Suchergebnisse

This paper explores the tourism-related official actions undertaken by the government in
Romania during the COVID-19 pandemic from a stakeholders' perspective. The
approach is based on answering three research questions: (1) Which are the policies that
tourism stakeholders benefitted from during the pandemic? (2) How do tourism
stakeholders appreciate the utility and efficiency of the measures implemented by the
government? and (3) To what extent do the stakeholders perceive these measures as
providing long-term benefits? Methodologically, the study relies on the statistical
analysis of data collected through a questionnaire applied to tourism stakeholders from
Romania. The results indicate mixed perceptions regarding the implemented policies,
with most stakeholders considering the received support as less than optimal. A positive
perspective is given by the fact that although most stakeholders regarded the positive
impact of the policies only in relation to the pandemic period, there are also stakeholders
indicating long-term benefits of these policies. These results are useful for providing
lessons from the recent pandemic and for suggesting ways for improving governments'
response to future crises.

It is expected that the number of elected female mayors in local government will increase globally, yet no major progress has been registered lately despite the increased focus on the topic. At the European level, no country exceeds 40% female mayors or other leaders of the municipal council (or equivalent), with the highest descriptive representation of 39.1% in Iceland. Following the 2020 elections in Romania, only around 5% of mayors were female with a strong over-representation of male mayors. The current study aims to analyze the male–female distribution of mayors, the degree of re-election, the relationship between the number of candidates and re-election of incumbents, and how these factors impact female political representation at the local level in Romania. Thus, we argue that a high degree of re-election of incumbents may be a barrier to women's access to the position of mayor. In addition, it is important to determine whether female incumbents are as successful as their male counterparts in being re-elected. While there is an extensive body of literature on incumbency that covers a range of topics, there is a gap in the literature regarding the proposed subject. The present research aims to fill the gap and contribute to a better understanding of the political representation of women in Eastern Europe. We utilized a dataset of Romanian elections from 2008 to 2020 to test our hypotheses. Our findings indicate that during the studied period, more than 95% of mayors were male, the re-election was a frequent occurrence in Romania with a percentage ranging from 70.82% (2008–2012) to 72% (2012–2016 and 2016–2020), and female incumbents were just as likely to be re-elected as their male counterparts.

The sustainable development of rural areas is one of the European Union's objectives. LEADER program contributes to its fulfillment by offering financial support to disadvantaged rural areas. The purpose of this paper is to assess the LEADER program's economic impact in the Romanian rural communities. Econometric methods of impact assessment were used to analyze the evolution of economic indicators in the beneficiary communities. Propensity Score Matching and Difference in Differences were the methods applied in order to meet the objectives of the paper: analysis of the spatial distribution of projects submitted and funds allocated to LAGs (1), and of the economic evolution of LAG and non-LAG communities, before and after LEADER funding (2). The results indicate a stronger economic growth for the beneficiary rural communities, confirming in all cases the initial hypothesis. LEADER seems to have acted in these directions: the creation of new jobs and increasing the local businesses performance. However, the contribution made was minimal and insignificant. Conclusions of the study highlight that the contribution of the LEADER program to the economic development of rural communities can be at most one of supporting the current level of development, but not of reaching a much higher level. LEADER can be considered, from a quantitative point of view, only an instrument with a positive effect on rural areas, but not an instrument of impact. This is because LEADER did not bring significant changes and didn't ensure that critical mass that could trigger the economic development of rural communities.

The potential role of tourism in enhancing a balanced territorial development is officially acknowledged by the EU. However, little is known regarding the extent to which tourism in Romania contributes or could contribute to reducing regional inequalities. The present study approaches the matter of the growth of tourism demand and supply in relation to the type of territory (lagging, intermediary, leading), at both regional and local levels. The results indicate a significant geographical concentration of tourism activity, despite a noticeable diffusion of tourism across the country in the last decades. This derives from the fact that the leading territories, which already took the lion's share of the tourism supply and demand also retain the highest part of the increases in tourism demand. As a consequence, tourism sector stands out more as a factor that can increase territorial disparities than contribute to their reduction. However, a considerable potential for tourism growth in terms of tourism supply characterizes the lagging regions. Accordingly, differentiated tourism public policies related to the type of territory could be considered.