Regional Convergence in the European Union: Results from a Panel Data Model

This paper evaluates the convergence process for different samples of European Union regions during the period 1982-1999 by using fixed effects panel data regressions. This estimation method allows us to control for unobserved time-invariant heterogeneity in cross-sectional models. The results of growth rates are significantly negatively related to income levels and show that the convergence relationship holds. However when regions are bound to very different steady state positions, convergence to a common income level appears to be impossible.

How tight should one's hands be tied? Fear of floating and credibility of exchange rate regimes

This paper analyzes the linkages between the credibility of a target zone regime, the volatility of the exchange rate, and the width of the band where the exchange rate is allowed to fluctuate. These three concepts should be related since the band width induces a trade-off between credibility and volatility. Narrower bands should give less scope for the exchange rate to fluctuate but may make agents perceive a larger probability of realignment which by itself should increase the volatility of the exchange rate. We build a model where this trade-off is made explicit. The model is used to understand the reduction in volatility experienced by most EMS countries after their target zones were widened on August 1993. As a natural extension, the model also rationalizes the existence of non-official, implicit target zones (or fear of floating), suggested by some authors.fear of floating, target zones, exchange rate arrangements, rational expectations, credibility

The Regional Policy of the European Union and the Enlargement Process to Central and Eastern European Countries

The successive enlargement processes of the European Union have implied reforms in Regional Policy. Since the Single European Act (1987), Europe has got a structural policy mainly focused on regions whose development is lagging behind. The accession of CEECs will mean an extraordinary increase in regional development disparities. However, the current EU Regional Policy is addressed to deal with such a kind of development lags. Competition in a large market combined with regional development policy of the EU is a successful policy mix to boost growth of CEECs in the framework of an open market economy. The own success of regional policy in current objective 1 regions will led to an important reduction of assisted population. The financial perspectives approved in the Berlin Summit (March 1999) provides enough financial space to assist 90% of population in CEECs and 75% of current population under objective 1. The main challenge involved in the successful extension of EU Regional Policy to CEECs lies in the field of management capabilities and administration reforms that must be carried out in these countries.Regional Policy, European Union, Central and Eastern European Countries

Formal security analysis of registration protocols for interactive systems: a methodology and a case of study

In this work we present and formally analyze CHAT-SRP (CHAos based Tickets-Secure Registration Protocol), a protocol to provide interactive and collaborative platforms with a cryptographically robust solution to classical security issues. Namely, we focus on the secrecy and authenticity properties while keeping a high usability. In this sense, users are forced to blindly trust the system administrators and developers. Moreover, as far as we know, the use of formal methodologies for the verification of security properties of communication protocols isn't yet a common practice. We propose here a methodology to fill this gap, i.e., to analyse both the security of the proposed protocol and the pertinence of the underlying premises. In this concern, we propose the definition and formal evaluation of a protocol for the distribution of digital identities. Once distributed, these identities can be used to verify integrity and source of information. We base our security analysis on tools for automatic verification of security protocols widely accepted by the scientific community, and on the principles they are based upon. In addition, it is assumed perfect cryptographic primitives in order to focus the analysis on the exchange of protocol messages. The main property of our protocol is the incorporation of tickets, created using digests of chaos based nonces (numbers used only once) and users' personal data. Combined with a multichannel authentication scheme with some previous knowledge, these tickets provide security during the whole protocol by univocally linking each registering user with a single request. [..]Comment: 32 pages, 7 figures, 8 listings, 1 tabl

Regional Policy and Convergence in Europe: The Case of Backward Regions

This paper analyzes the performance of regions whose development is lagging behind since the institutionalization of the EU regional policy, (1989). Results from a panel data model with fixed effects prove that backward regions have been catching up with the EU average income since the launching of the first programming period, the so called Delors'I package, 1989-1993

Integration brings convergence? The role of public and human capital

This work decompose labor-productivity grotwh and convergence in EU into components attributable to technological change (shifts in the European production frontier), technological catch-up (movements toward or away from the frontier) and factor accumulation (movement toward or away from the frontier). This work extends previous researchs considering public capital and human capitas as additional productive inputs and analysing its separate constribution to convergence as components of factor accumulation. In the case of human capital, we also test its rate effect as determinant factor of technical change. With this purpose we applied the Malmquist index of total factor productivity to an European data base to provide evidence for the 15 EU State Members. The results show that growth is primarily driven by factor accumulation which contribution is fundamental for lagging countries. We do not find evidence of any significant convergence over the whole period studied related to integration with factor accumulation and efficiency change as important factors of convergence while technical change (encouraged by greater human capital) has worked against it. Key words: Human Capital, Malmquist Index, Source of Convergence. JEL Classification: O47 H54 D24