Author: Anna Pluta

Latvijas konkurētspēja un tās izvērtējums starptautiskos reitingos

Posted on January 3, 2005 | Izpētes ziņojumi

LR Ekonomikas Ministrijas pasūtījuma ziņojums.

Authors: Alf Vanags and Zane Leduskrasta

Report is available in Latvian.

Introduction

Līdz ar valsts ieiešanu starptautiskā apritē, vārds konkurētspēja arvien biežāk sastopams mūsu leksikā. Politikas veidotāji ir nodarbināti ar valsts attīstības plānošanu, opozīcija, vēlētāji un mēdiji uztraucas par konkurētspējas zudumu kāda lēmuma rezultātā, ekonomisti post factum secina, ka monetārā vai fiskālā politika kādā periodā veicinājusi konkurētspējas pieaugumu vai zudumu. Šī interese nav sveša nevienā valstī, kas darbojas starptautiskajā tirgū un pateicoties tam rezultātā ir radusies plaša industrija, orientēta uz politikas veidotājiem, analītiėiem, ekonomistiem, investoriem un uzņēmumiem, kas mēăina novērtēt un aprakstīt konkurētspēju. Tā ietver plašu darbību un rezultātu loku: sākot ar produktivitātes, monetārās politikas un izmaksu pētījumiem līdz valstu un reăionu attīstības plānu analīzei.

Tomēr visplašāk pazīstamie produkti ir konkurētspējas indeksi – kompleksi indikatori, kas aprēėināti saskaņā ar izmeklētiem kritērijiem un valsts konkurētspējas veiksmes mērījumiem. Tie ļauj ierindot valsti konkrētā vietā salīdzinājumā ar pārējo pasauli un novērtēt attīstību laikā. Atšėirībā no izejas rādītājiem un dažādiem ekonomikas ziņojumiem, vietu sadalījums ir saprotams ne tikai akadēmiėiem, bet arī ar ekonomiku mazāk saistītiem cilvēkiem, tādēļ tas ir ļoti pievilcīgs masu mēdijiem.

Bez populārākajiem un visvairāk citētajiem indeksiem, kas apskatīti zemāk, pastāv arī citi, ko aprēėina valstu institūcijas, starptautiskas organizācijas, finansu korporācijas un konsultantu kompānijas. Kaut to reālo ietekmi ir grūti novērtēt, lielākie indeksi jebkurā gadījumā pievērš lielu uzmanību – tos citē valdības ziņojumos, valsts prezentācijās un mēdijos. Valsts sniegumu intensīvi analizē valsts iekšienē, balstoties uz tiem kritizē vai slavē politikas veidotājus, citē reprezentācijas materiālos vai taisnojas par neprecizitātēm datu vākšanā.

Neskatoties uz to plašo skanējumu, indeksu lietotājiem nereti ir vājš priekšstats par to, ko indekss patiešām parāda un uz kādiem ekonomiskiem vai politiskiem pamatiem tā aprēėināšana ir balstīta un kā tie ir interpretējami. Nespeciālistam patiešām nav viegli pēc būtības izanalizēt jebkuru indeksu, jo indeksus reti pavada detalizēts metodikas apraksts un padomi interpretācijai.

Tādēļ ziņojumā mērķi ir:

  • Aprakstīt un analizēt populārāko indeksu aprēėināšanas metodiku;
  • apskatīt Latvijas reitingu saskaņā ar katru no tiem Baltijas valstu kontekstā;
  • un novērtēt, kādus ieteikumus politikas veidošanai tie sniedz.

 

Family Background and Schooling Outcomes Before and During the Transition: Evidence from the Baltic Countries

Posted on January 3, 2005 | SSE Riga/BICEPS Izpētes raksti

New SSE Riga/BICEPS research paper by Mihails Hazans (BICEPS, University of Latvia), Olga Rastrigina (BICEPS) and Ija Trapeznikova (Northwestern University).

Abstract. This paper examines human capital gap between titular ethnicities and Russian-speaking minorities, which has emerged in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania during the transition and remains significant after controlling for parental education. For recent cohorts, unexplained gap is declining in Lithuania (despite absence of Russian language tertiary education) and in Estonia. Furthermore, we investigate intergenerational mobility in the Baltic countries. Parental education has a strong positive effect on propensity to obtain tertiary education, both in Soviet era and in post-Soviet period. Transition to the market has weakened mother’s education effect for titular ethnicities, while the opposite is true for minorities.

