How Much Has Benefited Romania from Ten Years of EU Membership?
11 Pages Posted: 2 Aug 2016
Date Written: August 1, 2016
Abstract
We analyse in this paper the main achievements of Romania during the period of ten years since joining the European Union. The analysis is based on a proposed Index of Structural Changes constructed that express the overall progress in five areas: business environment, labour market, state institutions, taxation, and human capital. The analysis is carried out in a comparative perspective, at three levels: with Bulgaria, which joined the EU the same year; with three countries from Western Europe; and with a group of countries from Central and Eastern Europe that integrated the EU earlier, in 2004. We find a strong convergence between Romania and the other neighbouring countries, as well as a slower but increasing convergence towards the “old” EU member states.
Keywords: Romania, European Union, Convergence, Business Environment, Labour Market, Corruption
JEL Classification: E61, F15, F63, J24, O15
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