Structure, strain and macroeconomic dynamic in Romania

Almost ten years of post-Communist transition have elapsed. Much of the initial euphoria and illusions have gone. People, including academic professionals, realize that this historical endeavor is a very complex and complicated affair. The state of transition compels one to scrutinize the process of change more carefully, to go beyond stereotypes, myths, and oversimplifications. As a World Bank official working on post-Communist countries stated afew years ago, one should judge a policy on its own merits by skewing intellectual prejudices.This prodding was strongly reinforced by J. Stiglitz recently. He remarked that the failures of reforms “are not just due to sound policies being poorly implemented…[F]ailures go deeper, to a misunderstanding of the foundations of a market economy as well as a misunderstanding of the basics of an institutional reform process. ”One need not fully agree with Stiglitz to see that he makes a valid point.