Răzvan Sorin ŞERBU, Sorin BORZA
“Lucian Blaga” University of Sibiu
10, Calea Dumbrăvii, Sibiu, 550024, Romania
razvan.serbu@ulbsibiu.ro, sorin.borza@gmail.com

Abstract: The Information and Communication Technologies and digital economy are the key factors in the recovery of the EU economy and especially the Romanian economy. Based on its strengths in technology and knowledge, Europe should exploit the full potential of the digital economy. The digital economy and information technologies offer great opportunities for SMEs in the manufacturing and service sectors. Therefore, an ambitious Digital Agenda, providing concrete steps to complete the online single market will be a key to sustainable economic recovery and social development of Europe. The competitive advantage of each country will play an important role in sustaining its future prosperity. Information technologies offer new ways of enhancing sustainable development not only in urban areas but also, to an even greater extent, in rural areas throughout the world. The understanding of what makes them a success or failure, and how much impact they may have in contributing to the wider rural economy is still relatively poorly developed. What is clear, from a wider European perspective, is that these new forms of e-agriculture with ecological entrepreneurialism are growing at a relatively fast rate This paper presents multi-criteria AHP method, (Analytic Hierarchy Process) to assess main technological factors that affect the introduction of new technologies in rural areas.

Keywords: E-agriculture, digital economy, eco-bio-economy, competitiveness multicriterial.

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CITE THIS PAPER AS:
Răzvan Sorin ŞERBU, Sorin BORZA, Achieving Sustainable Competitive Advantage of Romanian Rural Area by Integrating Information Technologies: an Interdisciplinary Approach, Studies in Informatics and Control, ISSN 1220-1766, vol. 23 (2), pp. 215-222, 2014. https://doi.org/10.24846/v23i2y201410

1. Introduction

Aims

Given the potential for additional growth this represents, a more thriving EU services sector which is a priority for the European Commission, as services are regarded as the driving force of the EU economy and statistics show that around nine out of ten new jobs are created in this sector. As identified in the Commission’s Annual Growth Survey, the EU will only meet its ambitious Europe 2020 targets for sustainable and inclusive growth if urgent structural reforms are prioritized in services and product markets to improve the business environment [1].

eEurope, eEurope+ (plan dedicated to countries in the adhesion process – before the enlargement of the European Union), eEurope 2005, i2010, i2020 Strategy action plans have represented major measures in developing the IT&C infrastructure in Europe, citizen education, developing the ability to use new technologies, launching new concepts meant to contribute in the development of the European economic society: e-Government, e-Health, e-Learning, e-Inclusion, etc.) [2].

We are focusing here on opportunities for a sustainable development and grow in competitiveness in rural area of nowadays, based on the implication of digital economy and Information and Communication Technologies initiatives in rural sector, presenting and discussing latest research and suggesting new ideas, solutions and methods for sustainable producing food, natural resource management, building resilient agricultural systems and farming systems from a bio-eco-economic perspective.

In this tough time of financial and economic crises, the potential of rural area should be more and more shifted into consideration. The timeliness that is going to be recorded for integrating the information technologies into the rural area will create a competitive advantage. This can make the difference between nations and one can gain advantage against the others world’s best competitors.

National prosperity is created, not inherited. It does not grow out of a country’s natural endowments, its labor pool, its interest rates, or its currency’s value, as classical economics insist. A nation‘s competitiveness depends on the capacity to innovate and upgrade [3].

Following the dynamism of nowadays we consider an essential condition for harmony the possibility for economic discipline to enlarge its sphere of investigation. In this order, besides the current preoccupation with mathematic models and statistical analysis it should take care of the great importance but too little analysed so far such as anthropology, morale and eco and bio economy.

The last decades have called the public attention and decision makers towards a new dimension, the ecological one. By minimizing the consequences of our actions the way man has behaved is being explained as well as the way he was supposed to be compared to the world he lives in and the other life forms he depends on, directly or indirectly through food or other needs.

Therefore as biological beings our activities directed towards the satisfaction of our own needs as being the only ones to be taken into consideration are justified even if they lead to self-destruction.

Background

Eco Bio Economy can be considered an attempt for a new economic vision that reunites: economy, ecology, biodiversity, eco economy and bio economy and it is focused on the intelligent sustainable development of the world.

Recently in the international literature of specialty are more attempts to unite the two concepts in a new paradigm the ecoeconomy from Lester Brown and the bioeconomy from Georgescu Roegen.

Eco Bio Economy defined as such: it is an economy of the future is the life of people by using the environment resources rationally. (bios meaning “life” and “oikos” meaning “habitat” in Greek language). It can create “arenas and reflection spaces in specialist researchers and experts in different, domains but in some other domains insufficiently explored so far”. Eco Bio Economy can generate new directions to approach: Eco Bio Sanogenesis, Eco Bio Ethics, Eco Bio Engineering and new conceptual directions: Eco Bio Projects and Eco Bio Concepts [4].

The Eco Bio Vision of Economy is to develop the welfare of the mankind under all forms in a sustainable way through an economy of the future for people’s life by using the environment resources rationally. Eco Bio Economy is a scientific attempt; an economic and philosophic one dedicated to the development of environmental interpreted health, of the welfare of humanity through a concept that is multipolar interpreted and promotes the Agrifood Green Power and Smart Sustainable Integrated Development of future [5]. All of this can be and should be integrated with the new wave of digital economy.

Paul Hawken in his paper “Blessed Unrest” comes to the conclusion “Now we steal our future by selling it and by calling it G.D.P.” We could have an economy of improvement for the future instead of stealing. One is called reconstruction the other manoeuvre [6]. This new e-economy, that anyone is expected, it will work only if we will understand the importance of right integration of digital economy in all sectors of life, and we are referring in these lines especially to agricultural aspect.

The mobile phone is being used mostly in the rural area (86%) than in the urban one (77%) in order to keep in touch with those who are abroad and the age of those who useit are under 60 years old. Approximately ¾ of the Romanians are using this service and 80% of the clients currently use a single SIM.GfK Romania made a study on the habits to use the internet in Romania along a period of two years – 2010 to 2012. The results point out that the incidence with persons aged 15 and more was of 48.7% in 2012, increasing with 8.4% as compared to 2010.

The rate of entering in households regarding retransmission services increases with 4 % to 85,1%, and the rate through cable networks arrives at 53,6%.

At the end of the year 2012, 61% of the subscribers lived in the urban area. According to the retransmission 80% of the users in the urban area are subscribers for the cable while 63% of the users in the rural area are subscribers for satellite networks of DTH type.

The number of the subscribers for cable networks increased with 6,4% to 3,8 mil. Of which the number of those who have access to such services of digital format registered an increase with 40 to 1,24 million subscribers.