EU Average Research Articles

The analysis of waiting time and utilization of computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging in Croatia: a nationwide survey

AimTo assess the variation in the waiting time for diagnostic imaging (DI) services among Croatian public hospitals and the utilization of computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners.MethodsWe analyzed aggregated data from public hospitals. Counties were classified according to economic strength, and utilization was expressed as the average number of exams per machine. We compared the waiting times for 2018 and utilization for 2015 according to hospital category (high and low level) and economic strength by county.ResultsThe waiting time was longer for MRI compared with CT, 268 vs 77.61 days. Overall CT waiting time was in the unfavorable European Health Consumer Index category. High-level hospitals had longer waiting time for MRI and CT. The waiting time positively correlated with economic strength for MRI (P = 0.019), but not for CT. In low-level hospitals, MRI utilization ranged from 104 to 6032, whereas CT utilization ranged from 48 to 17 852. In high-level hospitals, MRI utilization ranged from 3846 to 11 026, while CT utilization ranged from 503 to 17 234. CT (P = 0.041) and MRI (P = 0.031) utilization in high-level hospitals was significantly higher than in low-level hospitals.ConclusionThe waiting times for CT and MRI were exceptionally long regardless of the hospital category, with highly varying utilization. Croatia performed more exams per scanner compared with other EU countries, but not significantly so. High-level hospitals' utilization was significantly higher than that of low-level hospitals, and CT utilization was significantly higher than EU average, while the difference for MRI utilization was not significant.

FROM EDUCATIONAL POLICIES TO ACTUAL PRACTICES: YOUNG NEETS IN ROMANIA

According to Eurostat data, the young NEETs (Not in education, employment or training) rate in Romania is one of the highest in Europe. It ranks 4th in Europe in 2019 (after Italy, Greece, and Slovenia) (Eurostat, 2020), with 11.5% for men, and 27.8% for women (while the EU average is 12.2% for men, and 20.8% for women). In addition, Romania has one of the highest rates of ’other NEETs’, not registered by public employment agencies: only 4.8% were registered in 2018, and received the NEETs benefits (CE, 2018). Recent data show the low performance of Romania in monitoring the school to work transition of youths, in accessing the European funds to support young people entering the labor market, or for offering the Youth Guarantee (Beadle et al., 2020). Even so, Romania, like all other member states, cannot afford to lose the youth capital, while it faces sharp population ageing and outgoing migration. During the last decade, we saw emerging a strong know-how for understanding and addressing the NEETs issue. Reflecting on the research data from different reports and studies, from various findings in large scale H2020 research and innovation projects on NEETs, the paper elaborates on proactive or remedial integrative solutions for improving the situation of young NEETs in Romania, building up on the good practices in atracting NEETs, at national and European level, while using the theoretical framework of the governmentality studies applied to the youth field (Besley, 2010).

E-Government clusters in the EU based on the Gaussian Mixture Models

The use of advanced ICT technologies and the support of new ways of thinking, acting and working in public administration, together with the increased provision of information and interactive services accessible through various channels, is the foundation of eGovernment. In recent years, there has been visible progress in all EU countries in terms of the general framework for e-government strategy, which is based on best practices and methodologies. The aim of our research is to discover the way in which the EU states are situated from the point of view of the digitalization of the administration. For this I used Gaussian models. The main research parameters were: accessibility; transparency, investments in information and communication technologies and investments in infrastructure related to public administrations in EU countries. The results show significant differences between state administrations. We applied Gaussian Mixture Model clustering in order to make an analysis of the national E-government situation in the European Union for 2018. The GMM algorithm estimated six clusters. We find that the first cluster, with Nordic countries, Netherlands and Austria, has the highest values of telecommunication infrastructure, citizens’ access to e-government services and Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index. At the opposite pole, in cluster 2, Romania and Bulgaria have the lowest values of these three indicators, while their public investment levels are not significantly under EU averages. Our research provides not only an overview of the digitization of administrations, but also what are the main lags that state administrations have to recover in order to reach a digital system integrated into the EU's administrative space.

