CEE telecommunications investment and economic growth

Abstract

The antiquated state of the telecommunications network in the transitional economies of Central and Eastern Europe has been identified by the OECD (1993) and the ITU (1994) as a significant impediment to regional productivity, international competitiveness and trade performance. This situation suggests that the upgrading and extension of the telecommunications network should be a priority objective for policy-makers in order to facilitate growth. This paper empirically examines the relationship between gross fixed investment, telecommunications infrastructure investment and economic growth for a sample of transitional economies in Central and Eastern Europe. In particular, the paper focuses on empirically determining the direction of influence, and timing, between investment and growth.Economies in transition; Investment and growth; Telecommunications infrastructure