Reflections on EU Integration and Convergence
21 June 2022, 11:30 am–12:30 pm

A keynote by Marko Škreb as part of the Conference in Memory of Prof Oleh Havrylyshyn: Economic History, Comparative Economics and Policy-making in Transition
This event is free.
Event Information
Open to
- All
Availability
- Yes
Cost
- Free
Organiser
-
SSEES
EU integration and its achievements have been positive in many dimensions, but what is next for the newer members, and what are the key lessons for neighbours keen to join the club? In this talk, Marko Skreb will reflect on EU Integration and convergence since the 2004 EU expansion. EU integration and its impact are better understood if one focuses on the broader context of convergence of the Central and Eastern European countries toward Western Europe, and considers what happened starting from 1989, with the fall of the Berlin wall, a symbol of the collapse of the communist regime. Decisions at this early stage had important consequences for convergence. But beyond these, the framework for integration into the EU offered specific mechanisms of transmissions of rules and benchmarks that further contributed to convergence.
About the Speaker
Marko Škreb
Central banking expert
Marko Škreb is a former governor of the Croatian National Bank. Currently he is Central banking lead on a financial sector reform project (FINRA) in
Bosnia and Herzegovina, financed by USAID. Before that he was resident project manager for Canada-IMF Capacity building project at the National Bank of Ukraine. He moved to Kyiv from his position as advisor at the International Monetary Fund’s Regional Technical Assistance center in Accra, Ghana. Before that, he was chief economist and strategist at the second largest commercial bank in Croatia. Mr. Škreb started his professional career teaching at the University of Zagreb. Following academic vocation he joined the Croatian central bank, first as research and statistics director and later on as governor (from 1996 to 2000). In 1997 he was awarded the Central European Annual Awards for Excellence - Best Central Bank Governor by the Banker. Since 2000 he worked as a consultant for the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in numerous countries, mostly in South-East Europe. He also worked at the Independent Evaluation Office of the IMF in Washington DC in the period 2004-2005. Mr. Škreb published a number of articles and edited books, focusing on transition questions and financial issues.
More about Marko Škreb