June 13, 2019
A roundup of domestic and international news
Newsroom, 13.06.2019, 13:51
POLITICAL AGREEMENT – The official signing of the National Political Agreement aimed to strengthen Romanias European path takes place today in Bucharest. The agreement was proposed by president Klaus Iohannis to all the parliamentary parties that last week took part in consultations, following citizens validation of the May 26th referendum on justice. Back then, the Romanian head of state said that the proposal was aimed at transposing into the legislation the ban on amnesty and pardon for corruption and on governments right to pass emergency ordinances on justice. According to a communiqué issued by the Presidential Administration, todays ceremony is attended by leaders of the opposition National Liberal Party, Save Romania Union, PRO Romania and the Peoples Movement Party. The signatories do not include representatives of the governing coalition and of the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians.
DIGITAL ASSEMBLY – Bucharest is hosting an important meeting on technology, and also the largest digital conference organized by the Romanian Presidency of the Council of the EU. More than 1000 relevant players in the IT sector are attending Digital Assembly 2019. Attending will also be the Romanian Minister of Communications and Information Society, Alexandru Petrescu, and two European commissioners with responsibilities in the digital field. According to the organizers, the agenda of talks includes, among other topics, the impact of digital technologies, smart cities and legislative developments in the field of technology.
EU MODEX – More than 100 Romanian rescuers with the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations are attending the EU MODEX Lot 3 Bulgaria, a module part of the civil protection and response capacity exercise, conducted on behalf of the EU Directorate-General for Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations with in the EU Civil Protection Mechanism. The simulation aims at training international search-rescue and research decontamination international modules, part of complex earthquake scenarios. Also, there is a specialized module for chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear incidents, which will ensure research and detection of dangerous substances that may affect communities.
STATISTICS – The average number of pensioners in Romania stood at 5.18 million, in the first quarter of 2019, 17,000 less than in the previous quarter, according to data made public on Thursday by the National Statistics Institute. The average monthly pension was 261 Euro, up by 0.3%. The average number of people with pensions covered by the social insurance fund was 4.68 million people, by 8000 people less than in the previous quarter. The average public pension stood at 251 Euro.
AFRICAN FEVER – African swine fever continues to spread across Romania, and the situation is particularly worrying in the south-east of the country. New outbreaks have been reported in the southern County of Giurgiu, and also in the hunting areas. The authorities believe that the wild boars have spread the disease, and those in charge of managing the number of animals in a specific area are to be sanctioned, unless they take the necessary measures. The Association of Pork Producers in Romania are holding a conference on African swine fever.
BAD WEATHER – A warning for thermal discomfort and weather instability is in place until Friday night for the entire country. The weather will be extremely hot, and in the western, north-western, south and south-western regions, and in some other parts of the country, the heat index will exceed the critical threshold of 80 units. Atmospheric instability will be temporarily high especially in the mountain and hilly areas. Downpours, heavy winds and storms are expected over extended areas. So far, the weather has affected eight counties in the south, west and north of the country, according to the General Inspectorate for Emergency situations. Most problems have been reported in the country of Bistrita Nasaud, in the north, where some 180 households have been damaged.
