The Central & Eastern Europe handbook

Book abstract:

Another volume in the series Regional Handbooks of Economic Development: prospects onto the 21st century, it covers the Central and Eastern European Countries, a grouping of fifteen countries separate both from the EU and from the former Soviet republics of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). These countries can all be said to have opportunities to develop as independent states and the political and economic development of almost all of the countries included is generally strikingly advanced in comparison to that of Russia and other countries in the CIS.

The first section, Context and Prospects, situates each region's economic conditions and initiatives within an historical and political context. Chapters in this section are dedicated to Poland; Hungary; the Baltic States; The Czech Republic and Slovakia; Bulgaria; Romania; Communism in Yugoslavia and Albania; Serbia and Montenegro; Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Macedonia; and Albania. These chapters covers topics such as the history of the region, government reforms, the economy, privatization, citizenship, populations, borders, political developments and all end with conclusions and further reading.

The second section, Economic and Social Issues, contains essays on: sources and uses of energy, agriculture, the transformation of manufacturing, banking and other financial services, economic relations with Russia, regional development and minorities, states and conflict.

The third and final section, International Relations, has a chapter on relations with the wider Europe.

The volume closes with a series of appendices which include a detailed chronology of events in the region, a glossary of terms, biographical entries on key personalities, a listing of ethnic groups within the regions, an annotated bibliography of further reading and an index.

The book is designed to help the general reader understand a variety of social, political and economic factors that will bear on a region's economic growth.