Innovative finance for development - instruments of social integration and responsibility in lower-middle-income countries

Existing proposals for transforming the system of de velopment assistance and especially in relation to middle income countries are manifold. The idea of cutting assistance to middle income countries gained ground parallel with the ques tioning of the rationale to use only per capita income as an eligibility criterion for assis tance. LMICs 3 have much in common with LDCs but the operation and structure of their domestic ec onomy and politics may be significantly different. My proposal is not to disregard middle income countries as potential targets of development assistance as a whole; rather my study ar gues that focus should be placed on lower-middle-income economies. The LMIC strategy woul d be different from the one that targets the least developed countries. I tend to coi n this policy with the term of “convergence assistance” – an innovative allocation and spending m echanism. Convergence means the reduction of internal disparities and the elimination of the dual structure of these economies. Against this backdrop successful adaptation of develop ment banking models of developing and advanced economies can support the establishment of a n economic incentive system based on efficiency requirements coupled with concentration, expertise, the knowledge of the local market and people. By incorporating the best practic es of microfinance institutions from the developing world and those of the institutions with th e objective of economic inclusion in advanced countries, a development bank may be a good ch oice in LMICs. This institution ideally may function as a window for all development or conve rgence financing independently from their origin and nature. The proposal is not meant t o prefer LMICs to LDCs but a pilot project is more likely to be feasible in their case

Az Európai Unió és közvetlen környezete a kibővítésen túl = The European Union and its direct neighbourhood beyond enlargement

A kutatás során azt vizsgáltuk meg, hogyan alakultak az Európai Unió (EU) és közvetlen szomszédságának kapcsolatai az elmúlt (2002-2006) időszakban. Kiemelten foglalkoztunk az EU és Közép- és Kelet-Európa kapcsolataival, mivel ez utóbbi térség országai a vizsgált időszakban a korábbinál jóval közelebb kerültek az integrációhoz (taggá váltak, csatlakozási tárgyalásokat kezdtek, tagjelöltté váltak, társulási egyezményeket kötöttek, illetve ezek tárgyalásába kezdtek). Emellett külön figyelmet fordítottunk a mediterrán térség országai közül Törökország EU-perspektívájának alakulására. Tapasztalataink alapján megállapítható, hogy miközben az EU jelentős előrehaladást könyvelhet el számos, a szomszédságához tartozó országgal fenntartott kapcsolatában, jelenlegi állapotában a szomszédságpolitika megújítása ellenére sem képes minden felmerülő kérdés megnyugtató megválaszolására. Ez különösen Törökország EU-perspektívája szempontjából lehet hosszú távon is releváns kérdés, de az EU-n belüli konszenzus hiánya a szükséges változtatásokkal kapcsolatban már a balkáni országok integrációja kapcsán is komoly akadályt jelenthet. A kutatásunkat lezáró kötet országtanulmányaiban többek mellett ezen veszélyre is felhívtuk a figyelmet. | During the research we examined the relations of the European Union (EU) with its direct neighbours in the period of the research (2002-2006). We have paid special attention to the relations of the EU with Central and Eastern Europe, because the countries of this latter region have become much closer to the integration in the period observed (some of them became members, began accession talks, became candidates for membership, concluded association agreements or began the negotiations on such agreements). Beyond this, we also have paid special attention to the European integration prospects of Turkey. According to our results we can say that while the EU can see a considerable development in its relations with many of the countries belonging to its membership, it is not able in its present state (despite the reform of the neighbourhood policy) to give answers to all the questions arising in this respect. The question is especially relevant in the case of the EU prospects of Turkey, but the lack of consensus within the EU (concerning the necessary changes) can constitute a serious barrier already for the integration of the Balkan countries. Among others, we have drawn the attention to this danger in the country studies of the volume concluding our research project