Policy Advisory Systems in Times of Crisis: A Case Study of Slovak Advisory Committees during Covid-19

This paper aims to fill a gap in the understanding of policy advisory systems (PAS) during the Covid‐19 crisis. As governments rely on PAS in uncertain times of crisis, the state of PAS directly impacts the quality of policymaking. This paper studies the changes within Slovak Advisory committees (AC) at the executive level concerning the changes of government during the Covid‐19 pandemic. Slovakia had relatively good results in the first wave of the pandemic but did not utilize any ofthat experience in the second wave, where deadly infection and death rates were higher. The case of Slovak ACs demonstrates a shift towards a more politicized PAS – the new committees, established by the prime minister, were meeting at the expense of already functioning committees at the beginning of the crisis, and their expertise was more political in character. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of NISPAcee Journal of Public Administration & Policy is the property of Sciendo and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Does communist nostalgia lead to COVID-19 conspiracy beliefs?

Why are people in Central and Eastern Europe more hesitant towards COVID-19 vaccination and more prone to believe in COVID-19 related conspiracy theories than other Europeans? The article claims that the spread of COVID-19 conspiracy beliefs in the post-communist region might be fostered by communist nostalgia. Drawing on the survey data from Lithuania, I show that communist nostalgia is one of the best predictors of COVID-19 conspiracy beliefs, controlling for other related factors such as populist attitudes, trust in political institutions, confidence in media and scientists and pro-Western attitudes. The paper claims that communist nostalgia in Central and Eastern Europe is conducive to conspiracy beliefs in a similar vein as nostalgic narratives employed by populist radical right in Western countries. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of European Societies is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Models of capitalism in Central and Eastern Europe in comparison with Western Europe in the area of product market competition

The article compares 11 Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries, which are new EU members, with 7 countries of Western Europe representing 4 Western European models of capitalism (continental, Mediterranean, Nordic, and Anglo-Saxon) in the area of product market competition. The analysis covers the 2010-2020 period. One of the goals of the study is to determine the degree of similarity of the institutional architecture of the CEE countries in relation to the reference models in the last year before the coronavirus pandemic outbreak and to analyze the changes in these results over the last decade. Particular emphasis was placed on changes in the degree of similarity between two snapshots: 2010 and 2019. The study includes 26 variables characterizing the product market competition. These variables describe both the institutional architecture of the product market competition (the so-called input variables) and the effects of a given institutional order (output variables). The comparison of countries is based on our own concept of the similarity coefficient. One of the elements of novelty and originality is the analysis of robustness in terms of various Western European countries, which are a reference point, as well as alternative methods of calculating the similarity coefficient. The study shows that the results are robust to the assumptions made. The CEE countries are closest to the Mediterranean model of capitalism (both Spain and Italy). The Nordic model ranks last. The classification of Western European models of capitalism in terms of institutional proximity to the CEE countries is also robust to the exact method of calculating the similarity coefficient. © 2022 Authors. All rights reserved.

The determinants of innovative capacity in the medical sector in Central Europe and across the European Union

The recent COVID-19 crisis, as well as the resulting international response, have demonstrated the importance of medical innovation in meeting current and future health challenges. Yet capacity for innovation differs from country to country, and policymakers are wise to find ways to increase each nation's ability to generate new solutions. This study examines medical innovation, measured as patents per capita, for 27 EU countries from 2004 to 2018. Modelling innovation as a function of international and domestic macroeconomic variables, government and private-sector R&D, the rate of return to physical and human capital, and a measure of risk, a dynamic panel analysis finds that real-exchange-rate volatility reduces patent applications for some countries, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe. The response to the explanatory variables differs by countries' overall innovation levels, with innovation in weaker innovators reduced by risk and increased by higher education levels. In stronger innovators, the internal rate of return most strongly drives innovation, suggesting that this process more closely resembles "traditional” investments.

