Prime Minister-designate Luca Niculescu underscored on Tuesday that, over the past four years, while coordinating the country's accession process to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), 'the political parties managed to jointly support an important objective for Romania, beyond their natural differences,' a consensus that 'mattered enormously.'

'Over the past four years, I have coordinated Romania's accession process to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. It has been the most intense professional experience I have ever had and an extraordinary assessment of the Romanian state: the economy, public administration, education, healthcare, state-owned companies, the labour market and taxation. I have learned an important lesson during these years: good reforms are based on data, realities on the ground and other successful experiences. And they are carried out for people. The OECD accession process has already meant more than 100 reforms for Romania. I want this work to continue and become one of the foundations of the governing programme. Not because the OECD recommends it, but because these are good ideas for Romania, assessed and tested in some of the world's best-performing economies. There is something else that the OECD accession process has shown us. The political parties managed to jointly endorse an important objective for Romania, beyond their natural differences. This consensus mattered enormously. I hope we can find the same openness now, around a realistic programme built on what unites us. I am open to discussions and I respect good ideas, regardless of where they come from,' the Prime Minister-designate wrote on his Facebook page on Tuesday.

On Monday evening, following the consultations with representatives of the political parties and formations represented in Parliament, the head of state announced the designation of Luca Niculescu as a candidate for the position of prime minister.

'My proposal for the position of prime minister is Luca Niculescu. He is a diplomat, meaning someone whose profession is to reconcile positions. Over the past four years, he has worked on Romania's accession to the OECD and, in this capacity, has worked with Romanian state institutions, so he is someone who knows the Romanian state, and he has spent four years working on the drafting of 100 pieces of legislation with the agreement of the parliamentary parties,' the president said in a statement delivered at the Cotroceni Palace.

The decree designating Luca Niculescu as a candidate for the position of prime minister was published on Tuesday in the Official Journal of Romania. AGERPRES (RO - editing by: Andreea Rotaru; EN - writing by: Rodica State)