The state spent 800,000 euros to draw up a 200-page strategy for SME sector development

At the height of the economic crisis, in which the state is
being accused of wasting public money and is forced to raise the
VAT and cut public sector employees’ salaries, the Economy Ministry
has found over 800,000 euros for the drawing up of a strategy for
the development of SMEs, which has materialised in a 200-page study
and a series of meetings and round tables, inclusively abroad. What
does the study include? An enumeration of measures, actions and
sub-actions, of a highly general nature. The project was drawn up
by a consortium made up of KPMG Romania and Finas Consulting
consultancies, which won the tender organised in late 2009. The
value of the project stands at 3.4m RON (820,000 euros), with 15%
coming as national funds, namely over 530,000 RON (130,000 euros),
and the rest as European funding. SME representatives say they
haven’t heard of such a study and that it could have been drawn up
on a voluntary basis, not with so much money.