LONG-TERM UNEMPLOYMENT OF THE RISK GROUPS IN THE SLOVAK LABOUR MARKET

Long-term unemployment is a persistent problem for Slovakia. Despite the number of long-term unemployed people in Slovakia has decreased significantly in recent years, it still presents a high proportion of the total unemployment rate. According to the European Commission Report about Slovakia in 2019, while the long-term unemployment rate fell to 4% on a year-on-year basis, it is still well above the EU average of 2.9%. Although growth is expected in the upcoming years, spending on active labour market policies in Slovakia has been one of the lowest in the EU. The study aims at investigating the current situation of long-term unemployment among risk groups in the labour market in Slovakia and labour market measures taken to curb it. It also examines the consequences of unemployment on the family and to seek solutions for the long-term unemployment in Slovakia. The data has been analyzed by a statistical method and proposes solutions to reduce long-term unemployment in the northern part of Slovakia

Dynamics and Factors of Innovation Gap Between the European Union and China

The article focuses on the problem of innovation gap in the world economy, as there are in general countries with developed national innovation systems, playing the role of technology leaders, and those with developing innovation systems, acting as innovation followers. Western European economies belong usually to the first group whereas China is traditionally classified in the second group; however, the analysis conducted in this study reveals a continuous catch-up process of this country towards the European Union in terms of the level of innovativeness of the economy. The purpose of this paper is to measure the dynamics of innovation gap between China and the EU average, and to identify the determinants of its evolution. Although for most of the analyzed indicators related to innovation, China’s performance is much below the EU average, the growth rates for Chinese economy in 2008–2018 have been higher than these of the EU, indicating convergence process. The key to development success in China lies in closing the technological gap by importing existing technology, and strengthening internal capabilities to utilize and improve on those technologies. Different reasons for China’s economy improvement in terms of innovativeness are analyzed, including external factors (e.g., foreign direct investments, which are concentrated mostly in eastern provinces, and associated technology transfer) and internal aspects (like science, technology and innovation policy, investment in research and development, and emergence of innovative regional clusters). The conclusion is that dynamic processes of increasing innovative potential of China provide with a solid fundamental for further convergence and diminishing innovation gap between this country and the European Union.

The energy metabolism of post-industrial economies. A framework to account for externalization across scales

Post-industrial societies heavily rely on the consumption of embodied energy for their activities – i.e., energy invested elsewhere to produce what is imported and consumed (or re-exported). The openness of the energy sector poses modelling challenges, calling for multi-scale, integrated analytical frames. We propose a methodology grounded in societal metabolism aimed at analysing the behaviour of a system (where the system may be a region, a country, a continent, etc.). We make the distinction between three types of scales necessary to contextualize the behaviour of the energy sector within a globalized economy: the macroscope, the mesoscope and the microscope. The methodology is applied to analyze the energy sector of EU19 countries, considering internal and external labour, primary energy sources, energy carriers and GHG emissions. The results show that imported primary energy sources and energy carriers within the EU19 are associated with externalized pressures and impacts. For example, accounting for the externalized carbon emissions of the energy sector raises total GHG emissions of the sector by 60% on EU average. This has implications for the assessment of the effectiveness of global sustainability policies. By not accounting for externalized effects, energy models can miss relevant information about the interactions among systems.

Suicide prevention in Slovenia in the context of public health

Abstract Background Suicide mortality in Slovenia has decreased with 30% in the last two decades, from 28,25 per 100,000 in 2003 to 17,08 per 100,000 in 2018. Nevertheless, the country's suicide rate remains markedly above the EU average. Only from March 2018, Slovenia has a National Strategy for Mental Health 2018-2028, with one of the priority areas being suicide prevention and a strategic goal of decreasing suicide mortality by 15% in the next 10 years. Methods Specific objectives are aimed at (i) raising of mental health awareness and literacy, particularly in relation to suicide, (ii) early identification of people at risk, (iii) access to help and mental health provision for people at risk of suicide, (iv) reduction in alcohol use, (v) restriction of access to the means of suicide. Results Many of suicide prevention initiatives in Slovenia are being implemented on the local, regional, and national level. They include universal and targeted approaches such as collaboration with different gatekeepers (e.g. general practitioners, first responders, school workers, media), screening programs for at risk individuals at the primary health care level (e.g. PHQ-9), network of psychological counselling services, etc. Two interventions will be presented in more detail, namely (i) collaboration with media representatives on responsible reporting on suicide (a 'pre-post' comparison of reporting revealed statistically significant improvement in 6 out of 10 guidelines) and (ii) a population screening for depression and referral program for individuals aged > 35. Conclusions The aforementioned decrease in suicide mortality, timely coincides with the launch of multiple preventative activities. Even though further sound research is necessary to confirm a statistically significant relationship between the observed decrease and these preventive initiatives, it is probable that these actions contribute to the stagnation (and even decline) in the suicide rate in our country.

