Overview July 1999: Romania

1. Organisational awareness aspects of information society

1.1 Ministries involved:

The National Agency for Communications and Informatics - NACI (since December 23, 1998, by Government Order nr.973; formerly organised as Ministry of Communications) is the legal authority for telecommunications and informatics.

The National Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation (formerly organised as Ministry of Research and Technology) is the legal authority for scientific and technological research and development.

1.2 Public bodies involved

Romanian Academy of Sciences – Section for the Science and Technology of Information. Founded in 1992 has today 12 corresponding and full members out of a total number of 14 sections and 181 members for the entire Academy. One of the roles of the section is to encourage the domains of science and technology that are at the core of the information society

Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Romania and Bucharest Municipality (since 1990) – keeps informations about the companies registered in Romania. Is a promoter of IT not only inside the organisation, but also in the business field (electronic commerce).

1.3 Professional organisations:

• ATIC - Association of Information Technologies and Communications of Romania ( http://www.atic.ro ).
• ANIS – National Association of Software Enterprises (http://www.anis.ro)
• ARIES – Romanian Association for Electronic & Software Industries
• ROMINFOR - Romanian Association for Research in Communication and Information Technologies
  ( http://www.cef.pub.ro/rominfor )

1.4 IS forums:

Forum for the Information Society (since March 1997, under the aegis of the Romanian Academy). The Forum for the Information Society of the Romanian Academy, playing the role of a forum of the civil society, intends to arise the interest in the Romanian society concerning the development of the information society, and to propose and stimulate by specific proposals a series of measures and actions in this direction.

2. Existence of IS national / regional strategies and action plans

2.1 The national research and development programme for the Information and Communication Technology field, co-ordinated by the National Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation, is focused towards the development of the Information Society in Romania, in compliance with the respective National Strategy and in accordance with the specific directions of the 5-th RTD Framework Programme of the European Union, to which Romania is going to be fully associated, as the other pre-accession countries in Central and Eastern Europe.

Therefore, the programme includes research and development objectives such as:

1.Telematics for health, public administration, RTD activities, education, culture, public information services;

2. Advanced information technologies in economy: in management, in engineering and manufacturing (including the virtual enterprise), in energy, transports, environment, agriculture (including extended man/ machine interfaces, interoperability of open systems and the management of distributed and heterogeneous information);

3. Methods and tools for activities specific to the information society: teleworking, electronic commerce, and teleservices (including teleassistance and telediagnosis);

4. Tools and standards for knowledge representation and engineering, cognitive models, natural language processing (including multilingual services);

5. High performance computing systems;

6. Advanced communications systems and equipment's aimed to ensure the compatibility and interoperability of the national communications infrastructure and services with the international ones;

7. Microtechnologies and multifunctional microsystems (including natural environment interfaces and biomimetic systems).

The National Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) plan under promotion will be operational beginning with the third quarter of 1999 aims and aims at:

a. Partial co-financing of the Romanian researchers' projects accepted in the Fifth Framework Programme of EU;

b. Co-financing the national projects being intended to attract beneficiaries for attaining our own objectives.

c. The grant programme by which fundamental research in the field is further financed.

d. Other programmes of stimulating the promotion of the research results (by organising scientific events, subsidising the specialised publications etc).

The National Computer Network for research (NCN) representing one of the instruments of attaining this objective, was started in 1993 as a PHARE programme and the Government (through the Ministry of Research and Technology) has supported it further on. At present, more than 90 R-D organisations, about 1300 individual stations respectively, benefit of the NCN services. The main objective was and still is to the scientific community data transfer services and connection to Internet at the lowest possible prices. This year a study of NCN extension supported by interested organisations has been drawn up, a study which will substantiate further on the development and investment politics.

2.2 ANCI defines informatization the IT utilisation in all sectors in all sectors of the economical and social life and considers this not an objective but a condition of any development plan.

