Multilevel governance within the European Union

European View ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 97-103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mojca Kucler Dolinar

In the current economic and social crisis affecting Europe, dialogue is of great importance. The reaction of the EU to the present situation is evident from various discussions and documents. Following the ambitious Lisbon Strategy, a document created during a period of economic growth for most of the Member States, we now have before us the Europe 2020 Strategy. In this article, the author explores the contents of this strategy in light of the implementation of its goals of multilevel governance.

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (16) ◽  
pp. 4990
Author(s):  
Marek Walesiak ◽  
Grażyna Dehnel ◽  
Marek Obrębalski

Since 2010, the European Union countries have been implementing the objectives of the Europe 2020 Strategy aimed at smart, sustainable, and inclusive growth. The Strategy formulates nine indicators that are systematically monitored and assessed. Not all the indicators of the Europe 2020 Strategy could be used in the analysis in a direct way. Due to the limited availability and comparability of statistical data, this problem is presented in detail in part 2 of the article. The assessment of the achievement level of the Europe 2020 Strategy targets, both at the level of the entire European Union (the EU-level targets approach) and its individual Member States (the national-level targets approach) is the primary research purpose of the study. The composite index proposed and constructed on the basis of a dynamic relative taxonomy was used in the conducted research to present the diversified distance of the individual European Union countries in relation to the EU-level targets as well as the national-level targets of the Europe 2020 Strategy. The research methodology allows conducting the analysis taking into account the missing data. Most methods of ordering objects based on aggregate measures are compensatory in nature. This problem was significantly reduced by taking into account the geometric mean in the construction of the aggregate measure. The research findings revealed that in the years 2010–2019 an ongoing improvement in the implementation of both the EU and the national targets of the Europe 2020 Strategy was observed. In addition, the differences existing between the European Union Member States were reduced. However, none of the countries achieved the EU-level targets. Their highest implementation level was recorded in Denmark, Sweden, Austria, and Finland. The achievement level of the strategic goals regarding the national-level targets was influenced by the choice of one of the two approaches indicated in the study and adopted by the individual EU Member States in determining the set target values of the indicators, i.e., either prudential or optimistic.


2013 ◽  
pp. 29-33
Author(s):  
Zoltán Eperjes

After the relaunchment of the Lisbon strategy, the cohesion policy of the EU concentrates even stronger on the establishment of the knowledge based economy, on R&D activities and innovations. In the first chapter I demonstrate the funds division of the convergence and regional competitiveness targets in the financial perspective between 2007–2013. The first sheet shows unambiguously that the new member states from Middle-Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean countries spend their funds on convergence and cohesion issues. The situation is contrary in the highly developed Western-European countries, in the core regions, where decisive part of the funds are spent on competitiveness issues. In the second chapter of the study I present the Europe 2020 strategy of the EU, that is a crucial paradigm change in the European strategy-making. While the Lisbon strategy focused on the social cohesion of the European Union, the Europe 2020 strategy strives the fostering of the European competitiveness. In the third part of the study I make a comparison how the funds-allocation altered during the two financial perspectives.


Equilibrium ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michaela Stanickova

Research background: Economic crisis hit all the European Union Member States hard, with the impact of crisis varying considerably. The low growth performance in the EU has increased concerns regarding an increasing wage dispersion, income inequality at large, and social exclusion in line with poverty. Inequality should be seen as a cornerstone of both sustainable and inclusive growth under the Europe 2020 Strategy. Social inequality in the EU is a real problem, which hampers sustainable economic growth. Purpose of the article: The purpose of this study is to introduce evaluation of social development convergence and divergence trends between the EU Member States in the context of the Europe 2020 Strategy. The study gives an outline of the issues of the labour market and income disparities and poverty. Policymakers must be clear about what social objectives they are aiming to achieve, therefore special attention is paid to headline national goals of the Europe 2020 Strategy. Methods: The main task of this study is to assess social dimension and inequalities problems in the EU27 by applying Data Envelopment Analysis method, resp. time-series dynamic efficiency analysis in the form of output-oriented Malmquist Productivity Index. This study contains changes of key social equality indicators related to the Europe 2020 Strategy and compares objectives and general outlines of period 2010-2015, as well as the impact on national economics and living conditions. Findings & value added: Results contain elements of typology premises of the EU28 and point to a large diversity in inequality patterns, as the Author observes both increases and decreases in inequality at the EU level. Recent changes in social inequality have been associated with the business cycle, particularly with the accessibility of the labour market and, of course, with income inequality. Additionally, the development challenges are discussed for improvement of the socioeconomic well-being of the EU and to avoid social disparities.


2013 ◽  
pp. 15-19
Author(s):  
Zoltán Eperjesi

I define first of all the competitiveness in my study „Analysing the competitiveness of the European Union”. After that I turn to the analysis of the competitiveness of the EU. The European competitiveness index and its concept were of great assistance during the analyses. The concept of the European competitiveness index has three main components: creative economy, economic performance, access to infrastructure. It is unambiguous that the European Union can only sustain and increase its position reached in the world economy, when its member states commit themselves for the completion of the knowledge based economic policy striving for competitiveness. The Europe 2020 strategy and the budget period 2007–2013 emphasize the outstanding role of competitiveness and urge to take the necessary measures.


