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The Post Accession Agenda of CEE New Member States. What is the “Unfinished Business” ?. Context. 20 years after the start of the transition 10 years after the beginning of the EU accession negotiations Five years (two and a half for Bulgaria and Romania) since EU accession
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The Post Accession Agenda of CEE New Member States What is the “Unfinished Business” ?
Context • 20 years after the start of the transition • 10 years after the beginning of the EU accession negotiations • Five years (two and a half for Bulgaria and Romania) since EU accession • World financial and economic crisis
The “Unfinished Business” of the Transition Agenda • Uncompleted structural reforms in • the policy fields of national competence • in all CEE NMS: • Education • Health system • Social protection systems and social inclusion, pensions.
Reasons • Lack ofacquis communitaire in those policy areas • Depend on the capacity and political will of national governments • Party systems’ fragmentation and fragile coalition governments some of which in minority position with a short political lifetime • Temptation to employ populism and nationalism
Impact • Deepen the marginalization of certain groups of society and increase the already huge regional development discrepancies • Diminish the already low citizens’ trust in the political establishments and the institutions of representative democracy. • Cause already fragile political systems to become increasingly vulnerable.
Economic and Financial Crisis Challenges • Risk the catching-up tendency to be reversed in most of the countries; • vulnerability of the public finances; • challenged sustainability of the economic development.
The “Unfinished Business” of the Accession Agenda • Unclear prospects for the Euro adoption in eight of the NMS of CEE • Accession to the Schengen area – Bulgaria and Romania (2011) • JHA Reform, Curbing Corruption – Bulgaria and Romania • Fighting Organized Crime and EU Funds Absorption - Bulgaria • Capacity for constructive co-authorship of common European policies
EU Membership Leverage • Very limited regarding its impact on • the “unfinished business” in the • post accession period • EU safeguards against extremism in politics through exercising peer pressure and implementing European policies. • Insignificant and ineffective in impact on the uncompleted spheres of reform (e.g. health, education, social protection and pensions).
EU Membership Leverage • Cooperation and verification mechanism (CVM) in reforming the judiciary, fighting organized crime and corruption – Bulgaria, Romania • Schengen Area accession requirement – Bulgaria, Romania • Euro area accession is the only potentially effective leverage – the requirement provide for prudent macro economic policies, contributing to the sustainability of public finances.
The Post Accession Agenda • Ensuring stable political systems with mature political parties. • Accomplishing long-term structural reforms in the policy spheres of citizens’ concern. • Assuring functioning institutions of representative democracy, trusted by the citizens. • Creating sustainable long-term economic development and safeguarding public finances.
The Post Accession Agenda • Euro area accession for eight of the CEE NMS • Accomplish the transition from a EU membership of full rights to a membership of full value: • effective civic participation in the European policies formulation and implementation; • effective programming of the financial period 2013-2020. • Schengen area accession, JHA reform, fight against corruption and organized crime - Bulgaria and Romania.
“The Unfinished Business of the Fifth Enlargement Countries” www.eupi.eu Assya Kavrakova Program Director European Policies and Civic Participation ProgramOpen Society Institute - Sofia E-mail: akavrakova@osi.bg Web site: www.osi.bg