The Romanian government and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will draw up a series of joint programmes for next year. The programmes are aimed at diversifying the bank's investments. According to a press release issued by the government, the EBRD plans to further explore fields such as tourism, agriculture, local administration, as well as the energy sector and naval and railway infrastructure.

Prime Minister Adrian Nastase met with the EBRD's Manager for Romania, Hildegard Gacek, at Victoria Palace to evaluate the bank's Romanian projects. The talks also focused on the development of mortgage credit schemes and credits granted to SMEs. "During the discussions, we agreed to draw up a communal platform of interest for 2003, which is to allow diversification of the investment and credits portfolio of EBRD in Romania," the release stated.

(NewsBase 18.x.02)