A discussion is under way inside the European Union as to how many years are required before its new members will match the living standards prevailing in the rest of the now 25-nation EU
Published:
12 August 2004 y., Thursday
A discussion is under way inside the European Union as to how many years are required before its new members will match the living standards prevailing in the rest of the now 25-nation EU. Many economists predict that even those new members that have relatively strong economies will require at least 30 years to reach the per-capita income levels prevailing in Western Europe.
Of the new EU members, Slovakia and three Baltic states are generally considered to be the fastest-growing economically. Each of them aspire to match the achievement of one of the oldest members of the EU, Ireland, which in the 1990s registered economic growth rates averaging over eight percent.
Willem Buiter, chief economist at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in London, says Ireland is a worthy model for the new EU members.
"Ireland has done it. From being a poor west European country they are now a rich west European country, richer than the average west European country and richer even than Britain," he said. "But they had a number of factors working for them that are not present in Eastern Europe, the main thing being the demographics."
Barbara Boettcher, an economist at Deutsche Bank in Frankfurt, agrees that the Ireland model won't be easy to emulate.
"You won't see that in Eastern Europe," she said. "Eastern European countries, which are designed to be winners are those that have attracted a large share of the production oriented foreign direct investment, like Slovakia, Hungary and the Czech Republic have done."
Šaltinis:
voanews.com
Copying, publishing, announcing any information from the News.lt portal without written permission of News.lt editorial office is prohibited.
The most popular articles
EU plans will allow international air passenger data to be used under strict conditions in the fight against terrorism and serious crime.
more »
Experts are trying to find ways to save the unique Sedlec ossuary - a church decorated with human skulls and bones.
more »
The EU and its Member States must act to ensure that pension schemes can sustainably deliver an adequate income to the EU's growing number of retired people, despite the economic crisis, says Parliament's Employment Committee in a resolution voted on Tuesday.
more »
Chinese factories increase their output of replicas of the Windsor royal engagment ring as world-wide demand for the sparkle remains high.
more »
The euro changeover in Estonia is in its final stage.
more »
Europe's flora and fauna are now better protected than at any time in the history of the European Union. Natura 2000, Europe's network of protected natural areas, has been expanded by nearly 27 000 square kilometres.
more »
Getting more people involved in volunteering is the key aim of the 2011 European Year of Volunteering.
more »
Dear Fellow People of Lithuania,I send my best wishes to you on this New Year's Eve.
more »
Some residents in Jakarta are trading in their gas guzzling cars and motorcycles for bicycles.
more »
As a winter storm is heading for the Northeast Coast of the United States, drivers are not the only travelers being hit by the storm.
more »