Hochschulen im Zentrum der Wachstumspolitik: Von der europäischen zur liechtensteinischen Perspektive

Mitte Juni 2012 hat die Universität Liechtenstein den Leiter der Konjunkturforschungsstelle Liechtenstein (KOFL), Prof. Dr. Carsten-Henning Schlag, beauftragt, einen Bericht zur volkswirtschaftlichen Bedeutung der Hochschulbildung in Liechtenstein zu erstellen. Der Bericht baut auf einer KOFL-Studie aus dem Jahr 2006 auf. Europa leidet unter einer Wachstumsschwäche. In Liechtenstein hat das Potenzialwachstum seit Ende der 1990er Jahre erheblich an Momentum verloren. Die grosse Finanzkrise von 2007/2008 hat strukturelle Schwächen deutlicher zum Vorschein gebracht. Mit der neuen Wachstumsstrategie "Europa 2020" versucht Europa einen Neuanfang. Die europäischen Volkswirtschaften müssen endgültig den Schritt von der Imitations- zur Innovationswirtschaft vollziehen. Im Rahmen der Umsetzung von "Europa 2020" legte die EU-Kommission im September 2011 eine Modernisierungsstrategie für das Europäische Hochschulsystem vor. Tertiäre Bildung wird hier als unverzichtbare Voraussetzung für Forschung, Innovation und wirtschaftliches Wachstum genannt. Den Hochschulen soll eine zentrale Rolle in der Innovationswirtschaft zukommen. Damit die Hochschulen ihr wachstumspolitisches Potenzial entfalten können, ist eine ausreichende finanzielle Ausstattung notwendig. Hochschulpolitik ist Innovationspolitik. Mit seiner Universität leistet das Fürstentum einen solidarischen Beitrag zum Aufbau des europäischen Innovationsraums. Die Universität stärkt das Image Liechtensteins als verantwortungsvoller Partner in Europa. Hochschulpolitik ist aber auch Standortpolitik. Das Fürstentum profitiert im regionalökonomischen Sinne von der Universität Liechtenstein. Der Wissenstransfer aus der Universität erreicht ansässige Unternehmen, öffentliche Verwaltung, Politik und Gesellschaft. Hiervon gehen Wachstums- und Einkommenseffekte in die Region aus. Ein internationales Benchmarking zeigt, dass Liechtenstein im Bereich tertiärer Bildung und Forschung hinter der EU und der OECD zurückbleibt. So können in Liechtenstein aktuell nur ca. 14 % der 25- bis 34-Jährigen einen Hochschulabschluss vorweisen. In der OECD liegt dieser Anteil bei 37 %. "Europa 2020" fordert einen Akademikeranteil von 40 %. Die Ausgaben für tertiäre Bildungseinrichtungen bleiben in Liechtenstein mit approximierten 0,3 % am BIP weit unter dem OECD- und EU-Durchschnitt. Die öffentlichen Gesamtausgaben für den Hochschulbereich liegen in Liechtenstein bei 0,5% am BIP. In der EU sowie der OECD beträgt dieser Anteil jeweils 1,3 %. Die öffentlichen Gesamtausgaben für den Hochschulbereich sind mit 1,6 % am Gesamt-aufwand der Landesrechnung zu veranschlagen. In der EU sowie der OECD erreichen diese Anteile Werte von 2,7 % bzw. 3,0 %. Im Vergleich zu den EU-Staaten sind die privaten Investitionen in FuE in Liechtenstein erheblich höher. In 2003 betrugen sie 7,1 % am BIP. Selbst Finnland und Schweden bleiben weit hinter diesem Wert zurück. Der Staat leistet in Liechtenstein nur knapp 1 % der gesamten FuE-Investitionen, in Luxemburg sind es 11,2 % . Die staatliche FuE-Intensität im EU-Durchschnitt beträgt 34,8

Schoolchildren in the Principality of Liechtenstein are mildly iodine deficient

Abstract Objective To investigate the iodine status of schoolchildren in the Principality of Liechtenstein. Design A representative, cross-sectional principality-wide screening of iodine level in household salt and urinary iodine concentrations (UIC) in primary-school children. Data were compared with the WHO criteria and with 2009 iodine survey data from Switzerland, a neighbouring country that supplies most of the salt used in Liechtenstein. Settings Principality of Liechtenstein. Subjects Schoolchildren (n 228) aged 6-12 years from five different primary schools representing 11·4 % of the children at this age. Results The median UIC was 96 (range: 10-446) μg/l; 11 %, 56 % and 1 % of children had a UIC 300 μg/l, respectively. In all, 79 % of households were using adequately iodised salt (≥15 ppm). The median UIC was 20 % lower than that in children at comparable age in Switzerland (120 μg/l; P < 0·05). Conclusions According to the WHO criteria, schoolchildren in Liechtenstein are mildly iodine deficient and household iodised salt coverage is inadequate. Public health measures to increase iodine intakes in the Principality should be considere

