Welcome to the Heart for Romania website

HfR has been working in Romania since the revolution in 1989. We aim to bring HOPE, through offering support to the marginalised, the lonely & the poor, HELP through education, employment & support programs & HEART by giving of ourselves to long term friendships.

Romania has the 9th largest territory and the 7th largest population among the European Union member states.

In 1958, Romania came under the new communist leadership of Nicolae Ceauşescu, in an attempt to fully reimburse spiraling foreign debts Ceauşescu imposed policies that impoverished Romanians and exhausted the Romanian economy. These policies led to a decrease in Ceauşescu-popularity and culminated in his overthrow and execution in the bloody Romanian Revolution of 1989.

Romania continues to suffer badly after a legacy of 40 years of severe communism. Civil society and social services have had to be reconstructed from virtually scratch. Reports from the Anti Poverty Commission (CASPIS), which was formed under the orders of the Government, in 2004 highlighted that some 6.5 million Romanians live in poverty, of whom 2.4 million live in extreme poverty and another 1.2 million cannot afford basic food rations.

The World Bank in 2004 placed Romania just above Namibia and Columbia in its economic indicators report.