Titolo completo

Integrating the Western Balkans with the EU Economy: New Plan, Old Problems

Over the past two decades, the Western Balkans have deepened their ties with the European Union (EU) through trade liberalization, market opening, regulatory alignment, and financial assistance. However, increasing integration has not produced substantial economic convergence. Beneath the surface of export growth and increased foreign direct investment lies weak structural transformation, reflected in limited productive capacities, insufficient innovation, and persistent institutional fragilities. The EU’s new Growth Plan for the Western Balkans offers renewed engagement but largely repackages existing instruments without addressing core structural challenges in the region. Without a coherent agenda for structural change, including strategic investment in skills, innovation, and domestic industrial ecosystems, the region’s growth model remains fragile and potentially unsustainable in the long run. National governments must take ownership of reforms that go beyond formal EU compliance and focus on genuine structural transformation, while the EU must match its ambitions with stronger political will, institutional innovation, and financial support. Regional co-operation is important but cannot substitute for real EU accession. A credible, development-oriented approach, backed by structural reforms, is essential to ensure lasting convergence and to restore public trust.