Structural and productivity changes of Central and Eastern Europe

Svrha ovog rada je analizirati strukturalne i produktivne promjene zemalja srednje i istočne Europe (CEE). Razdoblje istraživanja obuhvaća godine nakon pristupanja Europskoj uniji, od 2004. do 2018. godine. Ova studija želi odgovoriti na sljedeće pitanje: Koji su učinci rezultat integracije s Europskom unijom u području produktivnosti? Analiza pokriva dvije glavne kategorije rasta produktivnosti rada: čisti rast produktivnosti rada i strukturalni rast produktivnosti rada. Nadalje, ispituju se čimbenici koji mogu utjecati na čiste i strukturne promjene produktivnosti. Glavne metode istraživanja primijenjene u ovom radu su analiza pomaka udjela i metode panel podataka. Analiza pokazuje da su se u promatranom razdoblju sve zemlje središnje i istočne Europe poboljšale i u smislu čiste i strukturalne produktivnosti. Međutim, utjecaj čiste produktivnosti rada bio je znatno manji od utjecaja strukturalne produktivnosti rada; to znači da se glavna promjena na razini produktivnosti više može pripisati promjenama u zapošljavanju između sektora, nego li modernizaciji tehnoloških procesa. Produktivnost se povećala u svim sektorima, ali najznačajniji rast dogodio se u uslužnim sektorima, posebno u financijskim i osiguravajućim djelatnostima i nekretninama. Istodobno, smanjila se zaposlenost u manje produktivnim sektorima, poput poljoprivrede, šumarstva i ribarstva. Nadalje, rezultati analize panel podataka potvrđuju značajan utjecaj procijenjenih faktora na čisti i strukturalni rast produktivnosti. Stoga, ukupna promjena produktivnosti na području Srednje i Istočne Europe može imati pozitivan utjecaj na oba oblika rasta produktivnosti. I strukturalni i čisti rast produktivnosti potiču ulaganje u istraživanje i razvoj, uvoz roba informacijske i komunikacijske tehnologije (IKT) i otvorenost trgovine. Nadalje, ovo istraživanje potvrđuje pozitivan utjecaj koje ima povećanje ulaganja u istraživanje i razvoj poslovnih poduzeća i porast broja istraživača na omjer radne snage na produktivnost sektora, iako postoje bitne razlike između sektora. Ovo istraživanje mogu koristiti vladine agencije u izradi politika industrijskog razvoja.The purpose of this paper is to analyse the structural and productivity changes of Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries. The research period covers the years following accession into the European Union, from 2004 until 2018. This study aims to answer the following question: What effects have resulted from the integration with the European Union in terms of the sphere of productivity? The analysis covers two main categories of labour productivity growth: pure labour productivity growth and structural labour productivity growth. Moreover, factors that may affect both pure and structural productivity changes are examined. The main research techniques are shift-share analysis and panel data methods. The analysis shows that all the CEE countries in the studied period improved in terms of both pure and structural productivity. The impact of pure labour productivity, however, was much smaller than that of structural labour productivity; this means that the main change in productivity level was more attributable to changes in employment between sectors than to the modernisation of technological processes. Productivity increased in all sectors, but the most significant growth occurred in service sectors, specifically in financial and insurance activities and real estate activities. Simultaneously, employment decreased in less productive sectors, such as agriculture, forestry, and fishing. Furthermore, the results of the panel data analysis confirm a significant impact of the evaluated factors on pure and structural productivity growth. Thus, aggregate productivity change in the CEE area can have a positive impact on both forms of productivity growth. Both structural and pure productivity growth are stimulated by research and development expenditures, information and communication technology (ICT) goods imports, and trade openness. Moreover, this research confirms the positive impacts of business enterprise research and development expenditure growth and an increase in the number of researchers to the workforce ratio on sector productivity, although there are substantial differences between sectors. This research can be used by government agencies in establishing industrial development policies

Structural and productivity changes in the European countries during COVID-19 pandemic