Author(s):  
Emanuele Massetti ◽  
Arjan H. Schakel

Regionalist parties are political actors that emphasize distinct ethno-territorial identities and interests vis-à-vis those of the entire state, advocating some forms of territorially based self-government in a view to protect, give voice to, and enhance those identities and interests. The tense relationships that these political actors often have with the central institutions leads them, in the European Union (EU) context, to identify the EU as a potential ally in their struggle against the state. Indeed, the EU system of multilevel governance, in which regional governments have obtained a considerable role, is also the result of a combined effect of regionalist parties’ pressure on member states from below and the process of European integration creating a favorable political framework from above. This putative alliance was celebrated, during the 1980s and 1990s, with the Maastricht Treaty representing a pivotal moment for the launch of the vision of a “Europe of the Regions.” However, the EU constitutional reforms of the 2000s (from the Treaty of Nice to the Treaty of Lisbon) fell rather short vis-à-vis regionalist claims, revealing the “illusionary character” of the “Europe of the Regions” idea. Since then, attempts to achieve “Independence in Europe” (through “internal enlargement”) have intensified in regions governed by strong and radical regionalist parties, such as in Catalonia and Scotland. These secessionist attempts have added further strain to an already under-stress EU political system. Indeed, far from acting as an ally of regionalist forces, the EU appears to have straddled between the role of a neutral observer and a supporter of member states’ territorial integrity.


2021 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ionuț-Marian ANGHEL

After implementing one of the toughest austerity programs in the European Union during the financial crisis, Romania returned to continuous economic growth for eight years (2012−2019), not before concluding between 2011−2013 two preventive agreements with Troika to reduce its macroeconomic imbalances. This continuous economic growth was also reflected in the achievement of the national targets under the Europe 2020 Strategy. In order to better coordinate economic and budgetary policies, the European Union has launched the European Semester. Although the main objective of the latter was to coordinate Member States' efforts to implement fiscal budgetary policies aimed at preventing macroeconomic imbalances and controlling public finances, after 2015, the European Semester began to incorporate social policy objectives, especially in the area of employment and social inclusion policies. By using the index of commodification/ decommodification of social policies developed by Paul Copeland, I illustrate, by analyzing the National Reform Programs and Country Specific Reports, that half of the policies taken in the two areas were towards partial commodification or commodification, and other significant measures towards commodification and decommodification, e.g. types of policies addressed to vulnerable groups trying to (re)integrate them into the labor market, even if in conditions that do not necessarily lead to social inclusion. Keywords: social policies; European Semester; Europe 2020; de/comodification; neoliberalism.


2014 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 39-55
Author(s):  
Edyta Dworak ◽  
Witold Kasperkiewicz

The purpose of this paper is to explain the essence of the Europe 2020 Strategy, with particular emphasis on development projects in the field of innovation;to assess the level of innovation in the EU economies in comparison to the U.S., Japan and South Korea, and to describe the conditions for the development of the EU economic area in light of the Strategy program objectives. The paper consists of three parts. The first part outlines the essence and objectives of the Europe 2020 Strategy. The second part contains an analysis of the level of innovativeness of the EU economies compared with U.S., Japan and South Korea. The third part focuses on the conditions and prospects for the development of innovative economies in the European Union.


2020 ◽  
Vol 65 (3) ◽  
pp. 77-91
Author(s):  
Cristina Mărășescu

"On 16 April 2020, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) released preliminary figures according to which the collective Official Development Assistance (ODA) from the European Union (EU) and its Member States to developing countries amounted to 75.2 billion in 2019, representing 55.2% of global assistance. The EU and its Member States therefore maintain their position as the largest international aid donor. In spite of the vast amount of resources spent annually by the EU, there is widespread perception that the EU punches below its weight. Notwithstanding the undeniable positive impact that the EU external policies have on the ground, the EU’s role in international development remains mostly invisible. This paper presents the perception of the EU and EU’s policies abroad and makes the case for the necessity of an integrated and fully coordinated EU Public Diplomacy (PD) capable of communicating effectively and strengthening EU’s role as a global actor. It argues that culture has a substantial potential in Europe’s international relations, making the case for the necessity of an integrated and tailor-made EU Cultural Diplomacy. This paper shows that culture is a worthwhile investment in driving economic growth. Failure to capitalise on this would be a huge missed opportunity for Europe. Keywords: European Union, Economic Support to Developing Countries, Economic Growth, Public Diplomacy, Cultural Diplomacy, European External Action Service JEL classification: O10, Z10 "


Author(s):  
Arjan H. Schakel ◽  
Emanuele Massetti

European integration and regionalization have been parallel processes over the past five decades, leading to a multilevel governance system where decision-making powers are allocated across European, national, and regional governments. The upshot of both processes is that regional governments have gained representation within European Union (EU) institutions and they have gained the ability to affect EU policy through domestic institutions. Regional governments are involved in the EU policymaking process at the EU level through two institutions: via their representatives in the Committee of the Regions and via the participation of their ministers in the Council of Ministers. Similarly, regional governments are institutionally involved with EU affairs within the member states through three institutional channels: formulation and implementation of EU Cohesion Policy, intergovernmental meetings between national and regional governments to coordinate EU affairs, and subsidiarity monitoring of EU legislation by regional parliaments. The analysis shows that the EU’s multilevel governance system is highly asymmetric. Regional involvement in EU affairs through EU and domestic institutions is mainly restricted to powerful regions which can be predominantly found in the populous, federal, and regionalized member states from Western Europe. In addition, the analysis reveals that regional impact on EU policy is far more apparent within the member states than at the EU level. Furthermore, regional governments prefer to impact EU affairs through or in collaboration with their member state governments rather than bypassing them.


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