Based on these assumptions, a National IT Strategy and a proper Action Plan for Development and utilisation of the IT in Romania were approved by the Government Decision no.58 / 1998. This Strategy provides a short terms (up to year 2000) and a middle-long terms (up to year 2005) following objectives:

Short terms objectives
a. National IT infrastructure support for public administration informatization (municipalities level);
b. National products and services IT&C industry development, software industry especially;
c. The proper context creation, leading to the large-scale utilization of the IT&C in all economical and social branches. The harmonization of the Romanian legislation with the EC Directives in the field;

Middle-long terms objectives
a. The national IT infrastructure extension (the counties level);
b. The achieving of the right degree of informatization in Romanian society, permitting the integration in the European information society

3. Other main actions / initiatives

The effort to develop Information society is huge and it is not only material. IT associations have to play an important role. Among ways they can contribute as non-governmental bodies:

• Lobby to governmental bodies to adopt a favorable framework for IT&C development in the country
• Help to the mass development of education and training facilities both for young and grown-ups.
• Promotion of telework as a way to reduce costs and help IT&C spreading in the country and to offer new opportunities to some categories of people (e.g. people from rural areas, handicapped or elder people)
• Promotion of new regulations for teleworking as way to participate in the new distribution of international labor allowing local skilled people to work without their displacement in other countries
• Spread of Information Society related concepts as computer literacy, distance learning, interest groups, database access for medical and employment purposes, etc.
• Spread of electronic mail as the cheapest way people can communicate and exchange information including multimedia data.
• Encouragement of the development of new IT&C related public services for health insurance, employment, access to cultural databases, etc.
• Promotion of initiatives to spread telecommerce
• Lobby for new regulation framework regarding access to personal databases

3.1 Particularly interesting actions / initiatives

• Kick-off of ESIS II in Romania

The ESIS team obtained the support of the Romanian Academy (of Sciences) for the kick-off events of ESIS II Romania.
Meeting of the Consultative Board of the project (Romanian Academy, 7^th of June, 1999, 3 p.m.). Several special guests were invited to this meeting. Among other subjects, the first statistical results related to the CEEC were discussed. Some topics of particular interest for Romania (such as the effects of the comparative high costs of the data lines) were underlined.
Press Conference followed by a cocktail (House of Scientists, 7^th of June 1999, 5 p.m.). Almost twenty journalists attended the Conference, held by the Project Manager of ESIS II Romania (Dan Dascalu), jointly with Mr. Nicolae Cretu, the Counsellor of the President of the National Agency for Communication and Informatics. A package of documentation was distributed, including: the ISPO/ESIS Press Release, the description of ISPO (sent by Mr. Karl Haglund), excerpts from data contained in the presentation prepared by the Project Management Support (PMS) Team for this event, description of ESIS etc.
Symposium "European Integration and Information Society", organised by the ESIS team, under the aegis of the Romanian Academy (Great Hall of the Romanian Academy, 8^th of June 1999, 9 a.m.). The event was open by the General Secretary of the Romanian Academy, followed by Minister Alexandru Herlea, Department for European Integration of the Romanian Government (stressing the importance of Information Society topics). Dan Dascalu, member of the Romanian Academy, read the message of Mr. Karl Henry Haglund, Head of the Unit ISPO. He also presented (with some personal comments) a selection of slides from the material prepared by the PMS Team. Other papers were given by a State Counselor of the President of Romania, Vice-President of the Deputy House of the Romanian Parliament, President of the National Agency for Communication and Informatics, President of the National Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation, Secretary General of the Ministry for National Education, as well as by the representatives of non-governmental organisations (Chamber of Commerce, professional associations etc.). The local team gave a separate talk about the ESIS II objectives and tools. The event lasted four hours.
The symposium was attended by about 120 people, representing a large number of public institutions, private companies etc. An information package was distributed to all participants. This package contained: the message of Mr. Haglund, the presentation of ISPO, various information about ESIS and ESIS II, the national contractor in Romania etc.
Most of the materials distributed at the above meetings and part of the talks given the symposium is already available on the web ( www.esis2.imt.ro ).

• 3^rd Workshop on The Role of Higher Education and of Research in the Development of the Information Society in Romania, 22-23 April 1999, "POLITEHNICA" University Bucharest. ESIS II Romania team distributed information about ESIS II initiative.

