All about Central and Eastern Europe

Centreurope.org publishes www.centraleasteurope.com. This website provides visitors with an introduction to Eastern European economic and social systems in a context of political, social and economic reform and accession to the European Union.
The aim is to understand the nature of economic and social changes that these countries have been experiencing since the end of the 1980s, as well as current situations and challenges, including the ongoing EU enlargement process.
The website more specifically focuses on most Central European new EU Member States (Czech and Slovak republic, Slovenia, Hungary, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia), although the Balkan and CIS countries may be considered as well.

Main content

Central and Eastern Europe basics
A Brief History of the region, current social and economic realities, the gap between Central and Eastern Europe
2. Nature, evolution and collapse of the socialist economic model ; The transition process:
The failure of the socialist economic and political system; analysis, theories and consequences for the current times ; The setting of a new institutional framework, Shock therapy vs gradualism, transition and transformation crises
3.  An Economic overview
Comparison of macroeconomic indicators (growth, inflation, trade, unemployment, public deficits) and underlying socio-economic variables (population, work force, share of various sectors, savings and investment).
4. Restructuring and current situation of financial and production systems
Privatisation of banks and companies, the new financing systems, evolution of industrial structures and specialisation
5. The shift of the Central and Eastern European economies towards less industry and more services
Central European industries in the new international division of labour, declining sectors, new competitive advantages
6. Nature and extent of Foreign Direct Investments
The main reasons for investments in the past ten years, the role of FDI vs. local businesses, the different ways of FDI, management issues
7. The evolution of social structures: winners and losers
Labour and labour markets, unemployment, income and income inequalities, impact on growth regimes, regional discrepancies
. The enlargement challenge
The enlargement round, nature, background and economic rationale, the stages of the enlargement process, impact of enlargement on Central European economies (flows of people, goods and capital, impact on various sectors), the euro enforcement in Central Europe.