How are the women in Germany? The Women’s Health Report of German Federal Health Reporting

Abstract Issue The aim of Federal health reporting (GBE) is to continuously provide up-to-date information on the population's health and healthcare utilisation in Germany. Since women and men differ significantly in terms of health and disease, health reporting should always take gender into account. Description of the Problem A new report on women's health in Germany is published in mid-2020 by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), containing data on women's health situation, health behaviour and health care. GBE publications are based on a comprehensive database, including official statistics, RKI health monitoring data, routine data and cancer registry data. We will present exemplary data on key indicators of the report. Results Life expectancy of women in Germany has been rising for many decades. With currently 83.2 years, it is at the EU average. Cardiovascular diseases are still the leading cause of death, accounting for 40% of all deaths. The second leading cause of death in women is cancer. With about 69,000 new cases per year, breast cancer is most common, although incidence and mortality rates have significantly declined. 53% of women in Germany are overweight (EU: 44%), 22% undertake health-enhancing physical activities at least once a week (EU: 10%), the 30-day prevalence of binge drinking is 19% (EU: 10%). Women with a migration background have a lower prevalence of risky alcohol consumption and practice physical activities less frequently. A low birth rate and the postponement of the first birth to a later age are characteristic for Germany (summarized birth rate: 1.57). The caesarean section rate slightly decreased to 30.5% in 2017. In 2018 there were 100,986 terminations of pregnancy, with a declining trend. Lessons The Women's Health Report provides an overview of key issues of women's health in Germany. These can help to improve prevention and health care. In some areas (e.g. benign gynaecological diseases), there are still data gaps in spite of high prevalences. Key messages The Women's Health Report of Federal Health Reporting is published in mid-2020 and provides an overview of key issues of women's health in Germany. Women’s life expectancy in Germany has been rising for many decades and is currently 83.2 years, with cardiovascular diseases and cancer still being the most common causes of death.

Challenges of health workforce in the next decade in Bulgaria

Abstract Issue The sustainable development of human resources is essential for the effective functioning of the health system and the quality of health services. The analysis of the human resources available in the European region proves serious problems in this area, which requires the adoption of strategic documents with measures to overcome the negative tendencies Description The solution of the existing and expected and future shortage of health professionals is essential to protect the health of the population globally. In this regard, the international migration of health professionals and the shortage of skilled health workforce, as well as the growing disparity between population needs, health care supply and demand, is a topical problem for health systems. Results The mobility and shortage of highly qualified specialists are characteristic of the top of the pyramid. There is a significant shortage in the medium and low levels of the pyramid of healthcare professionals and some non-medical majors. In both cases, there are internal and external imbalances, most often caused by increased migration to economic centers in the country or countries with a high standard of living. A severe shortage of nursing professionals -Bulgaria has the second-lowest ratio of nurses to population and the lowest nurse to physician ratio among all member states. (1:1,2 compared to 1:2,3). The emigration of young doctors and nurses and the ageing of all health professionals - especially well pronounced with nurses and general practitioners - is a threat to the health system. Lessons The research of Human Resources in Healthcare is necessary to diagnose the managerial, financial and socioeconomic problems that arise in their formation and development. A key point - changing the system of postgraduate training. The regulatory standards and limits introduced in outpatient and hospital care and the specialization system do not help to link the incomes of medical staff to the quantity and quality of work. Key messages By the number of medical specialists, Bulgaria still holds positions well above the EU average. However, the age structure of workers implies increasing deficits in the future. Bulgaria should invest and support investments in the development of human capital in the health care system.

