Department of Geography.

Valahia University of Targoviste

Annals of Valahia University of Targoviste. Geographical Series
Tome 15/2015 Issues 1: 62-67
http://fsu.valahia.ro/images/avutgs/home.html

THE SERVICES OF GENERAL INTEREST FROM THE COVURLUI PLATEAU:

THE IMPACT ON POPULATION
Oana Nicoleta DRUGAN, Constantin Ionu BARBU
University Alexandru Ioan Cuza Iasi
Boulevard Carol I, 20 A, 0232 201 074, Iasi, Roumania
E-mail: oanadrugan@yahoo.com, constantin_ionut_barbu@yahoo.com

Abstract
The term Services of General Interest has come to be regarded as covering the arrangements, tasks and
functions assumed to be of essential importance to citizen welfare, quality of life and participation, as well as to
the general functioning of societies at a level of development and quality corresponding to Community visions
and goals (the European model of society). Some commonly stated examples are arrangements for safety and
justice, provision of water supply, postal services, supply of gas and electricity, transport functions, education,
housing, and social and health services. Economic and social development of rural areas is related to the
existence of a rural infrastructure, basic services and tap into the rich rural heritage. Village renewal and
development is a key requirement for improved quality of life and increasing the attractiveness of rural areas.
Quality basic physical rural infrastructure (especially infrastructure roads and infrastructure water / wastewater)
can have a major impact on ensuring rural development, in particular by encouraging and facilitating the
development of economic activities. In the studied territory, Covurlui Plateau, poor development of basic
infrastructure can have a negative impact on health families in rural communities. The public spaces such as
commercial markets, parking, landscaped and maintained, limit the population access to services and
recreational activities. These examples sketches the major necessities and improvements in basic physical
infrastructure needs of the rural areas. One of the key issues facing the Romanian rural area is
underdeveloped and basic services (leisure, sporting and cultural, childcare, elderly, public transport services
etc.). In this sense, in most communes and villages, different services, which would characterize a balanced
countryside turned to a good quality of life, are almost nonexistent. The development of local public services is
a controversial matter, a equally challenge and a problem for the local public. Their effectiveness is difficult to
provide and their profitability is challenging. In many cases, it is not feasible because priority should be given
to social parameters and commands. A good question is: what risks or potential problems may arise when
money is spent on regional development projects and expenditures are not based on scientific knowledges,
but an illusion?
Keywords: services of general interest, population, impact, Covurlui Plateau, sustainable development

1 INTRODUCTION

Covurlui Plateau is located in the south east of Moldavian Plateau, it is a subdivision of it

and is composed of gravels and sands with clay infilled, characterized by hills and valleys parallel
north-south direction. The valleys have a flat bottom wide enough and marshy. It notes and valleys
with steep slopes that are subject to degradation powerful torrents.
The studied territory includes 16 villages and two cities, respectively Bereti and Trgu
Bujor.

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Services of General Interest (SGI) is a concept used within EU policy making. It represents
services which are provided by society to inhabitants and businesses, but not necessarily via
normal market channels since they are considered necessary services (almost like a right). In
this sense, the SGI concept is similar to the concept of public goods. However, the SGI concept
allows for the individual member state to draw the limit between what should be included and what
should be excluded from the definition, or which services that should be publicy (tax) financed or
financed via the market, and thus which services that might be exempted from EU rules of
competition (Bran et. al., 2006).
Etymologically, the concept of service has its origins in the latin word "servitum" which
means "slave", hence giving the interpretation of "being in the service of someone", "doing a favor"
or "putting into service ", evoking the idea of "public "or "public service" (Nicola, 2010).
In the French system, the notion of public service is emerging on the basis of a decision of
the Court of conflicts of 1873, Blanco decision. School representatives of public service, Duguit,
Jzeau, Bonnard and Roland L. considered public service as "work that governments are forced to
make in the interests of the governed" (Benedek, 2004). The classic definition content changes in
the interwar period - delimitation parties "interest" / "particular interest" stressing that the main
objective of the service is the interest of administered people and not the profit motive (Cosmescu
1999, Groza 2004).
The explosion of services, increasing the role they have in economy and society generally
rapid ascension and spectacular evolution in the last decades of the twentieth century have
intensified concerns for the knowledge of the sector and resulted doctrine to name contemporary
society as a "society services " (Nicola, 2010).

2. METHODS

The research strategy was based on the following steps: statistical data obtained from the
website of the National Statistics Institute Tempo were compared with the data obtained from the
stage of the ground by the questionnaires, then were processed and represented using cartographic
software Philcarto 5.1 and Adobe Illustrator 8.0.1.

3. CLASSIFICATION OF SERVICES OF GENERAL INTEREST

According to the European Commission's 2003 classification, there are three broad
categories of services of general interest:
a) Services of wide general interest (transport, electricity, gas, postal services,
telecommunications);
b) Services of general economic interest (waste management, water supply and
broadcasting);
c) Social services of general interest (education, health, care for the elderly and children,
social housing).

4. THE IMPACT ON POPULATION OF SERVICES OF GENERAL INTEREST

It is neccesary the recovery of local resources, improving agricultural productivity, learning

technologies and their materialization, preparing the younger generation for work, realization of
educational training and information, at all levels, finding solutions to explore the full human
potential that has Romanian village.
Regarding the provision of basic services for rural development prospects of rural areas are
adversely affected by poor infrastructure, ineffective that can not provide enough opportunities to
attract redundant agricultural population agricultural activities. As a result, material and social
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development of rural infrastructure, which it at least approaches, that of the urban areas, will
facilitate the establishment of agricultural activities in rural areas, generating the creation of new
permanent or temporary jobs.
Currently, local government authorities involved in financing expenses of management and
operation, or goods and services, repairs, consolidation, expansion and modernization, provision of
medical equipment standard small health units of local interest, within the approved budget for this
purpose in local budgets.
4.1. Education

In the territory stands a process of progressive reduction of the school population.

