Ten years after: What is special about transition countries?

Most countries commonly classified as „in transition“ are still recognisably different from other countries with a similar income per capita in some respects: a larger share of their work force is in industry, they use more energy, they have a more extensive infrastructure and invest more in schooling. However, in terms of the „software“ necessary for a market economy, two groups emerge: the countries that are candidates for EU membership seem to have partly completed the transition. By contrast, the countries from the former Soviet Union that form the CIS and the BALKAN countries, are still lagging behind especially in terms of the enforcement of property rights and the development of financial markets.