The CFA franc area is one of the oldest currency unions, but it has come under intense criticism recently for failing to promote economic growth and income convergence between member states. This paper examines the growth experience of the 14 member countries relative to a common benchmark over...

Chapter 1: Introduction -- Part I: Theoretical Foundations -- Chapter 2: Varieties or Diversity of Capitalism? -- Chapter 3: Dependent Capitalism -- Chapter 4: Dependent Monetary Regime -- Part II: Empirical And Historical Perspectives -- Chapter 5: Dependent Capitalism in Central and Eastern...

This paper traces the origins of the different monetary regimes adopted in Bulgaria and Romania in 1996-97 and examines their performance during the EU accession. The findings indicate that the constraints of the currency board in Bulgaria shifted economic activity towards the private sector,...

The recent pressure on public finances in Bulgaria has exposed the need for a performance-based system of public funding for higher education. This article estimates the relative technical and cost efficiency of Bulgarian universities and explores the correlation between public funding and...

In the late 90's, after severe financial and economic crisis, accompanied by inflation and exchange rate instability, Eastern Europe emerged into two groups of countries with radically contrasting monetary regimes (Currency Boards and Inflation targeting). The task of our study is to compare...