A paper on the status of the economy of the former Communist nations working to survive in a free market economy.
This paper analyzes the current economic state of Eastern European countries as they emerge from Communism into free market economic systems. It shows the hurdles facing these economies as they struggle to grow – from corrupt leaders to broken down legal systems, from the lack of infrastructure to limited resources. This paper looks at these problems and asks what can be done to solve them.
“A few years after the collapse of the USSR the market began to emerge with vigor as inflation lowered and the rouble saw some semblance of stabilization. As living standards rose, it was assumed that the problems were over. The boom soon became invisible as in August 1998 the financial crisis created a national debt causing the rouble to become merely a quarter of its former value. Capitalists predicted the worst as the falling rouble caused the domestic productivity to increase and again the nation felt hope. Yet, past record has shown that the former communist economic conditions are worse than they seem. (Aslund, 2002)”