Decreasing school population leads to reduced education units (8.6% less in 2013 compared to
2003) and staff (5.4% fewer people in 2013 than in 2003). This happens because: exists a large
number of children whose parents are abroad; rising divorce rate, with negative consequences on
children's education; statements dropout amid poverty, especially in gypsy communities. Also, the
descending number of staff it is explained in the fact that nowadays the profession is less attractive
due to low pay levels and the temptation to work in urban areas is high. (Figure 1 and 2)

Figure 1. The number of students from

Figure 2. The number of students from
the Covurlui Plateau in 2003
the Covurlui Plateau in 2013
Regarding to school units, due to the decreasing number of students, the studied territory
faces reducing the number of school units.
However, the number of children and adults at social protection systems is reduced.

Figure 3. The number of school units

from the Covurlui Plateau in 2002

Figure 4. The number of school units

from the Covurlui Plateau in 2013

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4.2. Health

The represented indicator highlights the following issues:

- The existence of a single hospital across territory;
- Shortage of medical staff due to migration to EU countries;
- Profession in rural areas is less tempting for medical staff and nursing care units;
- Underfunding health care field state leads to the existence of a weak health
infrastructure and a significantly reduced quality of health services provided to the population;
- Emergency services are poorly equipped.

Figure 5. The number of private medical practices from the Covurlui Plateau in 2013

4.3. Transports

Figure 6. The length of modernized roads

Statistical data highlight the need to improve road infrastructure which would enable the
development of tourist activity in the area. Why? Because there is the need to improve road
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infrastructure which would enable the development of tourist activity in the area. At the same time,
the area has a long wine tradition that deserves to be again put in value.

4.4. Energy

The electricity allows the use of means aimed growth of labor productivity - use of power
tools - and raising the general level of comfort lighting, domestic activities, media (TV, radio,
Internet). The expansion of wind farms could represent a future perspective for the studied area.
Another future perspective for the production of electricity is the possibility of decorating
parks with photovoltaic panels for solar energy recovery.
4.5. Water supply
The lowering consumption it is due to the high price and because people use their own
sources (wells). Also, poor population uses the recovery of rain water for household uses. The
network does not provide power to all the inhabitants, following that the phase of time to expand in
other areas; power is usually in the main arteries.

Figure 7. The amount of drinking water supplied to consumers from Covurlui Plateau in 2013

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5. RESULTS

For the studied area to reach a decent living standards, it is necessary that local authorities to
adopt sustainable development strategies. For this to materialize, it is necessary to create favorable
conditions for locating new investments and strengthening the potential of the existing ones by
developing utilities and service quality for enterprises, through simplification, transparency and
accelerate administrative procedures for obtaining permits and creation conditions increase the
productivity of businesses by using innovative products and processes; it is also necessary to create
conditions for a flexible labor market, the offer of employment to be able to adapt continuously to
the requirements of employers by promoting entrepreneurial culture, information society and new
services in the context of accelerated dynamics of integration activities European and international
economic space.
By improving infrastructure and equipment by applying an efficient management and
increasing people's access to these services, especially those in rural and remote areas can lead to
the development of health and social services sector; moreover, the development of the education
sector by improving infrastructure and equipment by increasing the quality of education, developing
continuing education centers for adults, development of school networks, developing the
partnership between schools and businesses, universities and government and support research innovation are prerequisites for sustainable development and sustainability planning.

6. CONCLUSIONS

All the area's problems could be summarized in one: the quality of life of residents
throughout our area leave a lot to be desired compared to what is meant by adequate standard of
living today. It is generally considered that this reflects a low level of development. Comparing the
effort of the inhabitants of the territory studied living in areas with economic potential similar or
even weaker in other areas of the EU finds that a comparable work, residents of Covurlui Plateau
fare much harder. Forms of the gap between different levels of quality of life in a very succinct
enumeration would be: low level of general and specialized education; low level of comfort offered
by rural life in nearly all areas; poor diet quality; the low and uncertain income; huge dependence
incidental factors; disregard for the quality of the environment; general hygiene mediocre condition;
high rate of illness; average low life; reduced access to services and generally low quality of
existing ones; very low participation in entertainment; limited access to IT. Another words,
capitalizing the endogenous potential and opportunities external, certain recipe for sustainable and
balanced development of the territory studied.

REFERENCES

Benedek, J. 2004, Amenajarea teritoriului i dezvoltarea regional [Spatial planning and regional
development], Edit. Presa Universitar Clujean, Cluj-Napoca.
Bran, F. Cndea, M., Cimpoieru, I., 2006, Organizarea, amenajarea i dezvoltarea durabil a
spaiului geografic [The organization, planning and sustainable development of geographical
space], Edit. Universitar, Bucureti.
Cosmescu, I, Ilie, L. 1999, Economia serviciilor [Service economy], Edit. Universitii, Sibiu
Groza, O. 2004, Les territoires de lindustrie [Industry territories], Edit. Didactic i Pedagogic,
Bucureti.
Nicola, I. 2010, Managementul serviciilor publice locale [The management of local public
services], Edit. CH Beck, Bucureti.
***SeGI Indicators and perspectives for services of general interest in territorial cohesion and
development, Applied Research 2013/1/16
***Institutul Naional de Statistic [National Institute of Statistics] Tempo Online
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