“VešKajPiješ?” (You know what you drink?) - mobile app for reducing alcohol related harm in Slovenia

Abstract Regulation (EU) No. 1169/2011 on the provision of food information to consumers, provides that the labelling of ingredients and nutritional declaration is not mandatory for alcoholic beverages with more than 1.2% alcohol by volume. Consequently, consumers generally do not have access to similar information on alcoholic beverages as they do for food and non-alcoholic beverages. In Slovenia, drinking alcohol is a serious public health problem, both among adolescents and adults. Per capita consumption of pure alcohol in Slovenia is above the EU average. In order to achieve better results and reduce alcohol related harm, we need a comprehensive alcohol policy that incorporates proven effective measures in different areas of action. In 2019, in the frame of Slovenian programme “VesKajJes” (Know what you eat) supported by MoH, a mobile application was developed that enables consumers to scan EAN code for gaining the nutrition profile of selected food item. An analysis of the behaviour of mobile app users revealed that alcoholic beverages are one of the most frequently sought products; of all searches, as many as 36% of users wanted to get information about alcohol beverages. This was a major reason for upgrading the mobile application with information about alcoholic beverages. Additionally this newly developed communication channel will be used for raising awareness about alcohol-related harm. Mobile application “VešKajPiješ?” (You know what you drink?) will be developed within which we will: (1) collect information on at least 1,500 alcoholic beverages; (2) develop the protocol for a reliable assessment of the energy values depending of the type of alcoholic beverages; (3) prepare short health messages to raise awareness about the effects of hazardous and harmful alcohol use; (4) develop an application upgrade to show the alcohol content, energy value of alcoholic beverages, health messages and a link to a screening tool for assessing the alcohol consumption (AUDIT). Key messages There is a growing support for mandatory labelling of alcohol-containing beverages including health warnings. The program presents a solution consisting of a mobile app for consumers seeking information.

Denmark

Denmark’s insurance sector is highly developed with a particularly high penetration and density in the life sector. Traditionally, work-related life insurance and pension savings are offered as a combined package, and life insurance companies dominate the market for mandatory pension schemes for employees. The high penetration explains the overall size of the insurance sector, which exceeds those of peers from other Nordic countries and various other EU member states. Assets managed by the insurance industry amounted to 146 percent of the GDP at end-2018, compared to 72 percent for the EU average.

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA’S RENEWABLE ENERGY POLICY AND PERSPECTIVE

Bosnia and Herzegovina is one of the richest countries in the Balkans in terms of renewable energy sources. Although Bosnia and Herzegovina has energy sources such as geothermal, solar and wind, the primary sources of electricity supply are from hydroelectric power plants and thermal power plants. The share of these two sources in total consumption is 62%. Drina attracts investors in the sector with nearly 200 hydroelectric power generation projects located on big and other small rivers such as Neretva, Bosnia, Una, Trebisnjica and Vrbas. According to Bosnia and Herzegovina 2019 data, it has an electricity generation capacity of approximately 18,000 GW. It is ranked ninth in the world in terms of hydroelectric power. Also, renewable energy potential in Bosnia and Herzegovina, such as wind, biomass and geothermal energy, is quite high. Especially the southern part of the country has been identified as the corridor of wind energy. In the examinations made, it has been determined that Bosnia and Herzegovina's performance coefficient in wind energy potential is above 30% of the EU average. However, the country's population density includes sensitive situations for new energy investments due to migration and geopolitical reasons. Despite this, the successful progress in the European Union negotiations and the laws enacted in the field of renewable energy also offer very attractive investment areas. In this study, a prospective approach was made regarding the renewable energy policy of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the economic approach of the country to renewable energy and the renewable energy policies of the government were discussed.Keywords: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Renewable Energy, Renewable Energy Policy, Energy Perspective.JEL Classifications: Q2, O2, N74, F13.DOI: https://doi.org/10.32479/ijeep.9777

Moterų dalyvavimo Lietuvos vietos savivaldoje ir valstybės valdyme geografinė analizė / Geographical Analysis of Lithuanian Women‘s Participation in Local Government and State Governance

This article analyzes the share of Lithuanian women in political decision-making. The article discusses the importance of gender balance in politics, the relevance of the topic, the stereotypes of women politicians prevailing in the society and analyzes the situation of Lithuanian politicians in the general context of the European Union states. This study focuses on the change in the proportion of women in the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania during the last three terms of office (2008–2019 period) and the change in the share of women in Lithuanian municipal councils (period 2011–2019). The survey is based on data from the Lithuanian Central Electoral Commission, the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania and the European Institute for Gender Equality. One of the objectives of the European Union is the balance of gender equality in political power. Lithuania‘s situation on this issue in the European Union is rather moderate. In most of the areas of political decision-making that are important to the state, Lithuania is behind the EU average. Although progress in gender equality is generally observed in Europe, there are no more noticeable changes in Lithuania or improvement in the situation - women remain a critical mass (30 % below the threshold) among the heads of state, parliament and municipal councils. Keywords: gender inequality, women‘s political power, European Union, women in Lithuanian political institutions, women in local government.

