Poland and Hungary are in Transition - Статья

Poland and Hungary are in Transition The transition of Eastern Europe countries from centralized, planned economy toward market economy was very dramatic for every country of region; it was not only pure economic transformation but institutional and cultural transformation. This paper devoted to Polish and Hungarian reforms in transition period, the countries that could be examined as the most successful in their transition to market economy among other post-communist countries. 1.Polish reforms economy hungarian polish reform Until “Solidarity” won the parliamentary elections in Poland in the summer of 1989, the Polish economy had been, since the end of World War II, a rather typical planned socialist economic system. State ownership was dominated, and though economic reform was attempted in varying degrees at different times, little real systemic change had taken place. In the beginning of 1990, Poland took decisive steps toward a market economy. This shock therapy approach was to be sudden, and in this it differed significantly from the gradualist approach being discussed in other socialist systems. The Shock Therapy approach has not been without critics. Moreover, although the Polish case quickly attracted the interest of those who study the problems of socialist transition, it was viewed as unique. The reform was much more likely to succeed in Poland than in a case like Russia. But before we examine the Polish reform experience more detail, we must review what brought the Polish economy to the reform phase and how, at that point, it might be different from other socialist countries. 2. The Background The organizational system of the Polish command economy was established immediately after World War II and was close to the Soviet Union’s type. There was widespread nationalization of property, central planning mechanisms were established, and agriculture was socialized. Although Poland attempted modification of the command system as early as 1956 when collectivization was abandoned, little actually changed. Over time, private agriculture was neglected by the state, and continuing political protests, especially in the early 1970s, signaled both political and economic difficulties. The 1970s was a difficult decade for many countries, especially those that rely on imported oil. The Polish strategy in the 1970s and later was to stimulate the domestic economy through the importation of foreign technology. This was not an unreasonable strategy in theory, but Western economies were themselves in the centre of the energy crisis and the recession it caused. Polands effort to expand exports failed, hard-currency debt accumulated, and the projected impact of Western technology on the Polish economy was minimal. As the 1970s came to an end, it was evident that domestic reduction would be essential - a difficult path in light of the continuing unrest among Polish workers. The 1980s began with roughly three years of militant law and an attempt to achieve economic stabilization. After half-hearted economic reforms in the early 1980s, the rise of “Solidarity” (which had been outlawed in 1982) proved that major systemic and structural reform was necessary.