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HOW TO CREATE A COUNTRY ? Experience of Slovenia. International conference “Building a New State” Barcelona, October 5, 2012 Jože Mencinger UL PF and EIPF, Ljubljana, Slovenia. CONTENT.
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HOW TO CREATE A COUNTRY ?ExperienceofSlovenia International conference “Building a New State” Barcelona, October 5, 2012 Jože Mencinger UL PF and EIPF, Ljubljana, Slovenia
CONTENT PROCLAMATION OF INDEPENDENCE:political change in April 1990, referendum in December 1990, proclamationofindependence:June 26, 1991, short war between Yugoslav army and Slovenian territorial defense forces and police, Brioni ceasefire of 3 months, October 8, 1991:full independence THE FAILURE OF REFORM ATTEMPTS IN YUGOSLAVIA; Yugoslav economic systems and stagnation in 1980-1989, transition; ECONOMIC BREAKDOWN IN 1990 AND CAUTIOUS POLICY RESPONSES – EMERGENCY EXIT APPROACH: technical preparations, reactions to economic and political development TRANSITIONAL CONTRAVERSIES; TRANSITION AND DEVELOPMENT: four distinctive periods, the end of the “success story”, crisis YUGOSLAVIA AND EU: similarities and differences, brotherhood and unity, Euro, Yugoslav syndrom
SLOVENIA IN 2012 Surface: 20.273 sqkm, 66% forests, Population: 2,02 millions, Language: Slovenian; (Italian, Hungarian minorities) Political Arrangement: parliamentary democracy, coalition governments; “left” or “right” History: since 1389 a part of Habsburg dynasty empire; until 1918 part of Austro-Hungarian empire; 1919-1941 part of Kingdom of Yugoslavia; 1941-1945 occupied by Germany, Italy and Hungary; 1945-1991 Yugoslav republic; 1990 - political transition: 1991 independence,May 2004: EU member state, January 1, 2007 EMU member; Economy: GDP 34 billions €, GDP/capita 17.000 €, 88% of EU27 average, - GDP growth: 4%(2008)-7.6%(2009),1.5%(2011), -2% (2012); -unemployment rate: 4.4%, 60000 (2008),6.9% ,105000 8.3% (June 2012); - inflation: 5.7 %(2008)1%(2009),2.3%(June 2012); - public balance/GDP: 0.4% (2008),-5,5%(2011) -CA/GDP: -4.5%(2008),-0.6%(2011), 0.2% (June 2012)
THE YUGOSLAV ECONOMIC SYSTEM AND ITS BREAKDOWN SYSTEMIC DEVELOPMENT: 1946-1952: administrative socialism, centralised answer to all four (WHAT, HOW, TO WHOM, WHEN) questions, planning, 1953-1962: administrative market, WHAT and HOW- decentralized, TO WHOM and WHEN - centralized, investment funds, dualism of prices 1963-1973: market socialism, decentralised answers to all four questions, reforms 1961, 1965 1974-1988: contractual socialism, Law of Associated Labor 1976. 1988: collapse of the system and of the country. STAGNATION 1980-1990 POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT 1989-1990 ECONOMIC COLLAPSE OF THE COUNTRY IN 1990 collapse of the fiscal system; June 1990, October 1990; collapse of the monetary sytem, December 1990; customs within the country, July 1990; appearance of different economic systems.
ECONOMIC POLICY OF “EMERGENCY EXIT” • REACTIONS TO UNCERTAINTY : uncertain political decisions - confederation and asymetric federation; • RELATIONS WITH THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OF MR. MARKOVIĆ: support for his reform, disputes over fixed exchange rate, letters and negotiations, end of black market for foreign exchange, “SISEOTšticunge”, use of Ljubljana stock exchange; • TECHNICAL PREPARATIONS FOR INDEPENDENCE: costs and benefits calculations; • PROVISIONAL NAMELESS NOTES:printed by CETIS, meeting with de la Rue company in London, • OCTOBER DISPUTE BETWEEN JNA AND TERRITORIAL DEFENCE: reactions of depositors, failed attempts to create foreign exchange reserves abroad, from fixed to floating exchange rate; • REFERENDUM ON INDEPENDENCE: December 23, 1990; • THE BREAK INTO THE MONETARY SYSTEM BY SERBIA: at the New Year 1991, speeding up of preparations for independence; • THE LAST ATTEMPT OF FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IN JANUARY 1991; response of Slovenian government on assets and liabilities; • PROCLAMATION OF INDEPENDENCE: June 26, war and ceasefire; • OCTOBER 8, 1991: independence and currency:Tolar, smooth conversion;
BASIC FEATURES OF SLOVENIAN TRANSITION MODEL PRIVATISATION:specific model of decentralized, distributional and gradual transformation of social property; MACROECONOMIC STABILIZATION: gradualism versus shock therapy, floating exchange rate; MICROECONOMIC RESTRUCTURING: slow decentralized firing and retiring, cautious approach to FDI; CREATION OF A NEW ECONOMIC SYSTEM: EU directives; THE KEY ELEMENTS: STARTING POSITION: the level of development, historical inheritance, from Maria Theresia to EdvardKardelj; POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT: softness of political and social changes. creation of a new elite or changes in the ideology of old elite, people without ideology; THE BENEFITS OF IGNORING IMF AND INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS: benefits of ignoring Washington consensus, RESPONSIBLE FISCAL AND MONETARY POLICIES
THE END OF THE SLOVENIAN “SUCCESS STORY” AND THE ENTRY INTO THE CRISIS DEPENDENCE OF THE COUNTRY ON EU institutional (economic system – EU directives, monetary and fiscal policy, controls of flows) Economic - exports and imports, euro CREATION OF SLOVENIAN CASINO CAPITALISM (2005-2008) the roots in vaucher privatization, creation of owners of assets instead of owners of companies; creation of investment funds; globalization of product market leading to indirect globalization of labor market and replacement of workers with flexible “labor force”; gradual turning of savings to speculations, creation of virtual financial wealth; gradual disappearance of social cohesion;
MAJOR CURRENT ECONOMIC PROBLEMS FACING THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE “GAMBLING” PERIOD (2005-2008): - Overheating of the economy by construction and financial sector enhanced by investments in infrastructure; - Fiscal “gifts” in 2008 which enhanced budget deficit by 700 millions € - Creation of virtual wealth by investments in financial products (net foreign debt from 0 to10 billions €) • Wage reform in the public sector which created permanent instability of the system; MAJOR CURRENT ECONOMIC PROBLEMS: • credit addiction and mutual indebtedness of non financial corporations; - foreign indebtedness of the banking sector; - forced premature fiscal consolidation based on cuts of expenditures; • inability of the government to pass reforms (pension, labor market).
A SHORT LIFE OF A NEW BORN COUNTRY? FROM A COUNTRY TO AN EU REGION • Economic attributes of a country: money, taxes, rules of the game, and borders • From “success story” to “bankruptcy” YUGOSLAVIA AND EU • similarities and difference: heterogeneity, • democracy “one man one vote” or “one state, one vote”, • irreversibility and provisions for exit; • crisis and Yugoslav sindrom of exploitation PILLARS OF EU STABILITY • Inertia • Disregarding rules • Democratic deficit • Creation of institutions and empty talks