Industry 4.0-Related Digital Divide in Enterprises: An Analysis for The European Union-28

Digital divide has been measured using various indicators in the literature so far. In contrast from the literature, this paper addresses the digital divide within European Union member states according to Industry 4.0-related indicators that have been used for the first time in empirical literature. While Finland, the UK and Germany are among the countries with economic development levels above the EU average, Cyprus, Bulgaria, and Romania are among the countries that are below the Union average in terms of Industry 4.0-related development. It is clear that an Industry 4.0-related digital divide is observable within EU member countries. The European Union should try to decrease the digital gap between member countries by developing and supporting special Industry 4.0 policies, especially for members below the EU average. Therefore, the results of this article will help policy makers in the EU and in member countries.

Measuring the development of the Hungarian electronic administration

The creation of electronic administration and the measurement of the results achieved have been one of the central themes of research into the development of the information society for two decades. The European Commission publishes annually e-government comparative analyses (eGovernment Benchmark reports), providing insight into the use of ICT in the public sector in the countries examined.
 In recent years, the measuring system has been modified and supplemented several times. The Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) and the benchlearning approach assess the performance of eadministration on the basis of additional considerations. Hungary's performance is improving, but still below the EU average. Exploring the causes of the underperformance is a priority for catching up.
 On the basis of a survey of students at the National University of Public Service, the author analyses user characteristics (digital skills, ICT use) and the characteristics of public administration (quality of electronic administration services) in their context.

E-Government in Croatia

The composite index summarizing relevant indicators of Europe's digital performance and tracking the progress of EU Member States in digital competitiveness in the Croatian case, still below the EU average, especially in the area of e-government. The aim of this article is twofold. First, we evaluate the difference between respondents 18 to 24 and 25 to 34 according to their attitudes towards the usage of offered e-government solutions. Second, we determine the presence of the obstacles in using e-government solutions among these two age groups. The utilization of e-government services is still rather low, and one, a very important reason for lower usage of e-government services in Croatia is the perceived low level of quality of the e-government services with the perceived high level of obstacles towards their usage.

An Appraisal of Over-tourism on the Island of Crete, Greece

Over-tourism is a multi-faced problem with severe economic, social and environmental consequences in tourist destinations. The island of Crete is an attractive and popular tourist destination in the Eastern Mediterranean basin and it is currently ranked among the ten most overcrowded EU tourism NUTS-2 regions. This fact could threaten and harm the fragile natural ecosystems in the island resulting in the decline of the prosperous tourism industry in the future. The aim of the current work is the estimation of various tourism indexes in the island of Crete which characterize over-tourism. Data regarding tourist arrivals and overnight stays in Crete in the previous years have been used for estimating the appropriate tourism indexes. Comparisons with other EU regions and with the average EU and global values have also been made. The possibility of creating a tourism observatory in Crete for tackling excess tourism has also been outlined. Our results indicate that Crete is categorized as an overcrowded tourism destination among EU regions while its tourism indexes are above the EU and global average. Cooperation among all stakeholders in the Cretan tourism industry is required in order to cope with over-tourism, shifting the local tourism industry towards a more sustainable and responsible model. The creation of a tourism observatory on the island with the participation of all tourism stakeholders is necessary. The observatory will assist in the development of the required policies offering guidance and advice for tackling excess tourism in Crete, avoiding economic, social and environmental degradation in the future.

