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271. Does Government Support for Private Innovation Matter? Firm-Level Evidence from Turkey and Poland

Author:
Krzysztof Szczygielski, M. Teoman Pamukcu, Sinan Tandogan, and Wojciech Grabowski
Publication Date:
08-2013
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Center for Social and Economic Research - CASE
Abstract:
The aim of the project is to analyze government support for innovation in a comparative perspective by first examining the main existing instruments of financial support for innovation in Turkey and Poland, and secondly to assess their effectiveness by applying recent econometric techniques to firm-level data for both countries obtained from the Community Innovation Survey (CIS). Comparing Turkey to Poland is both meaningful and promising from a policy-analysis point of view. Both countries are comparable in terms of levels of economic development and technological capabilities, i.e. the ability of their economies to create knowledge and exploit it commercially. Both have undergone deep market-oriented reforms in the last decades – Turkey since 1980, Poland since 1989 – resulting in a significant catching-up of their economies. However, as the possibilities for further growth based on structural change and eliminating obstacles to business.
Topic:
Economics, Government, Markets, and Innovation
Political Geography:
Europe, Turkey, Middle East, Poland, and Mediterranean

272. Turkey-NATO Relations at the 60th Anniversary

Author:
Sofia Hafdell
Publication Date:
03-2012
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Global Political Trends Center (GPoT)
Abstract:
After 60 years of membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Turkey’s role in the alliance stands strong amid new security threats and challenging regional change. It also largely corresponds to the New Strategic Concept of the 2010 Lisbon Summit, outlining the range of principles to which the members must adopt in order to continue effective cooperation and meet new responses, capabilities and partners (NATO, 2010). In light of this, Turkey’s strategic geography is crucial for the new security environment in the Euro-Atlantic region and beyond. Taking the recent examples of the intervention in Libya and the missile defense system, this policy update will highlight the importance of Turkey’s role within NATO regardless of initial foreign policy disagreements with the alliance and recent negative trends in Turkish public opinion towards the West.
Topic:
Security, Foreign Policy, NATO, International Cooperation, Public Opinion, and History
Political Geography:
Europe, Turkey, and Mediterranean

273. Cypriot Perceptions of Turkey

Author:
Christalla Yakinthou and Rebecca Bryant
Publication Date:
08-2012
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
This report contains the findings of TESEV Foreign Policy Program’s survey of the perception of Turkey in Cyprus. Conducted by Rebecca Bryant and Christalla Yakinthou, the survey aims to understand and represent Turkish and Greek Cypriot assessments of their respective relationships with Turkey today. The report uses a set of fifty extended interviews to present Cypriots’ anxieties, hopes, and fears regarding their relationships with Turkey and possibilities for the future. The report reveals some striking findings. While Turkish Cypriots demand sovereign equality from Turkey; Greek Cypriots are more concerned with the economic performance of Turkey and Greece, rather than the role of Turkey on the future of the island. Both sides think of Turkey’s military presence on the island as an issue and it is also widely believed that Turkey should adopt a more constructive attitude and take concrete steps towards a long-term solution. u rapor TESEV Dış Politika Programı’nın Kıbrıs’ta Türkiye algısını anlamaya yönelik çalışmasının detaylı sonuçlarını içermektedir. Rebecca Bryant ve Christalla Yakinthou tarafından yürütülen bu çalışma, Kıbrıslı Türk ve Rumların Türkiye ile olan ilişkilerini nasıl değerlendirdikleri üzerinde durmaktadır. Araştırma ada genelinde çeşitli kanaat önderleriyle yapılan elli derinlemesine mülakat aracılığıyla Kıbrıslıların Türkiye ile ilgili görüş ve beklentilerini ortaya koymaktadır.
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, Foreign Policy, Sovereignty, Territorial Disputes, and Economy
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, Greece, Cyprus, and Mediterranean

