Romania’s government has approved an amendment on the three-month extension of the deadline for the drawing down of the proceeds of a €250mn International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) loan for the reform of the healthcare system.

The loan agreement was signed in June 2014, but so far only €126mn has been drawn down. The agreement had originally been due to expire on December 15, 2020. 

Following the temporary extension of the deadline until March 31, the IBRD is expected to extend it by up to four years, until 2024, the finance mystery said in a statement. This will make it possible for Romania to use the funds to compete projects including the severe burns centre at Timisoara County Hospital, as well as secure additional IBRD funds for further projects. 

"We asked the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development to agree to the extension until 2024 of the deadline for the withdrawal of the proceeds from the 2014 loan agreement [for] the amount of €250mn. We obtained the agreement for the temporary three-month extension of the deadline, from the initial deadline set forth in the agreement – December 15, 2020 – until which just a little over half of the available funds had been accessed. We have thus unlocked another €124mn that will be set at the disposal of the health ministry to support projects aimed at improving the quality of medical services and the efficiency of the Romanian healthcare system in this period, where the financial resources are so important for the best management of the COVID-19 crisis," said Finance Minister Alexandru Nazare, according to the statement. 

Romania’s healthcare sector has suffered from years of neglect and underfunding. Health Minister Vlad Voiculescu said recently that most of the hospitals in the country are 50 years old or older, and no large public hospital has been built in the country of over 19mn people since the fall of communism 30 years ago. 

Eurostat data show that as of 2017 (the latest figures available), Romania spent just 5.2% of GDP on healthcare, the lowest proportion in the European Union. The highest share of GDP was spent in France and Germany at 11.3% of GDP. Per resident, Romania spent only €494, again the lowest across the bloc; even adjusting for purchasing power, the figure was still the lowest in the EU.