Roughly 84% of Romanians say that the pace of the state’s digitalization is slow or very slow, according to an Edge Institute & AtlasIntel study presented at the Digital Governance Summit 2025, which took place on Tuesday, November 25, at the presidential palace in Bucharest.
The survey aims to capture the way citizens relate to digital transformation: what works, what frustrates them, what expectations they have, and what pace they consider acceptable for modernizing the state.
Data show that for most Romanians, digitalization means, first and foremost, reducing bureaucracy and eliminating trips between institutions, through administrative processes that can be resolved entirely online.
At the top of their expectations is the ability to submit applications without going to a counter (68.7%), the automatic circulation of documents between institutions (61.4%), and the interoperability of databases, which would eliminate the need for certificates (57.1%). Around 76.4% of Romanians have used the electronic services of public institutions in the past year.
Romanians associate the state’s digitalization with practical and easy-to-use solutions: electronic signatures for citizens and companies (43%), modern presentation websites for ministries (36.2%), and, to a lesser extent, the presence of institutions on social networks (17.2%). Among the most frequently mentioned benefits are reduced bureaucracy (65.3%), time savings (50.5%), and faster access to information and services (48.7%).
At the same time, respondents point out possible negative effects, such as the impact on vulnerable people (29.2%), the risk of certain jobs disappearing (28.3%), and the increasing dependence on technology (28.1%). Even in the context of perceived disadvantages, nearly 73% of Romanians consider digitalization a good or very good thing.
When it comes to evaluating the current level of digitalization, however, 65% of respondents consider that public institutions are poorly digitalized, while areas such as internet quality and the digitalization of private companies receive significantly better evaluations. Moreover, 84% of Romanians say that the pace of the state’s digitalization is slow or very slow.
Three-quarters of Romanians (75.8%) say that Romania needs major changes. For 77% of Romanians, corruption is the biggest concern, ahead of the general state of the education and health systems, high prices, or the war in Ukraine. The context suggests that digitalization, through transparency and automated processes, is perceived as a direct solution against this phenomenon.
“The data show that expectations are clear: Romanians want efficient public services, without unnecessary bureaucracy, and a state that respects people’s time. Digitalization is only the tool; the real stake is trust,” said Robert Berza, Executive Director of Edge Institute, at the event.
(Photo source: Nicoelnino | Dreamstime.com)
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