274. La fabrique politique d’une frontière européenne en Méditerranée. Le « jeu du mistigri » entre les Etats et l’Union (The political fabric of a European frontier in the Mediterranean: The “jeu du mistigri” between the States and the European Union )

Author:
Evelyne Ritaine
Publication Date:
07-2012
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Centre d'Etudes et de Recherches Internationales (CERI)
Abstract:
The political determination of the Mediterranean border of the European Union seen from the perspective of the Southern European countries (Spain, Italy, Greece, Malta) illustrates the symbolic and political importance for these nations of maintaining control of the border. It has a significant impact on the types of controls that are enacted and the interplay between national and European decisions. Placing this question on the agenda brings to light a Mediterranean perspective regarding the exterior borders of the European Union that is largely determined by the conditions of integration of the different countries into the Schengen area. This new border regime is the result of complex political games and is seen as a security issue. The actual set of controls seems to be less planned and legal-rational than simply erratic and the result of tensions between internal tactics, nation state strategies and attempts at bringing within the ring of EU.
Topic:
Security, Migration, European Union, Regulation, Borders, and State
Political Geography:
Greece, Balkans, Spain, North Africa, Italy, Western Europe, Mediterranean, European Union, and Malta

275. Financial Development and Economic Growth in the Mediterranean Associated Countries

Author:
Adolfo Barajas and Seyed Reza Yousefi
Publication Date:
09-2012
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
IEMed/EuroMeSCo
Abstract:
Slow growth in the Mediterranean Associated Countries (MEDA) over the past three decades can be partly traced to underperformance by the financial sector. Several countries in the region lack financial depth, and the region as a whole has not fully benefited from the level of banking intermediation on offer, signaling a “quality gap.” Policy should therefore aim to enhance banking competition by removing entry barriers and improving credit information, reduce the role of state banks, further the process of financial reform, and provide a financial infrastructure conducive to bank and financial market development. Moreover, quality of intermediation appears to be related to access, and MEDA countries have also underachieved in terms of providing access to financial services to large segments of the population, in particular, to small and medium-sized enterprises. Efforts to widen access should also lead to improvements in quality and, ultimately, higher longrun growth.
Topic:
International Affairs
Political Geography:
Mediterranean

276. Euro-Mediterranean Higher Education Area: Enhancing Quality, Promoting Mobility and Employability

Author:
Nick Harris and Javier Albarracín
Publication Date:
09-2012
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
IEMed/EuroMeSCo
Abstract:
This paper results from a European Institute of the Mediterranean (IEMed)/National Agency for Quality Assessment and Accreditation of Spain (ANECA) Conference held in Barcelona 23rd May 2011 on enhancing quality, promoting mobility and employability across the Euro-Mediterranean Higher Education Area. At a time when there is considerable change and uncertainty in almost all parts of the Euro-Med region, the conference discussions ranged across the nature and purposes of higher education, particularly in relation to employability and employment, and the benefits of and barriers to mobility for both students and academic staff. It also sought to identify the most effective ways in which the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) could contribute to further developments in higher education, bearing in mind the diversities and uncertainties that currently exist at social, political, and economic levels as well as in educations terms
Topic:
International Affairs
Political Geography:
Mediterranean

277. The Danish Presidency and Turkey's EU Accession: Turning the Page Towards New Positive Agenda

Author:
Sofia Hafdell
Publication Date:
07-2012
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Global Political Trends Center (GPoT)
Abstract:
This paper will touch upon developments in bilateral relations between Denmark and Turkey and the conditions for Turkey's accession process to the EU in light of the 2012 Danish presidency. While Danish-Turkish relations have been hurt by recent events, such as the political disputes over freedom of speech and the press surrounding the Cartoon Controversy and the Roj TV Affair, at the same time Turkey's stalled negotiation talks with the EU amid freedom of expression issues, human rights concerns, and the unsolved Cyprus dispute have not effectively moved forward since 2010. As a result, the six-months Denmark presidency, preceding the Republic of Cyprus during the second half of 2012, has both demonstrated willingness for closer dialogue and continued EU integration of Turkey and given a genuine gesture towards improved bilateral ties.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, Bilateral Relations, and European Union
Political Geography:
Europe, Turkey, Denmark, Cyprus, and Mediterranean