The Determinants of Innovative Capacity in the Medical Sector in Central Europe and across the European Union

The recent COVID-19 crisis, as well as the resulting international response, have demonstrated the importance of medical innovation in meeting current and future health challenges. Yet capacity for innovation differs from country to country, and policymakers are wise to find ways to increase each nation's ability to generate new solutions. This study examines medical innovation, measured as patents per capita, for 27 EU countries from 2004 to 2018. Modelling innovation as a function of international and domestic macroeconomic variables, government and private-sector R&D, the rate of return to physical and human capital, and a measure of risk, a dynamic panel analysis finds that real-exchange-rate volatility reduces patent applications for some countries, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe. The response to the explanatory variables differs by countries' overall innovation levels, with innovation in weaker innovators reduced by risk and increased by higher education levels. In stronger innovators, the internal rate of return most strongly drives innovation, suggesting that this process more closely resembles "traditional" investments.

A contested foundation of European integration: The free movement of labour

Since the eastern enlargement of the European Union (EU), the movement from east to west has become the main driver of intra-EU mobility. Recently, the free movement of labour has been contested not only in the debates around Brexit, but also in other receiving countries. It is not on the political agenda, but several studies have highlighted the economic and demographic effects of massive emigration in eastern EU Member States. More recently, the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the functioning of free movement. Economic integration theory assumes that migration continues until wages are equalized in the receiving and sending countries. This paper analyses the perception of intra-EU mobility in the literature and empirically tests whether there is a relationship between the dynamism of income growth in the receiving (Germany, Austria and Spain) and sending (Central and Eastern European) countries, and the dynamism of migration. The empirical results do not support the neoclassical assumption that an equalization mechanism can function, even in the long run. To cope with recent challenges, this paper argues that free movement should not be considered as an element of a spontaneous market mechanism, but as an economic-political product, based on a constitutional order. © 2022 The Author(s).

Conditions Driving Eco-Innovation in a Catching-Up Country—ICT vs. Industry in Poland

There is a necessity to combine the development of the European Union with a model of a sustainable economy, which is important to stimulate eco-innovation. The government of each member state is obliged to create support mechanisms that will encourage entrepreneurs to implement pro-environmental solutions. This requires the identification of determinants for eco-innovation. This paper identifies and compares conditions of eco-innovation in two sectors in Poland: ICT (information and communication technologies) and industry. Putting together many different types of conditions into one model (including government, science, industry, and ICT) allows us to explain what is more important when making a decision about implementing new eco-solutions. The study covered over 3000 enterprises. Stepwise logit regression was used to examine all relationships of interest. We discovered two separate (independent) paths of approach to eco-innovation for ICT and industry. This means that another condition should be fulfilled to reach any eco-innovation in each of the sectors. There are just a few factors supporting new environmental solutions in ICT with strong impact—cooperation with suppliers, journals as a source of new knowledge, or financial support by credit institutions with high materials and energy efficiency at the end of the process. Industry could be described more like a horizontal approach—a wide number of conditions with low impact on eco-innovation. Therefore, innovation policies in the catching-up country should be more sophisticated and take care of more relevant tools for both sectors.

Air Cargo Transport development in Central and Eastern Europe and Baltic countries

The economic and social development in the Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and Baltic countries in the last ten years, the admission of first 10 countries from this area in European Union has an important impact on the evolution of air transport in this area. We present the approach used by the airlines for choosing an airport for air cargo operation, step by step: chose of the region of operation, then the economic analysis of the region and of the airports, analysis of possible constraints for operations and individual performances of airport. The interest of airlines for an airport is generated by the growth of the county or of the region, the trade, the foreign investments and the labor market development, all indicators being analyzed in the paper. The diversification of the trade business model, the development of e-commerce has had an important impact on the development of cargo traffic in the world and of course also in CEE. The features of the air cargo transport market have had a great influence on governmental policies for airport cargo capacity development in CEE and in Baltic Countries. In order to provide airports with strategic information for building development strategies, this paper presents a comparative analysis of the evolution and demands of air cargo transport using external and internal benchmarking approach. The target group is represented by capitals' airports from Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Romania. © 2022 IEEE.

