Measuring Europe 2020: A New Tool to Assess the Strategy

Abstract

This paper aims at analysing the performances of the EU member states in the Europe 2020 Strategy and understanding the main factors of success. It builds on the Europe 2020 Index developed in Pasimeni (2011) to quantify and measure progress achieved by the 27 countries in pursuing the objectives of the strategy and extends the calculation of the index to seven years. The results suggest that institutional factors are more relevant than macroeconomic indicators of public finances, such as GDP growth, levels of government debt and deficit, as success factors in the strategy. This applies to both formal institutions, such as good governance, rule of law, and control of corruption, as well as informal ones, such as social capital. This analysis has been conducted at national level; a regional breakdown of the data would enhance its validity. From a policy perspective, these findings suggest that the current emphasis on public accounts as the main criteria to define structural reforms could be enhanced including a broader focus on institutions.

Keywords: Europe 2020, measurement, institutions, governance, social capital