Most Romanian emigrants are homesick. What stops them from coming back?

Romanians mainly choose to leave their country because they are attracted by the high living standards of the countries where they choose to go, a recent study about Romanian emigrants ordered by Romanian Business Leaders and conducted by Open-I Research shows. However, homesickness would make most of them come back, according to Felix Tataru, founder of GMP group. “70% of those questioned so far want to return home […] Almost 40% want to come back within three years, and 20% want to return this year. The corruption represents the main reason why they would not return to the country, followed by the low living standards in Romania,” Tataru said, cited by local Agerpres. The Romanians would return to their home country to be closer to their loved ones, to spend their retirement years in Romania, and because they’ve noticed that the living standards have started to improve. Moreover, most of them would also invest in Romania, mainly in agriculture and tourism. “In brief, the conclusions of this study are: the main reason why the Romanians living abroad want to return to the country is the homesickness. Corruption, however, is the main barrier, as well as the low standards of living and the mentality in the country. The Romanians living abroad are mostly optimistic about Romania’s future. They say that the migration process has both advantages and disadvantages,” Felix Tataru added. Over 81,500 Romanians kids have parents working abroad. Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com