The World Bank announces the official launch of the report “Unleashing Prosperity: Productivity Growth in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union” by the World Bank authors Asad Alam and Paloma Anos Casero.  The event will be hosted by the World Bank Office in Bucharest, on Thursday, May 22, 2008,  10:00 am - 12:00pm, at its premises, 2-4, Armand Călinescu Str, Millennium Building, 8th floor, Conference Room. The first part of the event will be organized as a round table discussion in which the presentation of the report by the authors will be followed by short interventions by special guests and World Bank experts. The round table will be attended by representatives of Government, academia, leading economists and representatives of the non-governmental sector.

This event will be followed by a press conference, open to all interested journalists, starting at 12:30, in the same location.

The report was officially launched in Brussels on May 14, 2008. Similar events are organized in Paris, London, Moscow and Geneva.

Unleashing Prosperity: Productivity Growth in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union examines the micro foundations of the recent growth in the region and shows why microeconomic reforms deserve more attention.  The report shows that countries in the region have enjoyed substantial productivity gains from the reallocation of labor and capital to more productive sectors, from the entry of new firms and the exit of obsolete firms, and from the more efficient use of resources.  The report also illustrates that policy reforms that promote governance and macroeconomic stability, market competition, infrastructure quality, financial deepening, labor market flexibility, and skill upgrading are important in achieving higher productivity growth.  But significant challenges remain in sustaining this productivity growth.  For the early reformers, policy reforms aimed at improving the ability of firms to innovate and complete in global markets are a main concern.  By contrast, for the later reformers, policy reforms addressed at the legacy of transition continue to be a leading priority. 

For more information about the World Bank's work in Romania, visit
http://www.worldbank.org.ro