Calea Europeană, Romania’s leading media platform in European affairs, in partnership with the Concordia Confederation, the Foreign Investors Council, Romanian Business Leaders, AmCham Romania, CCIFER, and AHK Romania – key organizations in Romania’s economic development – is organizing the conference “Romania and the OECD – The Country’s Main Project After NATO, the EU, and Schengen”.
The event takes place under the High Patronage of the Interim President of Romania and is hosted by the Presidential Administration at Cotroceni Palace on April 2, 2025, starting at 11:00 AM.
The conference will be opened by Romania’s Interim President, Ilie Bolojan, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu, and OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann. The event will bring together high-ranking national and international officials, business representatives, experts, and decision-makers to discuss the roadmap for completing this essential process.
Romania’s accession to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) represents the next major national strategic objective after joining NATO, the European Union, and gaining full access to the Schengen Area.
The accession process could be finalized next year, as Romania has already met more than half of the necessary criteria to align with the highest international economic and institutional standards.
The event will analyze the progress and challenges of the accession process, the concrete benefits for Romania, and its impact on the national economy. The discussions will be structured into working sessions dedicated to Romania’s progress toward OECD standards from a political-institutional perspective and the necessary reforms from a business perspective.
Romania officially submitted its candidacy for OECD membership during previous expansion rounds, in April 2004 and November 2012, and has renewed its request annually since 2016.
On January 25, 2022, the OECD Council decided to begin accession discussions with all six candidate countries: Argentina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Croatia, Peru, and Romania.
In June 2022, the OECD Council adopted Romania’s Accession Roadmap alongside those of the four other candidate states. Subsequently, in December 2022, Romania submitted its Initial Memorandum on accession to the organization.
Currently, Romania is in the technical evaluation phase of the process, which involves providing additional information, organizing thematic missions, and presenting assessments in the 25 key OECD sectoral committees essential for accession.
As of March this year, Romania has undergone preliminary or final evaluations by 24 of the 25 OECD sectoral committees. Of these, Romania has received 12 formal approvals from the following committees: Senior Budget Officials, Regional Development Policy, Steel Industry, Shipbuilding Industry, Competition Policies, Digital Policy, Consumer Protection, Education, Social Affairs, Employment and Labor, Regulatory Policy, Health, and Fisheries.
Romania aims to complete its committee evaluations throughout 2025, with the goal of joining the OECD in 2026.
The agenda for the conference “Romania and the OECD – The Country’s Main Project After NATO, the EU, and Schengen” can be accessed HERE.
