Author: Mr. Alvar Kangur
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
ISBN: 1513588842
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 26
Book Description
The Greek pension system has been costly, complex, and distortive, which has contributed to Greece’s fiscal problems and discouraged labor force participation. Several attempts to reform the system faltered due to lack of implementation, pushback by vested interests, and court rulings leading to reversals. A series of reforms introduced throughout 2015–17 unified benefit and contribution rules, removed several distortions and reduced fragmentation and costs. If fully implemented throughout the long-term, these reforms can go a long way towards enhancing the pension system affordability. However, reforms faced setbacks and fell short of creating stronger incentives to build long contribution histories, to deliver sustainable growth by improving the fiscal policy mix, and to ensure fairness and equitable burden sharing across generations and interest groups. Policy priorities should aim towards fully implementing the 2015–17 reforms and complementing them with additional reforms to address these remaining objectives.
Reforming the Greek Pension System
Author: Mr. Alvar Kangur
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
ISBN: 1513588842
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 26
Book Description
The Greek pension system has been costly, complex, and distortive, which has contributed to Greece’s fiscal problems and discouraged labor force participation. Several attempts to reform the system faltered due to lack of implementation, pushback by vested interests, and court rulings leading to reversals. A series of reforms introduced throughout 2015–17 unified benefit and contribution rules, removed several distortions and reduced fragmentation and costs. If fully implemented throughout the long-term, these reforms can go a long way towards enhancing the pension system affordability. However, reforms faced setbacks and fell short of creating stronger incentives to build long contribution histories, to deliver sustainable growth by improving the fiscal policy mix, and to ensure fairness and equitable burden sharing across generations and interest groups. Policy priorities should aim towards fully implementing the 2015–17 reforms and complementing them with additional reforms to address these remaining objectives.
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
ISBN: 1513588842
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 26
Book Description
The Greek pension system has been costly, complex, and distortive, which has contributed to Greece’s fiscal problems and discouraged labor force participation. Several attempts to reform the system faltered due to lack of implementation, pushback by vested interests, and court rulings leading to reversals. A series of reforms introduced throughout 2015–17 unified benefit and contribution rules, removed several distortions and reduced fragmentation and costs. If fully implemented throughout the long-term, these reforms can go a long way towards enhancing the pension system affordability. However, reforms faced setbacks and fell short of creating stronger incentives to build long contribution histories, to deliver sustainable growth by improving the fiscal policy mix, and to ensure fairness and equitable burden sharing across generations and interest groups. Policy priorities should aim towards fully implementing the 2015–17 reforms and complementing them with additional reforms to address these remaining objectives.
Pensions: Challenges and Reforms
Author: Einar Overbye
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351151797
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 257
Book Description
Throughout the developed world, public and private pension schemes face major challenges that are creating irresistible pressures for reform. Major structural changes in Latin America and in Central and Eastern Europe have led to particularly fierce pressure. Two member states of the European Union - Italy and Sweden - have introduced radical reform of their public pensions systems; controversial pension reforms have been proposed in France and Germany; and the British government has been widely criticized over its pension reforms and its 2002 white paper. This exceptional volume examines the challenges faced by pension schemes in the advanced economies and the reforms that have been introduced to tackle these challenges. A team of international contributors provides an up-to-date, invaluable analysis of different aspects of pension problems, prospects and reforms. The book incorporates cross-national chapters as well as a focus on individual countries including Belgium, Brazil, Colombia, Finland, Greece, Italy, Sweden, the UK and the USA.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351151797
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 257
Book Description
Throughout the developed world, public and private pension schemes face major challenges that are creating irresistible pressures for reform. Major structural changes in Latin America and in Central and Eastern Europe have led to particularly fierce pressure. Two member states of the European Union - Italy and Sweden - have introduced radical reform of their public pensions systems; controversial pension reforms have been proposed in France and Germany; and the British government has been widely criticized over its pension reforms and its 2002 white paper. This exceptional volume examines the challenges faced by pension schemes in the advanced economies and the reforms that have been introduced to tackle these challenges. A team of international contributors provides an up-to-date, invaluable analysis of different aspects of pension problems, prospects and reforms. The book incorporates cross-national chapters as well as a focus on individual countries including Belgium, Brazil, Colombia, Finland, Greece, Italy, Sweden, the UK and the USA.
