current president was born and where the informal summit of heads of state or government of the european union will take place in may. 2 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches on a lighter note, children in romania enjoy playing with lego, denmark ’ s registered trademark. as regards finland, mika waltari ’ s books have consistently been bestsellers in romanian bookshops and angry birds ranks as one of the most popular mobile apps among young romanians. as surprising as it may seem, there is a link with sweden as well. in the early 18th century, king charles xii, after the battle of poltava, moved southwards to romanian lands, turned into an entrepreneur and built the coltea tower, the tallest building in bucharest at the time, which stood very close to the current headquarters of the national bank of romania. the importance of austria and of its capital city, vienna, for romania is unquestionable. it should be pointed out that the austrian influence is not confined to transylvania. to give you just one example of a romanian landmark figure who refined his personality in vienna, our national poet mihai eminescu studied a few years in this prestigious academic hub. i cannot conclude without mentioning that romania is inhabited by diverse minorities belonging to nations in the region, namely, hungarians, czechs, poles, slovaks, with whom we have so many things in common that it would take me too long to talk about. and if i add that beautiful and sunny malta became an increasingly popular holiday destination among romanian tourists, i think i have touched on each of the 27 current eu member states besides romania. let me conclude by saying that romania is fully committed to the united europe and to european values, but this is nothing new and is also the case with the other member states. the need for unity of europe is better perceived from its eastern border, on the black sea coast, as we are so close to crimea. and i want to make a call for unity in europe and to stress that it is us who, through our decisions, shape its future. as abraham lincoln once said, “ the best way to predict your future is to create it ”. with this in mind, allow me to make a toast for a strong and united europe. thank you for your attention! 3 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches

4 percent ) and slightly below poland ( 79. 6 percent ). however, growth in romania was not evenly distributed. bucharest is currently above one hundred sixty, while much slower converge took place for other regions. i cannot emphasize strongly enough that continuing and improving the absorption of eu funds is the best way to boost the potential growth of our economy. an additional factor proven to boost the economy is the human capital. understanding the sources of economic growth and the role of education, topics that many papers will cover during this conference, is of paramount importance. 2 / 3 bis - central bankers'speeches distinguished audience, last but not least, during your social program, in the carpathian mountains - sinaia and at bran castle - you will discover or re - discover some parts of romania, a country with a rich history. allow me to add a few fun facts about sinaia, which is an eponym of mount sinai. by the end of the 17th century, a group of monks, led by mihail cantacuzino, a landlord of those times, went on a pilgrimage to palestine and the sinai peninsula, to saint ekaterina monastery. once returned, they established a monastery in the poorly inhabited, but abundantly beautiful area, called sinaia monastery. a century later, the first king of romania, carol i fell in love with the place and built pele castle, his summer residence, which you will visit. little by little, sinaia became popular among the members of the high society : they started building summer residences as well as hotels, villas. one can still admire there original buildings of the 19th and early 20th centuries. i hope you will have an enjoyable trip in the carpathians. to conclude, i am confident that the conference will be a successful event. i wish you all fruitful debates and a pleasant stay in romania! thank you! 3 / 3 bis - central bankers'speeches