PURPOSE: This article aims to analyze structural and productivity changes for EU-27 in the period 2018-2020, just before and at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic.DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: The study is based on Eurostat data for EU-27 countries from 2018-2020, containing total employment and gross value added by sectors. The primary method used is Shift-Share analysis.FINDINGS: Results of the analysis confirm that two-fold changes in productivity were noted in both within and structural components. Only a few countries obtained a 2020 increase in overall productivity. The highest percentage decrease in productivity was noted by sector Arts, entertainment, and recreation, other service activities, household activities and extraterritorial organizations and bodies, wholesale and retail trade, transport, accommodation, and food service activities. In terms of employment changes, the highest decrease was noted in wholesale and retail business, transportation, housing, and food service activities and the highest increase in public administration, defense, education, human health, and social work activities, which was strictly related to anti-Covid actions introduced by governments.PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: The article provides information about productivity and employment changes during a difficult period of economic performance caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, which is crucial for policymakers responsible for establishing assistance and support programs for the most disadvantaged sectors.ORIGINALITY/VALUE: Analysis concerning the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic is relatively new, and the presented paper will provide new empirical findings, which will contribute to existing knowledge.The project is financed by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education in Poland under the programme “Regional Initiative of Excellence” 2019–2022 project number 015/RID/2018/19 total funding amount 10 721 040,00 PLN.peer-reviewe

Efficiency of Environmental Protection Expenditures in EU Countries

Environmental protection policy is a widely discussed issue in scientific works. However, special attention should be also paid to the effectiveness of expenditures on environmental protection, and this is the main goal of this paper. The countries of the European Union were selected for this analysis due to the fact that, in recent years, this region has become an informal world leader with respect to the implementation of policy measures in the field of environmental protection. For that reason, the data envelopment analysis methodology was used, which allows the calculation of input-output efficiency for the years 2005–2015. The analysis shows that, among the 30 analyzed countries, the most effective in environmental protection actions is Finland. The hypothesis that higher environmental protection expenditures does not result in better environmental results has been confirmed. Our analysis confirmed the problem of the deteriorating efficiency of environmental expenditures across the selected European Union Member States, caused by increases in spending. This research may contribute to the discussion on environmental protection policy design and its assessment, as well as environmental policy results measurement.</jats:p