Clientelism and Economic Policy
Author: Aris Trantidis
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317326598
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 261
Book Description
With its deep economic crisis and dramatic political developments Greece has puzzled Europe and the world. What explains its long-standing problems and its incapacity to reform its economy? Using an analytic narrative and a comparative approach, the book studies the pattern of economic reforms in Greece between 1985 and 2015. It finds that clientelism - the allocation of selective benefits by political actors (patrons) to their supporters (clients) - created a strong policy bias that prevented the country from implementing deep-cutting reforms. The book shows that the clientelist system differs from the general image of interest-group politics and that the typical view of clientelism, as individual exchange between patrons and clients, has not fully captured the wide range and implications of this phenomenon. From this, the author develops a theory on clientelism and policy-making, addressing key questions on the politics of economic reform, government autonomy and party politics. The book is an essential addition to the literatures on clientelism, public choice theory, and comparative political economy. It will be of key interest to scholars and students of European Union politics, economic policy and party politics.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317326598
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 261
Book Description
With its deep economic crisis and dramatic political developments Greece has puzzled Europe and the world. What explains its long-standing problems and its incapacity to reform its economy? Using an analytic narrative and a comparative approach, the book studies the pattern of economic reforms in Greece between 1985 and 2015. It finds that clientelism - the allocation of selective benefits by political actors (patrons) to their supporters (clients) - created a strong policy bias that prevented the country from implementing deep-cutting reforms. The book shows that the clientelist system differs from the general image of interest-group politics and that the typical view of clientelism, as individual exchange between patrons and clients, has not fully captured the wide range and implications of this phenomenon. From this, the author develops a theory on clientelism and policy-making, addressing key questions on the politics of economic reform, government autonomy and party politics. The book is an essential addition to the literatures on clientelism, public choice theory, and comparative political economy. It will be of key interest to scholars and students of European Union politics, economic policy and party politics.
Beyond Austerity
Author: Costas Meghir
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262035839
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 732
Book Description
Prominent economists present detailed analyses of the conditions that made Greece vulnerable to economic crisis and offer policy recommendations for comprehensive and radical change. More than eight years after the global financial crisis began, the economy of Greece shows little sign of recovery, and its position in the eurozone seems tenuous. Between 2008 and 2014, incomes in Greece shrank by more than 25 percent, homes lost more than a third of their value, and the unemployment rate reached 27 percent. Most articles on Greece in the media focus on the effects of austerity, repayment of its debt, and its future in the eurozone. In Beyond Austerity: Reforming the Greek Economy, leading Greek economists from institutions both within and outside Greece, take a broader and deeper view of the Greek crisis, examining the pathologies that made Greece vulnerable to the crisis and the implications for the entire eurozone. Each chapter takes on a specific policy area, examining it in terms of Greece's economic reality and offering possible directions for policy. The topics range from macroeconomic issues to markets and their regulation to finance to the public sector. Individual chapters address the costs and benefits of participation in the eurozone, Greece's international competitiveness, taxation, pensions, the labor market, privatization, product markets, finance, education, healthcare, corruption, the justice system, and public administration. The contributors argue that Greek institutions require a deep overhaul rather than quick fixes to enable long-term growth and prosperity.
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262035839
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 732
Book Description
Prominent economists present detailed analyses of the conditions that made Greece vulnerable to economic crisis and offer policy recommendations for comprehensive and radical change. More than eight years after the global financial crisis began, the economy of Greece shows little sign of recovery, and its position in the eurozone seems tenuous. Between 2008 and 2014, incomes in Greece shrank by more than 25 percent, homes lost more than a third of their value, and the unemployment rate reached 27 percent. Most articles on Greece in the media focus on the effects of austerity, repayment of its debt, and its future in the eurozone. In Beyond Austerity: Reforming the Greek Economy, leading Greek economists from institutions both within and outside Greece, take a broader and deeper view of the Greek crisis, examining the pathologies that made Greece vulnerable to the crisis and the implications for the entire eurozone. Each chapter takes on a specific policy area, examining it in terms of Greece's economic reality and offering possible directions for policy. The topics range from macroeconomic issues to markets and their regulation to finance to the public sector. Individual chapters address the costs and benefits of participation in the eurozone, Greece's international competitiveness, taxation, pensions, the labor market, privatization, product markets, finance, education, healthcare, corruption, the justice system, and public administration. The contributors argue that Greek institutions require a deep overhaul rather than quick fixes to enable long-term growth and prosperity.
