Liebscher, Klaus --- "EU enlargement in 2004 - A time to revisit transition challenges" [2004] ELECD 145; in Liebscher, Klaus; Christl, Josef; Mooslechner, Peter; Ritzberger-Grünwald, Doris (eds), "The Economic Potential of a Larger Europe" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2004)

Book Title: The Economic Potential of a Larger Europe

Editor(s): Liebscher, Klaus; Christl, Josef; Mooslechner, Peter; Ritzberger-Grünwald, Doris

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781843769620

Section Title: EU enlargement in 2004 - A time to revisit transition challenges

Author(s): Liebscher, Klaus

Number of pages: 4

Extract:

EU enlargement in 2004 ­ a time to
revisit transition challenges
Klaus Liebscher

The OeNB's East­West Conference 2003, on which this book is based,
looks back at an impressive history. The first OeNB seminar focusing expli-
citly on the transition economies in Central and Eastern Europe took place
in October 1989, not long after the opening of the iron curtain. Since 1995
the conference has been an established annual event, serving as an interna-
tional forum in which leading experts from government and international
organizations, central and commercial banks as well as universities and
research institutes discuss questions related to the transition process and to
EU enlargement.
Previous conferences dealt with all the major topics relevant for
European integration and enlargement: the restructuring of the banking
system, financial crises, the convergence progress, regulatory aspects of
transition and other structural challenges, the quest for an adequate policy
mix and the challenges of transition in general. The range of topics is,
however, not just impressive because of its broad coverage, it also reflects
the evolution of the transformation process. Some of the earlier conference
topics, as for example the regulatory aspects of transition or issues related
to institution building, have lost importance over recent years, given the
successful completion of the major transition steps in these areas.
At the same time, we have also seen the focus shift from purely transi-
tion-related topics toward a more global perspective and a more horizon-
tal approach to specific topics. The most recent ...