Keywords: Parental education; ethnic minorities; transition

JEL Classification: J24, J15, P51

Venture Capital in Latvia

Posted on November 1, 2004 | TeliaSonera Institūta Pētījumu sērija

Jaunākais raksts nr. 1 TeliaSonera Institūta pētījumu sērijā ar nosaukumu “Venture Capital in Latvia”.

Autori: Vitas Dijokas un Alf Vanags

TeliaSonera Institūts, kas atrodas Rīgas Ekonomikas augstskolā, sadarbībā ar BICEPS pētniekiem publicē pētījumus par dažādām tēmām, saistītām ar politiku, uzņēmējdarbību un komunikācijām.

 

 

Potential Emigration of Latvian Labour Force After Joining the EU and its Impact on Latvian Labour Market

Posted on September 1, 2003 | SSE Riga/BICEPS Izpētes raksti

New SSE Riga/BICEPS research paper by Mihails Hazans (BICEPS, University of Latvia).

Abstract. This paper uses empirical evidence from several sources to shed light on patterns of mobility of Latvian labour force during the transition period as well as in the years to come. Updated inter-regional migration rates show that Latvian population is relatively mobile compared to some other European nations. Other things equal, during the transition period people were more likely to leave districts with low wage levels and to enter the ones where earnings are higher, despite many countervailing factors; outflow rates tended to be larger from high unemployment regions. Analysis of individual migration decisions made in 1989-1999 and migration plans for 1999-2002 confirms significance of economic incentives for geographical mobility of Latvian population and reveals behaviour consistent with the human capital model: young and more educated individuals were more likely to move. On-line survey conducted in 2003 shows that a very high proportion of Internet users in Latvia consider possibility to work in one of the EU countries when these countries open their labour markets. According to the most conservative estimate, number of potential movers among Internet users is about 80 thousand, and only half of them are going to return to Latvia. Determinants of the intention to emigrate permanently are different from the factors affecting general propensity to “go west.” Other things equal, potential emigrants are significantly less likely to return if they prefer Russian (rather than Latvian) language website, have higher education, are young, and live in the capital. We also identify occupations which are likely to experience the largest labour outflows in the short run and in the long run.

Keywords: Migration, Regional Disparities, Human Capital, EU enlargement

JEL Categories: F22, J61, J31, J15, P52, R23, C81

Returns to Education in the Baltic Countries

Posted on July 1, 2003 | SSE Riga/BICEPS Izpētes raksti

New SSE Riga/BICEPS research paper by Mihails Hazans (BICEPS, University of Latvia).

NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY

What are the returns to education in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania? The author estimates skills wage differentials in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania and compares the results with evidence from other countries. Major findings are:

  • the stock of human capital in Baltic states is rather high
  • employees with higher education earned on average 69 to 80% more than those with basic or less education in 2000
  • most of this differential is due to the premium paid for higher versus secondary education, the lowest return in Latvia and the highest in Lithuania
  • the premium associated with secondary relative to basic education is much smaller, ranging from 13–14% for Latvia and Lithuania to 19% for Estonia
  • in all three countries, but especially in Latvia, returns to education are larger for women than for men
  • after controlling for occupation in Estonia and Lithuania the extra benefit of higher education for women comes via access to higher positions rather than via larger wage premiums within occupational groups
  • the above is true for secondary education in all three countries
  • returns to secondary education in the Baltics are much lower than in the developed market economies and other Central European countries
  • by contrast, returns to higher education in the Baltic countries (especially in Lithuania) seem to be high by international standards
  • disaggregating by gender, the standard finding of larger returns for women compared to men is more pronounced in Estonia and Latvia than in the Czech Republic and Hungary; the gender difference is less pronounced in Lithuania
  • minority employees gain from higher education much less than ethnic Estonians, while in Latvia and Lithuania the ethnic gap in returns to higher education is small and statistically not significant
  • wages in Estonian rural areas are uniformly lower than in cities, while in Latvia and Lithuania wages of well educated employees are relatively less affected by rural-urban disparities.

To sum up, Baltic countries feature a combination of unusually low returns to secondary education with rather high marginal payoff to higher education. Positive female-male differences in returns to higher education and negative minority-majority differences suggest that education is more likely to be effective in reducing consequences of gender segregation than ethnic segregation. The gender gap in returns is the largest in Latvia, while the ethnic gap is significant only in Estonia.