Progress and Challenges of Nonfinancial Defined Contribution Pension Schemes
Author: Robert Holzmann
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN: 1464814546
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 513
Book Description
The individual account-based but unfunded approach to mandated public pension systems is a reform benchmark for all pension schemes, promising fair and financially sustainable benefits. Nonfinancial defined contribution (NDC) pension schemes originated in Italy and Sweden in the 1990s, were then adopted by Latvia, Norway, and Poland, envisaged but not implemented in various other countries, such as Egypt and Russia, and remain under discussion in many nations around the world, such as China and France. In its complete form, the approach also comprises budget-financed basic income provisions and mandated or voluntary funded provisions.Volume 1 of this book offers an assessment of countries that were early adopters before addressing key aspects of policy implementation and design review, including how best to combine basic income provisions with an NDC scheme, how to deal with heterogeneity in longevity, and how to adjust NDC scheme design and labor market policies to deliver on reform expectations. Volume 2 addresses a second set of issues, including the gender pension gap and what family policies can do about it within the NDC framework, labor market issues and administrative challenges of NDC schemes and how countries are coping, the role of communication in these pension schemes, the complexity of cross-border pension taxation, and much more.Progress and Challenges of Nonfinancial Defined Contribution Pension Schemes is the third in a series of books analyzing the progress, challenges, and adjustment options of this reform revolution for mandated public pension systems.'Pension reform is a major issue in many countries. The development of the nonfinancial defined contribution pension plan in the 90's was a major advance in pension design. By reporting actual country experiences and exploring properties of plan designs, this latest collection of essays is a valuable contribution, well worth reading.' Peter DiamondProfessor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology; 2010 winner of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences 'A highly stimulating publication for policy makers and researchers alike. It pushes the analytical frontier for policy challenges that all public pension schemes are confronted with but that the nonfinancial defined contribution approach promises to handle best.' Noriyuki TakayamaPresident, Research Institute for Policies on Pension and Aging, Tokyo, and professor emeritus, Hitotsubashi University, Tokyo 'In a changing world where pensions are more than ever linked to labor markets, communication tools, and flexibility considerations, this anthology provides a unique up-to-date analysis of nonfinancial defined contribution pension schemes. By mixing international experiences and theoretical studies, it demonstrates the high adaptability of such pension schemes to changing social challenges.' Pierre DevolderProfessor of Finance and Actuarial Sciences, Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN: 1464814546
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 513
Book Description
The individual account-based but unfunded approach to mandated public pension systems is a reform benchmark for all pension schemes, promising fair and financially sustainable benefits. Nonfinancial defined contribution (NDC) pension schemes originated in Italy and Sweden in the 1990s, were then adopted by Latvia, Norway, and Poland, envisaged but not implemented in various other countries, such as Egypt and Russia, and remain under discussion in many nations around the world, such as China and France. In its complete form, the approach also comprises budget-financed basic income provisions and mandated or voluntary funded provisions.Volume 1 of this book offers an assessment of countries that were early adopters before addressing key aspects of policy implementation and design review, including how best to combine basic income provisions with an NDC scheme, how to deal with heterogeneity in longevity, and how to adjust NDC scheme design and labor market policies to deliver on reform expectations. Volume 2 addresses a second set of issues, including the gender pension gap and what family policies can do about it within the NDC framework, labor market issues and administrative challenges of NDC schemes and how countries are coping, the role of communication in these pension schemes, the complexity of cross-border pension taxation, and much more.Progress and Challenges of Nonfinancial Defined Contribution Pension Schemes is the third in a series of books analyzing the progress, challenges, and adjustment options of this reform revolution for mandated public pension systems.'Pension reform is a major issue in many countries. The development of the nonfinancial defined contribution pension plan in the 90's was a major advance in pension design. By reporting actual country experiences and exploring properties of plan designs, this latest collection of essays is a valuable contribution, well worth reading.' Peter DiamondProfessor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology; 2010 winner of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences 'A highly stimulating publication for policy makers and researchers alike. It pushes the analytical frontier for policy challenges that all public pension schemes are confronted with but that the nonfinancial defined contribution approach promises to handle best.' Noriyuki TakayamaPresident, Research Institute for Policies on Pension and Aging, Tokyo, and professor emeritus, Hitotsubashi University, Tokyo 'In a changing world where pensions are more than ever linked to labor markets, communication tools, and flexibility considerations, this anthology provides a unique up-to-date analysis of nonfinancial defined contribution pension schemes. By mixing international experiences and theoretical studies, it demonstrates the high adaptability of such pension schemes to changing social challenges.' Pierre DevolderProfessor of Finance and Actuarial Sciences, Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium
Health Care Reform in Greece: Progress and Reform Priorities
Author: Niki Kalavrezou
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
ISBN: 1513588834
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 39
Book Description
We review Greek public sector healthcare policies and health-related outcomes since 2010.We find that excess spending was successfully curtailed, elements of the institutional framework were modernized, and health outcomes have been relatively favorable. However, especially prior to Covid-19, public healthcare spending had been compressed to potentially unsustainable levels, with widening inequalities and large unmet needs, especially among the poor. Higher public spending and advancing structural healthcare reforms are needed to improve the efficiency and equity of the Greek healthcare system, including strengthening primary healthcare, reducing out-of-pocket payments, and eliminating remaining insurance gaps.
