As
of January 1, 2009, 306,474
inhabitants live within the city
limits, a decrease from the
figure recorded at the 2002
census. The
Cluj-Napoca metropolitan area
has a population of 379,705
people, while the population of
the
peri-urban
area (Romanian: zona
periurbană) exceeds 400,000
residents. The new metropolitan
government of Cluj-Napoca became
operational in December 2008.
Lastly, according to the 2007
data provided by the County
Population Register Service, the
total population of the city is
as high as 392,276 people.
However, this number does not
include the floating population
of students and other
non-residentsan average of over
20 thousand people each year
during 2004-2007, according to
the same source.
The
city spreads out from
St.
Michael's Church in
Unirii
Square, built in the
14th century and named after
the
Archangel Michael,
the
patron
saint of
Cluj-Napoca.The boundaries of
the municipality contain an area
of 179.52 square kilometres
(69.31 sq mi). An analysis
undertaken by the real estate
agency Profesional Casa
indicates that, because of
infrastructure development,
communes
such as Feleacu, Vālcele,
Mărtineşti, Jucu and Baciu will
eventually become neighbourhoods
of the city, thereby enlarging
its area.
Cluj-Napoca experienced a decade
of decline during the 1990s, its
international reputation
suffering from the policies of
its mayor of the time,
Gheorghe
Funar.Today, the city
is one of the most important
academic, cultural, industrial
and business centres in Romania.
Among other institutions, it
hosts the largest university in
the country, with its famous
botanical
garden; nationally
renowned cultural institutions;
as well as the largest
Romanian-owned commercial bank.
Monocle
magazine identified Cluj-Napoca
as one of the top five places
worldwide that are due their
turn in the international
spotlight during 2008. According
to the American magazine
InformationWeek,
Cluj-Napoca is quickly becoming
Romania's technopolis.
With the fall of the
Iron Curtain in
1989, Romania
started a series of political and economic reforms.
After a decade of post-revolution economic problems,
Romania made economic reforms such as low
flat tax rates in
2005 and
joined the European Union
on January 1, 2007. While Romania's income level
remains one of the lowest in the European Union,
reforms have increased the growth speed. Romania is
now an upper-middle income country economy.