Valorization of the effects of transition and globalization on the competitiveness of the Western Balkans economies

Postsocijalističke privrede su početkom devedesetih godina dvadesetog veka započele tranziciju u kapitalistički sistem i intenzivnije uključivanje u procese globalizacije. Region Zapadnog Balkana je u tom periodu bio zahvaćen političkom i društvenom nestabilnošću koja se nepovoljno odrazila na ekonomske reforme i međunarodnu poziciju zemalja regiona. Glavni problem sa kojim su se zemlje regiona Zapadnog Balkana suočile bio je tehnološko zaostajanje i nedostatak domaće akumulacije. Preovladao je stav da će priliv stranih direktnih investicija pokrenuti ekonomski rast i tehnološku modernizaciju proizvodnje i omogućiti uspešno uključivanje u procese globalizacije. Kako bi se unapredila međunarodna konkurentnost zemalja Zapadnog Balkana, završetak tranzicionih reformi je označen kao prioritetan korak. Predmet istraživanja disertacije je teorijsko razmatranje i empirijsko utvrđivanje efekata tranzicije i globalizacije na konkurentnost zemalja Zapadnog Balkana tokom prve dve decenije XXI veka. U sprovedenom istraživanju, jedanaest privreda Centralne i Istočne Evrope je iskorišćeno kao osnov za poređenje i tumačenje rezultata za pet zemalja Zapadnog Balkana. Empirijski rezultati u disertaciji pokazuju statistički značajan pozitivan uticaj tranzicije i globalizacije na unapređenje konkurentnosti zemalja regiona Zapadnog Balkana.Post-socialist states began the transition process to a capitalism and more intensive integration in the processes of globalization in the early 1990s. During that period, the Western Balkans region was affected by political and social instability, which adversely reflected to economic reforms and the international position of the countries in the region. The main problem the countries of the Western Balkans region faced was technological stagnancy and a lack of domestic accumulation. The prevailing view is that foreign direct investment inflows will drive economic growth and technological modernization of production and enable successfully integration this group of countries in the processes of globalization. In order to improve the international competitiveness of the Western Balkan countries, the finishing of transition reforms has been identified as a priority step. The subject of the PhD thesis is theoretical consideration and empirical determination of the effects of transition and globalization on the competitiveness of the Western Balkan countries during the first two decades of the 21st century. In the research that carried out, eleven economies of Central and Eastern Europe were used as a base for comparing and interpreting the results of the Western Balkans countries. Empirical results obtained in the researching part of the doctoral dissertation show a statistically significant positive impact of transition and globalization on improving the competitiveness of the states of the Western Balkans region