Federalism and the response to COVID-19: a comparative analysis

The COVID-19 pandemic bared the inadequacies in existing structures of public health and governance in most countries. This book provides a comparative analysis of policy approaches and planning adopted by federal governments across the globe to battle and adequately respond to the health emergency as well as the socio-economic fallouts of the pandemic. With twenty-four case studies from across the globe, the book critically analyzes responses to the public health crisis, its fiscal impact and management, as well as decision-making and collaboration between different levels of government of countries worldwide. It explores measures taken to contain the pandemic and to responsibly regulate and manage the health, socio-economic welfare, employment, and education of its people. The authors highlight the deficiencies in planning, tensions between state and local governments, politicization of the crisis, and the challenges of generating political consensus. They also examine effective approaches used to foster greater cooperation and learning for multi-level, polycentric innovation in pandemic governance. One of the first books on federalism and approaches to the COVID-19 pandemic, this volume is an indispensable reference for scholars and researchers of comparative federalism, comparative politics, development studies, political science, public policy and governance, health and wellbeing, and political sociology.

The Management of HIV Care Services in Central and Eastern Europe: Data from the Euroguidelines in Central and Eastern Europe Network Group.

INTRODUCTION: The COVID-19 pandemic has been challenging time for medical care, especially in the field of infectious diseases (ID), but it has also provided an opportunity to introduce new solutions in HIV management. Here, we investigated the changes in HIV service provision across Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries before and after the COVID-19 outbreak. METHODS: The Euroguidelines in Central and Eastern Europe Network Group consists of experts in the field of ID from 24 countries within the CEE region. Between 11 September and 29 September 2021, the group produced an on-line survey, consisting of 32 questions on models of care among HIV clinics before and after the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak. RESULTS: Twenty-three HIV centers from 19 countries (79.2% of all countries invited) participated in the survey. In 69.5% of the countries, there were more than four HIV centers, in three countries there were four centers (21%), and in four countries there was only one HIV center in each country. HIV care was based in ID hospitals plus out-patient clinics (52%), was centralized in big cities (52%), and was publicly financed (96%). Integrated services were available in 21 clinics (91%) with access to specialists other than ID, including psychologists in 71.5% of the centers, psychiatrists in 43%, gynecologists in 47.5%, dermatologists in 52.5%, and social workers in 62% of all clinics. Patient-centered care was provided in 17 centers (74%), allowing consultations and tests to be planned for the same day. Telehealth tools were used in 11 centers (47%) before the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, and in 18 (78%) after (p = 0.36), but were represented mostly by consultations over the telephone or via e-mail. After the COVID-19 outbreak, telehealth was introduced as a new medical tool in nine centers (39%). In five centers (28%), no new services or tools were introduced. CONCLUSIONS: As a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic, tools such as telehealth have become popularized in CEE countries, challenging the traditional approach to HIV care. These implications need to be further evaluated in order to ascertain the best adaptations, especially for HIV medicine.

Joanna GR?NDZI?SKA Istvan HOFFMAN Daniel KLIMOVSKY Ivan MALY Juraj NEMEC

The goal of this paper is to deliver a comparative analysis of the behaviors and statements of the PMs in Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic, using the concept of adaptive leaderships as a base for analysis. We employed the usage of four fundamental skills proposed by Glover, Friedman and Jones (2002) and of five fundamental recommendations proposed by Macpherson and 't Hart (2020) to assess the behaviors and relevant statements of the PMs of the four analyzed countries during the time of the pandemic. The fact that all four analyzed PMs did not employ many adaptive leadership skills and recommendations may serve as one of the possible explanations for the very problematic results in fighting COVID-19 during the second phase of the pandemic, when especially the Czech Republic and Slovakia belonged to the most affected countries. The costs of such limited competence are borne by citizens and businesses.

FOUR CASES, THE SAME STORY? THE ROLES OF THE PRIME MINISTERS IN THE V4 COUNTRIES DURING THE COVID-19 CRISIS

The goal of this paper is to deliver a comparative analysis of the behaviors and statements of the PMs in Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic, using the concept of adaptive leaderships as a base for analysis. We employed the usage of four fundamental skills proposed by Glover, Friedman and Jones (2002) and of five fundamental recommendations proposed by Macpherson and ‘t Hart (2020) to assess the behaviors and relevant statements of the PMs of the four analyzed countries during the time of the pandemic. The fact that all four analyzed PMs did not employ many adaptive leadership skills and recommendations may serve as one of the possible explanations for the very problematic results in fighting COVID-19 during the second phase of the pandemic, when especially the Czech Republic and Slovakia belonged to the most affected countries. The costs of such limited competence are borne by citizens and businesses. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Transylvanian Review of Administrative Sciences is the property of Transylvanian Review of Administrative Sciences and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Consulting during the coronavirus in the light of an empirical survey in Hungary

