SPATIAL EFFICIENCY OF ROMANIAʼS DEVELOPMENT REGIONS FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

The study assesses the spatial efficiency of Romaniaʼs counties and development regions from the perspective of sustainable development. Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) was used to calculate spatial efficiency, and A-P model (Andersen and Petersen) was used to rank efficient units (those with a score of 1.000) to assess superefficiency. The results of the study are graphically translated into four maps. The average efficiency of Romaniaʼs counties is 0.945 and the average efficiency of development regions is 0.986. Almost all development regions are efficient, with the only inefficient region being the Sud-Est region (0.887). The development regions with the highest superefficiency scores are located in the western part of Romania. The highest score of superefficiency is registered by the București-Ilfov region (30.997), the capital of the country and its surroundings, the economic engine of Romania.