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
ISBN: 1513588834
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 39
Book Description
We review Greek public sector healthcare policies and health-related outcomes since 2010.We find that excess spending was successfully curtailed, elements of the institutional framework were modernized, and health outcomes have been relatively favorable. However, especially prior to Covid-19, public healthcare spending had been compressed to potentially unsustainable levels, with widening inequalities and large unmet needs, especially among the poor. Higher public spending and advancing structural healthcare reforms are needed to improve the efficiency and equity of the Greek healthcare system, including strengthening primary healthcare, reducing out-of-pocket payments, and eliminating remaining insurance gaps.
Greece
Author: International Monetary Fund. European Dept.
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
ISBN: 1475575769
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 47
Book Description
This Selected Issues paper analyzes insolvency and enforcement issues in Greece. The Greek insolvency and creditor rights framework has improved since the onset of the crisis as a result of successive reforms. Nonetheless, it remains underutilized, fragmented, and distortive, and is not supported by an adequate institutional setting. This is because many of the reforms undertaken in recent years were not part of a coordinated and comprehensive nonperforming loan resolution strategy, but were instead piecemeal and taken without proper stakeholder consultation and impact analysis. Also, the frequent and uncoordinated reforms have undermined legal predictability and certainty. This situation of distress, if left unaddressed, affects enterprises, households and financial and public creditors by preventing investment, credit, and consumption from recovering.
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
ISBN: 1475575769
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 47
Book Description
This Selected Issues paper analyzes insolvency and enforcement issues in Greece. The Greek insolvency and creditor rights framework has improved since the onset of the crisis as a result of successive reforms. Nonetheless, it remains underutilized, fragmented, and distortive, and is not supported by an adequate institutional setting. This is because many of the reforms undertaken in recent years were not part of a coordinated and comprehensive nonperforming loan resolution strategy, but were instead piecemeal and taken without proper stakeholder consultation and impact analysis. Also, the frequent and uncoordinated reforms have undermined legal predictability and certainty. This situation of distress, if left unaddressed, affects enterprises, households and financial and public creditors by preventing investment, credit, and consumption from recovering.
From Reform to Growth
Author: Vít Novotný
Publisher: Eburon Uitgeverij B.V.
ISBN: 9059727517
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 546
Book Description
The global economic crisis that began in 2007 has posed huge challenges for European citizens and governments. The crisis has shown that the financial sector has not been adequately regulated and supervised, that governments and individuals have overspent, and that European economies are suffering from structural problems. This book, a collaboration between the Centre for European Studies and its member foundations, assesses government responses to the crisis at the national, EU and regional levels, and also offers policy recommendations. Governments should work with one another and with EU institutions to improve bank supervision and regulatory mechanisms. They should undertake fiscal consolidation measures, bearing in mind that government deficits and debt incur costs that burden future generations. Finally, they should undertake structural reforms such as creating flexible labour markets, increasing the retirement age and shaping efficient public institutions.
Publisher: Eburon Uitgeverij B.V.
ISBN: 9059727517
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 546
Book Description
The global economic crisis that began in 2007 has posed huge challenges for European citizens and governments. The crisis has shown that the financial sector has not been adequately regulated and supervised, that governments and individuals have overspent, and that European economies are suffering from structural problems. This book, a collaboration between the Centre for European Studies and its member foundations, assesses government responses to the crisis at the national, EU and regional levels, and also offers policy recommendations. Governments should work with one another and with EU institutions to improve bank supervision and regulatory mechanisms. They should undertake fiscal consolidation measures, bearing in mind that government deficits and debt incur costs that burden future generations. Finally, they should undertake structural reforms such as creating flexible labour markets, increasing the retirement age and shaping efficient public institutions.
OECD Economic Surveys: Greece 1997
Author: OECD
Publisher: OECD Publishing
ISBN: 9264149821
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 157
Book Description
This 1997 edition of OECD's periodic review of Greece's economy examines recent economic developments, policies and prospects. It includes a special feature on pensions and health care.
Publisher: OECD Publishing
ISBN: 9264149821
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 157
Book Description
This 1997 edition of OECD's periodic review of Greece's economy examines recent economic developments, policies and prospects. It includes a special feature on pensions and health care.
Unemployment in Southern Europe
Author: Nancy G. Bermeo
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1135260265
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 315
Book Description
Unemployment is one of Southern Europe's most serious political problems. Though much has been written about unemployment's causes and cures, systematic attention to its consequences is lacking. This collection of original essays deals with the effects of unemployment on regimes, parties, immigrants, economies and families, highlighting the differences and the similarities among Southern European states and offering lessons about the profound human consequences of unemployment in general.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1135260265
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 315
Book Description
Unemployment is one of Southern Europe's most serious political problems. Though much has been written about unemployment's causes and cures, systematic attention to its consequences is lacking. This collection of original essays deals with the effects of unemployment on regimes, parties, immigrants, economies and families, highlighting the differences and the similarities among Southern European states and offering lessons about the profound human consequences of unemployment in general.