Relatively little accurate information about management consulting and its market is available to interested readers. Therefore, in this article, we are committed to presenting the most important global trends from various sources, analyzing the main features of the development of the European, Central and Eastern European, as well as the Hungarian consulting markets. Among several other industries, the consulting sector has been affected negatively by the emergence of corona crisis. Consulting, characterized by stable growth and expansion before the pandemic, is estimated to have declined by 17-18 percent in 2020. However, different experts agree that consulting industry will recover faster from the current crisis than before. The pandemic has caused radical changes in the way we work and communicate, and consultants are ready to keep with the flow. One of the key questions of our empirical study in Hungary was the extent to which each consulting organization experienced an economically negative situation, the areas where there was a decrease or an increase, and the extent to which they see new opportunities for the future. Based on the results obtained, we found that the examined organizations were negatively affected by the crisis in terms of sales and services, but a significant part of the organizations also see new opportunities in the current situation for the future.

Determinants of substantial public debt reductions in Central and Eastern European Countries.

Government debt development is a timeless issue in economics that has gained even more attention in light of the global financial crisis and the Covid 19 pandemic crisis. The following paper uses several specifications of a logistic probability model to examine the key determinants underlying substantial public debt reductions in Central and Eastern European EU Member States for the period 1996-2020. The results suggest that fiscal adjustments are more likely to be successful in reducing public debt if they are based on expenditure cuts rather than revenue increases. In this context, cuts in social benefits and government employee compensation prove to be particularly effective. In addition, favourable economic growth rates increase the probability of a substantial reduction in government debt.

DEVELOPMENT OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION IN CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE

The main attention is paid to the characteristics of public administration reform in CEE. In particular, public administration was analyzed using a system of indicators: political stability and the absence of terrorism;efficiency of government activities;quality of government legislative activity;rule of law;control of corruption. The reasons of application failures of public administration and consequences of its introduction are outlined. Also have been identified the key features of the SIGMA program, which formed the preconditions for the introduction of public administration in the CEE countries. The reform of public administration through the implementation of e-government has been clarified. It is substantiated that the efficiency of public administration is influenced by such indicators as: political stability, corruption control, the quality of government regulations and the rule of law. In particular, attention is focused on the priority of the rule of law and rule-making activities.

The Role of Industrial Revival in Untapping the Bioeconomy's Potential in Central and Eastern Europe

The bioeconomy occupies the centre of the Green Deal, the EU's plan to support transformative growth following the COVID-19 episode. However, parts of the EU, such as countries in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) continue to lag behind in harnessing the potential held by the bioeconomy. This article argues that in CEE countries, where the primary and conventional bioeconomy sectors play a more important role, 'early' transition pathways such as improvements in productivity and practice- as well as commercialisation-oriented innovation (the do-use-interact model: DUI) are just as important as approaches based on (generally publicly supported) R&D, innovation adoption, and technology transfer (science-technology-innovation model: STI), typically associated with high-value bioindustrial applications. The argument is tested by conducting a survey of 352 experts in the region that gives an insight into the CEE macro-region's assets with respect to deploying the bioeconomy's potential and assessing the transition pathways relevant to the better performance of bioeconomy (primary, manufacturing, and other related) sectors. The results show the particular relevance of consolidating the primary and traditional sectors to support improvements in productivity based on the vertical and horizontal interaction typically associated with DUI, while the relevance of STI is mostly linked to advanced sectors, which are narrowly distributed across the region. The findings are relevant to policy given that the EU's bioeconomy policy has thus far chiefly focused on STI support that better corresponds to the needs of countries at more advanced stages of developing the bioeconomy, but is less appropriate for the specific context and needs of CEE.

Excess mortality in Russia and its regions compared to high income countries: An analysis of monthly series of 2020.