Why They Say No (Casi— No ): Countries that Reject Legalized Casino Gambling

Most world venues have legalized casino gambling. Indeed, the numbers of venues has been growing rapidly. In 1986, seventy-seven nations permitted legal casino gambling; in 1996, 109; while recent reports indicate 132 countries have casinos. Nonetheless, there are several cases of jurisdictions rejecting the legalization of casinos. This article seeks to find common reasons for the rejections, and examines the following ten venues: Bhutan, Brazil, Japan, Liechtenstein, Iceland, India, Ireland, Israel, Mexico, and Norway. The study utilizes a framework from the book The Last Resort: Success and Failure in Campaigns for Casinos, by John Dombrink and William N. Thompson. The authors developed a “Veto Model” for explaining why American states rejected casinos in the decades before 1990. Major veto factors influencing casino campaign outcomes included: (1) the economic conditions and state experiences with gambling, (2) the position of political and business elites, and other gaming interests; (3) campaign sponsorship; and (4) whether the dominant issue in a campaign was economics or crime and social problems. For successful campaigns (e.g. Atlantic City, 1976), all factors had to be supportive of casinos

The European venture capital and private equity country attractiveness index(es)

We calculate composite indexes to compare the attractiveness of 25 European countries for institutional investments into the Venture Capital and Private Equity asset class. To achieve this we use 42 different criteria and propose an aggregation structure that allows for benchmarking on more granular levels. The United Kingdom leads our ranking, followed by Ireland, Denmark, Sweden and Norway. While Germany is slightly above the average European attractiveness level, the scores for France, Italy, Spain, and Greece are rather disappointing. Our analyses reveal that while the United Kingdom is similar to the other European countries with respect to many criteria, there are two major differences which ultimately affect its attractiveness: its investor protection and corporate governance rules; and the size and liquidity of its capital market. The state of the capital market is likewise a proxy for the professionalism of the financial community, deal flow and exit opportunities. We determine a reasonable correlation between our attractiveness index scores and actual Venture Capital and Private Equity fundraising activities and prove the robustness of our calculations. Our findings across all the European countries suggest that while investor protection and capital markets are in fact very important determinants of attractiveness, there are numerous other criteria to consider.Venture Capital; Private Equity; Alternative Asset; International Asset Allocation;

Limited partners' perceptions of the Central Eastern European venture capital and private equity market

Growth expectations and institutional settings in Central Eastern Europe are assumed to be favorable for the establishment of a vibrant Venture Capital and Private Equity market. Despite this, there is a lack of risk capital. We examine the obstacles to institutional investments in the region through a questionnaire addressed to (potential) Limited Partners world-wide. The respondents provide information about their perceptions of the region. The protection of property rights is the dominant concern, followed by social criteria, such as the belief in the management quality of local people, and the lacking size and liquidity of the Central Eastern European capital markets. However, Limited Partners regard the growth expectations as attractive, and those with exposure in Central Eastern Europe are satisfied with the historical risk and return ratio, they have a good knowledge of the region, are attracted by other emerging regions, and they appreciate the region's entrepreneurial opportunities and the local General Partners. Overall, the region is ranked very favorable compared to other emerging regions, and especially with respect to its economic and entrepreneurial activity.Venture Capital; Private Equity; International Asset Allocation; Institutional Investors;

Obtaining correct orbital ground states in ff electron systems using a nonspherical self-interaction corrected LDA+UU method

The electronic structure of lanthanide and actinide compounds is often characterized by orbital ordering of localized $f$-electrons. Density-functional theory (DFT) studies of such systems using the currently available LDA+$U$ method are plagued by significant orbital-dependent self-interaction, leading to erroneous orbital ground states. An alternative scheme that modifies the exchange, not Hartree, energy is proposed as a remedy. We show that our LDA+$U$ approach reproduces the expected degeneracy of $f^1$ and $f^2$ states in free ions and the correct ground states in solid PrO$_2$. We expect our method to be useful in studying compounds of $f$- and heavy-$d$ elements.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figure