Efikasnost ulaganja u investicije u zemljama Srednje i Istočne Europe

The purpose of this study is to verify whether the money spend on R&D are used efficiently in CEE countries. Nowadays, innovativeness is one of the most crucial factors accelerating economic growth. Increasing innovativeness is particularly important for developing countries, where policymakers are implementing various innovation strategies. The Europe 2020 strategy sets the target of 3% GDP for R&D spending. Many studies emphasize a significant effect of increasing expenditures on R&D on economic growth, but an efficiency aspect has not been covered in the literature. The article is based on critical review of the main literature of the subject and own empirical studies. The statistical data is sourced from the main international statistics. Calculations were performed using DEA methodology. DEA methodology allows assessing input-output efficiency. Inputs indicator is the annual public and private spending on R&D (as % GDP). There are nine output indicators, which represent available innovative statistics about number of patents, high-tech production etc. Number of variables was reduced for each period using correlation coefficient analysis, which allowed identifying the significant variables with least loss of information. The efficiency is calculated as the ratio of the weighted sum of the outputs by the weighted sum of inputs. The calculations are carried out based on the Excel spreadsheet and DEAFrontier. The paper gives a general review of the innovation level in CEE countries compared to other EU members which are spending less than 2% of GDP on R&D. The analysis shows that among CEE countries, the closest to efficiency frontier are Romania and Slovakia. Hypothesis that increasing spending on innovations is not causing proportional effects has been confirmed for CEE region, but not for western economies, which are spending on R&D more effectively. Main conclusion of the research is that innovation spending should be increased gradually in aim to achieve optimal results. This research may contribute to discussion on innovation policy design, and can be used by policy makers to develop national innovation strategies.Svrha ove studije je provjeriti koristi li se novac na istraživanje i razvoj efikasnosti u zemljama srednje i istočne Europe. Danas je inovativnost jedan od najvažnijih čimbenika ubrzanja gospodarskog rasta. Povećanje inovativnosti osobito je važno za zemlje u razvoju, gdje kreatori politike provode različite inovacijske strategije. Strategija Europa 2020 postavila je cilj 3% BDP-a za izdatke za istraživanje i razvoj. Mnoge studije naglašavaju značajan učinak povećanja ulaganja u istraživanje i razvoj na gospodarski rast, ali aspekt efikasnosti nije obuhvaćen u literaturi. Ovaj rad temelji se na kritičkom pregledu relevantne literature o ovom predmetu i vlastitim empirijskim istraživanjima. Izvor statističkih podataka korištenih u ovoj studiji je relevantna međunarodna statistika. Izračuni su izvedeni korištenjem DEA metodologije. DEA metodologija omogućuje procjenu efikasnosti input-outputa. Pokazatelj inputa je godišnja javna i privatna potrošnja na istraživanje i razvoj (kao% BDP-a). Postoji devet pokazatelja outputa/rezultata koji predstavljaju dostupne inovativne statistike o broju patenata, visokotehnološkoj proizvodnji itd. Broj varijabli se smanjuje za svako razdoblje korištenjem analize korelacijskog koeficijenta, što je omogućilo identificiranje značajnih varijabli s najmanjim gubitkom podataka. Efikasnost se izračunava kao omjer ponderiranog zbroja outputa prema ponderiranom zbroju inputa odnosno ulaznih vrijednosti. Izračun je rađen korištenjem Excel proračunske tablice i DEAFrontier-a. U radu se daje opći pregled razine inovacija u zemljama srednje i istočne Europe u usporedbi s ostalim članicama EU-a, koji troše manje od 2% BDP-a na istraživanje i razvoj. Analiza pokazuje da među zemljama srednje i istočne Europe najbliže granici efikasnosti su Rumunjska i Slovačka. Hipoteza da povećanje potrošnje na inovacije ne uzrokuje proporcionalne učinke potvrđena je za regiju Srednje i Istočne Europe, ali ne i za zapadne ekonomije koje troše na istraživanje i razvoj efikasnije. Glavni zaključak istraživanja je da se potrošnja na inovacije treba postupno povećavati u cilju postizanja optimalnih rezultata. Ovo istraživanje može doprinijeti raspravi o kreiranju politike inovacija koju kreatori politike mogu koristiti za razvoj nacionalnih strategija inovacija

Maria Szymanowska (1789--1831): Pianist and composer

The dissertation is the first biography of Maria Szymanowska available in English language; it provides analysis of her major piano compositions; a separate section of the dissertation is devoted to the influence of Szymanowska\u27s music on that of Frederic Chopin. ^ Maria Szymanowska was one of the first professional virtuoso pianists of the nineteenth century. As a performing artist, she toured Russia, Germany, Austria, France, Italy, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and England. She developed close personal bonds with leading artistic and intellectual figures of the time, such as Goethe, Mickiewicz, Field, Hummel, and others. During her final years, spent in St. Petersburg, she created at her house one of the most active artistic and intellectual salons of the city. ^ Stylistically, Szymanowska\u27s music belongs to the pre-romantic stile brillant and to Polish Sentimentalism. Her Etudes and Preludes show innovative keyboard writing; the Nocturne in B flat is her most mature piano composition; Szymanowska\u27s Mazurkas represent one of the first attempts at stylization of the dance; Fantasy and Caprice contain an impressive vocabulary of pianistic technique; her polonaises follow the tradition of polonaise-writing created by Michal Kleofas Ogi&nacute;ski. ^ Szymanowska\u27s musical style is parallel to the compositional starting point of Frederic Chopin; many of her compositions had an obvious impact on Chopin\u27s mature musical language. ^ The appendix provides a list of musical materials included in Szymanowska\u27s collection of autographs, dedications, poems, and musical compositions, known as the Sztambuch.

