The Ministry of Finance has begun preparations for drafting the 2027 state budget, and ministries have until next Wednesday to enter the data required for estimating revenues and setting budget limits into the new IT platform, Minister of Finance Alexandru Nazare stated on Thursday.

'Today, we have concretely initiated discussions regarding the 2027 budget. We held an initial briefing within the Government on the progress made by the primary authorizing officers in using the new budget-drafting application, 'Buget NG', which is funded through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP). The authorizing officers have begun uploading data into this application, some more extensively than others. We conducted an assessment and presented the current status to the Prime Minister and the other ministers. There is still a great deal of work to be done, but many authorizing officers have already started uploading data. I have set deadlines for next week, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, as the final cutoff for updating all the data required to proceed with the initial phase: estimating revenues and setting budgetary limits for the 2027 budget,' stated Nazare at the AGRI4FUTURE National Conference, organized by the Romanian Farmers' Club.

In statements made subsequently to journalists, the minister specified that some institutions have not yet begun entering data into the platform, while others have submitted partial information or intend to modify it.

'There are some ministries that have not yet joined the platform. Some have uploaded data, but only partially. Others have uploaded data but wish to make changes. They have until next Wednesday to do so. From that point on, we will begin working in concrete terms on all the projects from every ministry. That is why I have avoided answering questions about what we are doing or how we are doing it, because, without the data, it would be irresponsible to make any statements,' the Minister of Finance explained.

Regarding the savings that could be achieved through the reorganization of public institutions, Nazare stated that the Ministry of Finance has requested information from all primary authorizing officers concerning the measures under consideration.

'On Monday, we sent a formal request to all primary authorizing officers to understand what institutional mergers they intend to carry out, what savings they plan to achieve, and what their strategy is for prioritizing investments. Essentially, however, the request focuses on savings. This is not a plan to be devised by the Ministry of Finance; rather, it is a plan that the Ministry of Finance will consolidate. We recognize that there are numerous proposals and a desire for new projects, but at the same time, we must determine how to finance them in a sustainable manner,' he emphasized.

The minister indicated that administrative reorganization is among the key projects for next year, given that the Government must continue fiscal-budgetary adjustment while also safeguarding investments.

'But yes, there are important projects that have been announced, relating to administrative reorganization. The Ministry of Internal Affairs is working on this initiative. These are projects we need for 2027, which will allow us to carry out the necessary and natural adjustments expected by the market for next year, while also ensuring that key investments are protected. I am confident that, by late November, we will be much closer to presenting the essential projects for the 2027 budget than we are today,' stated Nazare.

At the same time, he emphasized that a credible budget for next year could contribute to maintaining the sovereign rating and, subsequently, to improving the outlook associated with it.

'I am very confident that a credible budget for 2027 represents a highly significant window of opportunity for Romania. A credible budget for 2027 means that we will enter discussions with rating agencies in January, February, and March, during the first quarter, very well prepared, and ready to maintain our current rating. Furthermore, if the execution of the 2027 budget demonstrates predictability, consistency, and seriousness, and if it is implemented as intended, moving toward the fiscal consolidation we have committed to, then we have a chance in 2027 to improve our outlook from negative to stable,' the minister stated.

He warned that Romania can no longer afford to return to the high budget deficits of previous years.

'We cannot go back to the way things were in the past. We cannot return to deficits of 8% or 9%. With public debt having exceeded 60%, it would be fatal to persist in the same mistakes. It is also crucial to demonstrate that we have learned our lesson and that we are genuinely committed to economic development in Romania, because healthy economic growth is rooted in discipline. Without discipline, there is no foundation, we cannot build a house on sand,' stated Alexandru Nazare.

The Minister of Finance further stated that the institution continues to collect the information necessary for preparing the report on the state of public finances, as requested by the Prime Minister.

'At the same time, we will also prepare the next steps we requested, including data from the ministries, to compile the report on the state of public finances. This involves specific questions and a precise table to gather all the necessary information from every ministry, allowing us to finalize the report that the Prime Minister requested during last week's government meeting,' Nazare added. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: George Banciulea;EN - writing by: Catalin Cristian Trandafir)