BACKGROUND: Russia has been portrayed in media as having one of the highest death tolls due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the world. However, the precise scale of excess mortality is still unclear. We provide the first estimates of excess mortality in Russia as a whole and its regions in 2020, placing this in an international context. METHODS: We used monthly death rates for Russia and 83 regions plus the equivalent for 36 comparator countries. Expected mortality was derived in two ways using averages in the same months in preceding years and the same averages adjusted for secular trends. Excess death rates were estimated for the whole year and the last 3 quarters. We also estimated the relationships between excess mortality and reported COVID-19 cases and deaths across countries and Russian regions. RESULTS: Estimating excess deaths rates based on the trend-adjusted average, Russia had the highest excess mortality of any of the 37 countries considered. Using the simple average, Russia had the third highest. Most of the excess deaths were recorded in the 4th quarter of 2020 and the level and trajectory of excess mortality in Russia and most of Eastern European countries differed from that in Western countries. While both the cumulative number of COVID-19 cases and deaths showed positive correlations with excess mortality across countries (r=0.65 and r=0.75, p<0.001), the association across the Russian regions was, surprisingly, negative for cases (r=-0.34, p<0.01) and deaths (r=-0.09, p=0.42). When we replaced reported deaths with final data from death certificates the correlation was positive (r=0.38, p<0.001). CONCLUSION: Russia has one of the largest absolute burden of excess mortality in 2020 but there is a counter-intuitive negative association between excess mortality and cumulative incidence at the regional level. Under-recording of COVID-19 cases seems to be a problem in some regions.

Varieties of euro adoption strategies in Visegrad countries before the pandemic crisis

The enlargement of the euro area (EA), an unfinished process, was low on the European agenda in the period between the 2008 and the 2020 crises. The socio-economic consequences of the coronavirus pandemic and frictions in geopolitics would call for a coherent Europe, yet new and old fault-lines appeared in the EU involving the eastern periphery where sovereignty issues gained particular importance. The authors revisit the euro adoption process of the new member states, with a focus on the Visegrad Group (V4) countries, applying a two-track approach: a monetary policy analyses of EA entry as a rational cost/ benefit issue and, second, a political economic survey of key stakeholders, set in the context of the dilemmas of retaining or sacrificing nominal monetary sovereignty. Even a piecemeal enlargement of the EA, involving Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania, would cause business consequences and political repercussions in the countries left out of EA. The paper concludes that further moves towards a developmental state model would preclude euro adoption and put such member state in collision course with the core Europe.

Changes in the Practice of Electroconvulsive Therapy in Poland: A Nationwide Survey Comparing Data Between 2005 and 2020.

BACKGROUND: The use and the characteristics of the practice of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in Poland have not been evaluated since 2005, when a nationwide survey revealed its rare utilization (0.11 patients/10,000 inhabitants/year). The aims of this study were to determine the current use of ECT and to compare the findings with those of the previous survey. METHODS: Two questionnaires were sent to all 48 inpatient psychiatric centers in Poland. The first one - to units providing ECT to explore its practice, and the second - to units not performing ECT to explore the reasons for not using this treatment. RESULTS: Nineteen (39.6%) of all psychiatric inpatient centers confirmed the use of ECT. The utilization rate was 0.13 patients/10,000 inhabitants. Similar to the findings from 2005, the main indications were affective disorders, and bitemporal electrode placement was the dominant method used for the delivery of ECT. Age-based and titration-based methods were applied exclusively in 50% and 25% of the centers, respectively (compared with 15% and 35% in 2005, respectively), while both methods were used in the remaining 25%. Improvements in safety were reflected by the use of comprehensive pre-ECT evaluation and treatment monitoring. None of the centers used sine-wave devices; this contrasts with their use by 29% of the centers in 2005. The main reasons for not using ECT were insufficient funding and a lack of experienced staff. CONCLUSION: The frequency of ECT use in Poland remains very low. In view of the improvement in the quality of health services in the past decade, such a markedly rare use of an effective treatment was unexpected. There is an urgent need of education to create more positive attitude towards ECT among health professionals and among public, and to increase the training of mental health professionals in ECT.