Automatic Correction of an Automated Guided Vehicle’s Course Using Measurements from a Laser Rangefinder

In order for AGVs to be able to effectively carry out the tasks assigned to them, it is important to accurately determine their position and orientation in the working space. Having data on the location of an AGV is crucial for the navigation process, and the most commonly used odometry method is unreliable due to errors. To correct these errors, additional measuring systems are used. These systems use a variety of sensors. Some of the most widely used types are laser rangefinders. These sensors are also used in the automatic course correction methodology that is developed and presented in this article. The measurements from laser rangefinders are used to determine the shift of the actual trajectory from the set one, and then to guide the AGV to the previously set course. The developed methodology is experimentally verified on the basis of several dozen test drives. The conducted experimental studies prove the correctness of the developed methodology. The proposed course correction algorithm can be implemented in most working conditions, and guarantees correct passage over the given route

Automatic Correction of an Automated Guided Vehicle&rsquo;s Course Using Measurements from a Laser Rangefinder

In order for AGVs to be able to effectively carry out the tasks assigned to them, it is important to accurately determine their position and orientation in the working space. Having data on the location of an AGV is crucial for the navigation process, and the most commonly used odometry method is unreliable due to errors. To correct these errors, additional measuring systems are used. These systems use a variety of sensors. Some of the most widely used types are laser rangefinders. These sensors are also used in the automatic course correction methodology that is developed and presented in this article. The measurements from laser rangefinders are used to determine the shift of the actual trajectory from the set one, and then to guide the AGV to the previously set course. The developed methodology is experimentally verified on the basis of several dozen test drives. The conducted experimental studies prove the correctness of the developed methodology. The proposed course correction algorithm can be implemented in most working conditions, and guarantees correct passage over the given route

Rzeszow as a City Taking Steps Towards Developing Sustainable Public Transport

The paper discusses problems related to the functioning of passenger transport in Rzeszow. The dynamic development of the city and the increase in the income of its inhabitants have led to significantly increased traffic within the city, which is detrimental both to the environment and the city&rsquo;s inhabitants. It limits the quality of life in the city and in the end generates additional costs for businesses and people in urban areas due to the congestion. In compliance with the policies of the European Union, this harmful tendency needs to be limited. Developing sustainable transportation should largely contribute to this objective. With the city of Rzeszow as example, this article discusses selected actions and measures taken as part of the development of sustainable transportation and demonstrates changes in the functioning of public transport based on the author&rsquo;s own research as well as data provided by the city&rsquo;s authorities. The analyses show that the actions taken so far have had a positive impact

The Impact of the Pandemic on Vehicle Traffic and Roadside Environmental Pollution: Rzeszow City as a Case Study

The development of the COVID-19 pandemic and the related lockdown had a major impact on vehicle traffic in cities. Based on available data from the selected city of Rzeszow, Poland, it was decided to assess changes in vehicle traffic and the impact of these changes on roadside environmental pollution. As part of the research, data from the first half of 2020 regarding vehicle traffic on selected streets of the city and on the city’s inlet routes were analyzed. For the selected road sections, changes in hourly traffic volume in 2020, compared with 2019, were also determined. With data on traffic volume, an attempt was made to estimate the impact of changes in traffic volume on air pollution in the city. Research on air pollution from motor vehicles was focused on a selected section of a city road that was equipped with an automatic air pollution measurement station located very close to the road. Additionally, at the road intersection and in the vicinity of the measuring station, a sensor was installed in the roadway to count passing vehicles. A preliminary analysis of air pollution data revealed that factors such as wind speed and direction and outside temperature had a large impact on measurement results. To eliminate the influence of these factors and to obtain data concerning only contamination originating from motor vehicles traveling along the road, an appropriate mathematical model of the traffic flow–roadside environment system was built. This model was designed to determine the air pollution in the vicinity of the road generated by traffic flow. The constructed model was verified, and the conditions for its use were determined in order to study the impact of traffic and roadside environment on the level of air pollution from harmful exhaust substances. It was shown that at certain times of the day, especially at low temperatures, other sources of harmful emissions related to home heating play a major role in air pollution in the city