finds real failures
and challenges for Romanian authorities. In particular, Romania Education Policy Note (2007) underlines

major challenges among them: continuously decreasing teacher/student ration, therefore high staffing
level; strong trade unions and regulations; low teaching loads and low wages, human resource
management, chronically underfinanced education sector. Indeed, Romania lagged behind the

neighboring countries by most indicators. Accordingly, Program for International Student Assessment
launched by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) scores Romania 36 out
th
of 57 participant countries (PISA, 2006).In addition, low wages of teachers make them reluctant to their

jobs and there are poorly motivated and rarely accountable. This is partially caused by Romanian Ministry
of Education and Scientific Research (MESR) low authority to supervise and motivate the teachers. As
MESR preserves the right to establish the curricula, to hire the staff but it does not have any instrument

to guide the allocation of scarce resources and defend education budget. Instead, Ministry of Public
Finance (MPF) is responsible for remuneration, which is almost 60 percent of annual expenditures on

education. Recent phase of Romanian education has begun since its accession to the EU in 2007.
Currently, Particularly, Romanian government has a unique opportunity to improve efficiency of

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