XIV Summer School of Economic 2011

On 18 July 2011, was the first day of this year’s Summer School of Economics. The School was officially opened by Prof. Dejan Erić, director of the Institute of Economic Sciences. He gave a brief introduction of the Institute and its activities, and welcomed the students, wishing that during the course of the Summer School they would become richer in knowledge and new friends.

The opening ceremony was also visited by the representatives of the National Bank of Serbia, the Embassy of the USA, and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation.

Programme

Mr. Radovan Jelašić, CEO and Chairperson of Erste Bank Hungary, and former Governer of the National Bank of Serbia, gave an introductory speech. He talked about the lessons that can be learned from the financial crises in Southeast Europe, with special emphasis on problems that Serbia had to deal with.

The second lecturer was Mr. John Fund, columnist of the Wall Street Journal. He gave two lectures today, talking about the principles of the free trade, and about secrets of economically successful European countries that are not EU members.

Mr. Kristian Vukojičić, deputy general manager of the Voluntary pension funds supervision unit of the National Bank of Serbia, held the last lecture today. He introduced the concept of the voluntary pension funds to the students, and gave an overview of the current situation and future prospects of the private pension funds in Serbia and the region.

Second day of the Summer School of Economics 2011

The first lecture of the second day of the Summer School of Economics was held by Mr. Bojan Marković, the Vice-governor of the National Bank of Serbia. Mr. Marković talked about the role of a central bank in monetary policy, and about the mechanisms that are at disposal, with special emphasis on activities that the National Bank of Serbia undertakes in that regard.

The next lecturer was Mr. Matthias Schäfer, from the Konrad Adenauer Foundation. He introduced the concept of social market economy to the students, and spoke about the way it operates in Germany.

Today's final lecture was held by Mr. John Fund, whose topic was entitled: "Tax competition: US and International".

The third day of the Summer School of Economics 2011

Ms. Barbara Kolm, Director of the F.A. von Hayek Institute from Vienna, and President of the European Center for Economic Growth, held two lectures today. During the first lecture she talked about the Austrian school of economics, while at the second lecture from that school's point of view, she presented the main lessons to be learned from the current economic crises.

The second lecturer today was Mr. John Fund, who talked about the relationship between Hayek and Keynes.

The last lecture today was held by the economists of the World Bank country office in Serbia, Lazar Šestović i Duško Vasiljević. First, they gave a brief overview of the activities of the World Bank in Serbia, after which they presented main findings of the Country Economic Memorandum which is being prepared for Serbia.

Fourth day of the Summer School of Economics 2011

The first lecture today was held by Professor Ljubomir Madžar, professor emeritus of the Belgrade University. He spoke about the new tendencies in the economic development of Serbia, in particular about the institutional factors and political constraints.

Afterwards, the lecture was given by Professor Branko Milanović, Lead Economics of the World Bank and Professor at the School of Public Policy of the University of Maryland, USA. He talked about the theories that deal with the problem of inequality, as well as the findings of empirical studies.

Professor Dejan Šoškić, Governor of the National Bank of Serbia, held the third lecture today. Governor Šoškić gave the lecture about the introduction of Basel II standards and new macroprudential regulation.

The last lecturer today was Mr. Milko Štimac, President of the Serbian Securities Commission. He talked about shareholding and democracy

The Last Day of the Summer School of Economics 2011

The first lecture today was given by Mr. Joost de Laat, and Ms. Ivana Aleksić, the World Bank human development expert and specialist. They talked about the quality of the educational system in Serbia, and the missing skills.

The second lecturer was Mr. Srđan Kokotović, economist from the Office of the Resident Representative of the IMF in Serbia. He talked about economic outlook for Serbia and the region.

The last lecture was held by Professor Branko Milanović. He discussed the issue of global inequality between countries and among individuals.

At the end of this year's Summer School, Professor Ivan Stošić, Assistant Director of the Institute of Economic Sciences, and Mrs. Kosovka Ognjenović, Director of the 2011 Summer School of Economics presented the students with the certificates.

In the evening a farewell dinner was organized, and students, as well as professors and representatives of organizers and donors, were invited.