Contact person:
Valentin CRISTEA: Prof. Dr. Eng., scientific counselor of the Faculty Board, member of the University Senate Tel.: (401)-410-0400 (494) (o); e-mail: valentin@cs.pub.ro
Address:
Splaiul Independentei, No. 313, Room EF203, Automatica Building, C.S. Departement, UPB Sect. 6, Bucharest 77206, ROMANIA
Phones:
+ 40-1-410.0325 + 40-1-410.0400 ext. 194 + 40-1-411.2181 (fax)

• CERF ’99, 4-5 May 1999: Round table "Romanian Information School" organised by Computer Press Agora (http://www.agora.ro).

At the event, Prof.Dan Dascalu presented the ESIS II project and the ISPO. EVENT INFORMATION

Date: May 4-8, 1999 Location: Complexul Expozitional Romexpo, Bucharest Frequency: Annual

Description: CERF, a eighth year exhibition, is the largest information and communications technology fair and conference in Romania. Companies from 20 different countries exhibit products in such categories as software, hardware, communications, peripherals and services.

CERF also includes specialised sections: Telecom: for telecommunications products and services CAD CAMP: focusing on CAD, CAM, CAE, GIS and graphics solutions

Contact Information:
Scott Temple, Sales Manager, Comtek International General Manager, Romania Tel: USA (203) 834-1122 Fax: USA (203) 762-0773 e-mail: cerf@comtekexpo.com
In Romania: Comtek Expositions Tel: 401-230-6281 Fax: 401-230-1253 e-mail: comtek@starnets.ro Web: www.comtekexpo.ro

• The Business Software Alliance (BSA) Software Copyright Protection Seminar, organized by "BURCHEL ATTORNEYS AT LAW" law firm, brought together 80 judges and prosecutors from all around Romania to discuss issues of antipiracy and protection of the rights of software developers. (Brasov, Romania, June 17-19, 1999)
  Contact person: attorney Nicolae BURCHEL Tel: (401) 411 3878 Fax: (401) 4113898 E-mail: nburchel@rdsnet.ro

• The "Intellectual Property Conference", organized by "WORLD TRADE CENTER BUCHAREST" and "PIVA GROUP BUCHAREST". The lectures presented covered all the major and actual issues of the intellectual property. (Bucharest, Romania, June 24, 1999). Contact person: attorney Nicolae BURCHEL Tel: (401) 411 3878 Fax: (401) 4113898 E-mail: nburchel@rdsnet.ro

• Launch of the project "Microfabrication Center" 23 June 1999 Bucharest
  The initiative of creating the "Microfabrication Center" is original. It aims at regrouping the forces in the field of high microelectronic technology - microtechnologies, the "hardware" part of information technology and communications." (Press release)
  At event, Prof. Dr. Eng. Dan Dascalu presented the ESIS II initiative, the ISPO and the societal dimension that use innovative technologies of information and communication.

• Launch of project "ROLEG" – INTERNET access to The National Trade Registry (http://roleg.ccir.ro), Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Romania and Bucharest Municipality

• General assembly of the Association for Information Technology and Communication of Romania (ATIC) 30 June 1999, Bucharest. ESIS II Romania team is the observer and presented the ESIS II initiative and the societal dimension that use innovative technologies of information and communication. The Association for Information Technology and Communications of Romania (ATIC) is a non-governmental, independent organisation, having an apolitical, scientific and professional character and acting as a component of the Romanian civil society. The ATIC organises the framework for the promotion of the ideas regarding the place and the role of the information technology and communications in Romania; its first major objective is to contribute to the accomplishment of information society in Romania. The ATIC sustains the elaboration of the laws aimed at encouraging the investment and development of the companies in the field, especially regarding national software production and use.

ATIC Members:
A&C International, Advance Network Technologies, Agnor High Tech, Algoritma, Crescendo, EMCOM, EMGS - Electromagnetica GoldStar, Ewir - Est West Informatique Roumanie, Global One, Hewlett Packard Romania, ICL Romania, IDG Romania, Intrarom, ITC S.A., Logimax Canada, Omnilogic BCS, Oracle AG Romania, Procetel, Romsys, Software ITC, Salient Romania, Softnet Services.