278. Private Sector Development in the South and East Mediterranean Region

Author:
Mehdi Safavi and Richard Woodward
Publication Date:
10-2012
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Center for Social and Economic Research - CASE
Abstract:
This report is concerned with the analysis of privatization and private sector development for the eastern and southern Mediterranean countries partnered with the European Union and collectively known as MED-11. Noting that the analysis applies to the situation prior to the dislocations of the Arab Spring, we review the shift in the relative shares of the public and private sectors in these countries, as well as the business climate affecting the development of the private sector, examine a number of cultural factors that may influence the development of the private sector, and discuss some alternative scenarios for future developments. In the last 20 years, efforts have been made in all countries of the MED-11 to encourage private sector development and, to a greater or lesser extent, privatization of stateowned assets. However, there is a great deal of differentiation among the countries in the group. In the MED-11, Israel has not only the most business-friendly policy environment but also the most developed private sector, accounting for almost 80% of employment. The other countries of the region can be divided into two groups: one, including Algeria, Libya, and Syria, where reforms promoting privatization and private sector development have been very limited, and the rest, in which they have been much more extensive (the Palestine Authority is, for obvious reasons, a rather special case). A generally poor business environment makes for a large informal sector in almost every country in the region; however, generally speaking, we do not find the cultural factors we examine to be hostile to private sector development. Optimistic, reference and pessimistic scenarios are discussed; which of these is realized in any particular MED-11 country will depend greatly on the direction of change following the events of 2011’s Arab Spring.
Topic:
Development, Privatization, Economy, Innovation, and Private Sector
Political Geography:
Europe and Mediterranean

279. How to improve the economic and social performance of Eastern and Southern Mediterranean countries

Author:
Luc De Wulf and Marek Dabrowski
Publication Date:
11-2012
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Center for Social and Economic Research - CASE
Abstract:
The Eastern and Southern Mediterranean region has many advantages. Its proximity to European markets and its strategic location along the Mediterranean Sea help facilitate the trade of goods among Europe, Asia and Africa. The region has great historical and civilizational importance. It also has plentiful supplies of oil and natural gas resources and great demographic potential. Yet despite these many advantages, the Eastern and Southern Mediterranean region remains relatively backward in economic and social terms and is rightly considered a potential source of social and political instability. In this brief the authors analyze the key challenges facing the MED11 countries and propose policy measures that could improve the region’s economic and social performance.
Topic:
Globalization, Macroeconomics, Trade, and Economic Integration
Political Geography:
Middle East, North Africa, and Mediterranean

280. A Separation? The Principalist Divide and the Parliamentary Elections in Iran

Author:
Hasan Aydin
Publication Date:
02-2012
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
A Separation? The Principalist Divide and the Parliamentary Elections in Iran’ written by TESEV Foreign Policy Programme researcher Enis Erdem Aydın hopes to shed light on this struggle which will be decisive in the making of the ninth parliament and also in the 2013 presidential race. The article, in more detail, will aim to unravel the shifting alliances between the principalist factions, the scope of the rift between Ahmadinejad and Khamenei and the link between Iranian domestic and foreign policy. For such purpose it will entertain three cases where such power struggle is most observed: The embezzlement scandal involving Iran’s leading banks and government officials, the change in the presidential system debate invoked by the Supreme Leader and the raid on two compounds of the British Embassy in Tehran. The article will conclude by entertaining current debates in the aftermath of candidate registration.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Politics, Elections, Alliance, Domestic Policy, and Parliament
Political Geography:
Iran, Turkey, Middle East, and Mediterranean