Self-rated health and chronic morbidity in the EU-28 and Turkey

In this article, self-perceived health in 11 European Union countries and Turkey was studied and the effects of socio-economic factors on self-rated health in Turkey were analysed. The percentage distributions of self-perceived health, chronic morbidity and activity limits in the health module of the Income and Living Condition Surveys conducted between 2008 and 2016 in the EU-28 and Turkey were analysed. The effects of income, education, work status, gender, marital status and age on self-perceived health, chronic morbidity and activity limitations were tested with stepwise binary logistic regression. In the EU-28 and Turkey, 70%–75% of the population aged ≥ 16 years reported very good or good health, while the rate of chronic illness averaged around 30–35%. Socio-economic conditions in the EU-28 and Turkey affected self-perceived health and illness. It was found that income, education level, gender, employment status, marital status and age groups had significant effects on having a poor health status. The prevalence of chronic illness in more densely populated EU countries was above the EU-28 average. One in three people in the EU-28 and Turkey had at least one or more chronic conditions. The people in the bottom income quintile usually had the lowest education level in Turkey. These two significant factors coincided with negative health status, chronic conditions and daily activity limitations since health issues are more commonly observed in people with lower socio-economic status. Age was the most important determinant of chronic conditions in Turkey. For every 10 years of age, the risk of poor health and chronic illness increased exponentially.

Korzyści podatkowe jako element wspierający podmioty ekonomiczne w okresie walki z COVID-19: aspekt porównawczy i prawny

Niniejszy artykuł stanowi analizę porównawczą ukraińskiego systemu podatkowego oraz jego odpowiedników w innych krajach. Ma ona na celu ustalenie konkurencyjności Ukrainy na światowych rynkach towarowych i inwestycyjnych oraz wskazanie głównych kierunków reform systemu podatkowego w dobie kryzysu ekonomicznego wywołanego zastosowaniem środków związanych z kwarantanną. Rozważaniom oraz analizie poddano wpływ liberalizacji systemu podatkowego na rozwój społeczno-ekonomiczny Ukrainy oraz innych krajów. Dokonano porównań w następujących obszarach: poziom ogólnego ciężaru podatkowego, rozłożenie go pomiędzy główne rodzaje podatków i grup płatników oraz skuteczność fiskalna systemów podatkowych. Po przeanalizowaniu danych pochodzących z krajów europejskich autorki porównały je z kilkoma parametrami opisującymi duże gospodarki świata, takie jak Stany Zjednoczone, Chiny czy Singapur. Wykazano, iż UE nieco gorzej radzi sobie niż USA pod względem preferencyjnego administrowania wymiarem podatku oraz z procesami płatni czymi, a także w zakresie wypełniania zeznań podatkowych przez podatników. Jednakże w krajach UE są stosunkowo niskie stawki podatku od osób prawnych (w porównaniu do Chin i USA). Mimo iż Chiny oraz Singapur znacznie zmniejszyły stawki tego podatku, ich poziom nadal pozostał powyżej średniej w UE. Aby usprawnić funkcjonowanie systemu podatkowego na Ukrainie, autorki zalecają skoncentrować wysiłki na dynamicznej transformacji, którą można zaobserwować w nowych państwach członkowskich UE – stanowiących jednocześnie głównych konkurentów Ukrainy na światowych rynkach towarowych i kapitałowych – by opierając się na ich doświadczeniach, pracować nad poprawą warunków podatkowych, co przyczyni się do lepszego wypełniania obowiązków podatkowych w sensie regulacyjnym i fiskalnym. Autorki dochodzą do wniosku, że zmiany ustawodawstwa podatkowego na Ukrainie w obliczu konieczności ochrony podmiotów ekonomicznych w dobie pandemii COVID-19 są skuteczne, wystarczające i spójne ze światową praktyką prawną. Zatem liberalizacja systemu podatkowego jest jednym z decydujących czynników światowego rozwoju społeczno-ekonomicznego.

Poverty Effects of Remittances: Evidence in CEE Countries

The countries with a transition economy in the EU have experienced rapid growth of labour migration and remittance flows during the last two decades. Remittances are improving household economic welfare, so it is important to evaluate how these financial flows may affect the poverty situation, as CEE countries are facing levels of poverty and inequality way above the EU average. The paper examines the impact of remittances on poverty, using the panel of seven CEE countries considered as advanced transition economies over the period of 2006-2015. Pooled OLS, fixed effects, random effects, and 3-stage least squared estimators are used to estimate the poverty effects of remittances. The results show that remittances have a significant impact on three out of four poverty measures. Taking into consideration the endogeneity problem, it is estimated that a 10-per cent increase in remittances to GDP ratio will lead to a decline, on average, by 5.5 per cent in poverty headcount, and also by 3.7 per cent in poverty gap and 0.6 per cent in the risk of poverty. These results can be important for defining the policy measures on providing more efficient management of remittances.