Book
Going Global

Transition from Plan to Market in the World Economy

The transition of the former socialist and otherwise centrally planned economies into the world trading and financial system has become a major concern to both policymakers and social scientists. In this book experts from diverse economies address the principal issues raised by this transition. The chapters, which cover fourteen countries of East and Central Europe, the former Soviet Union, and Asia, are the result of a three-year research project. Although the contributors share a unity of design and analysis, each author focuses on the issues most relevant to the country or countries under discussion. In her introductory essay, project leader Padma Desai synthesizes the findings and cuts through recent analytical confusion over such issues as shock therapy versus gradualism. Rather than advocate the faster the better, she discusses the possible difficulty of sustaining rapid transition reforms and globalization in the face of rising unemployment. The countries discussed are the Czech Republic, Hungary, the German Democratic Republic (now eastern Germany), Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland, Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, China, Vietnam, and India.

Table of contents
  1. Part I
    1. The Czech Republic
    Josef C. Brada, Ali M. Kutan
  2. Part I
    2. Hungary
    Andras Blaho, Peter Gal
  3. Part I
    3. East Germany
    Jürgen von Hagen
  4. Part I
    4. Poland
    Stanislaw Wellisz
  5. Part II
    5. The Baltic States - Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania
    Kalev Kukk
  6. Part II
    6. Finland
    Urpo Kivikari
  7. Part III
    7. Russia
    Padma Desai
  8. Part III
    8. Kazakhstan
    Heiner Flassbeck
  9. Part III
    9. Uzbekistan
    Michael Connolly
  10. Part IV
    10. China
    Richard S. Eckaus
  11. Part IV
    11. Vietnam
    David Dollar, Börje Ljunggren
  12. Part IV
    12. India
    Manmohan Agarwal
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Endorsements

'This book presents a careful and advanced analysis of liberalization of socialist economics into the global trading and financial systems. The essays collected in this book, as well as the excellent introduction, will be of great value to both the scholar and the general audience interested in transition.' - Andrei Shleifer, Department of Economics, Harvard University