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<title>Itinera Institute</title>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org</link>
<description>Itinera Institute</description>
<image>
<url>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/web/sources/img/logo_itinera.jpg</url>
<title>Itinera Institute</title>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org</link>
</image>
<copyright>Copyright 2012, Itinera Institute</copyright>
<language>en</language>
<pubDate>Mon, 18 Jun 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<item>
<title>Local elections 2012: the OCMW/CPAS of the future</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 18 Jun 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/ocmw-cpas/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/ocmw-cpas/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Belgium is an immigration nation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Itinera launched a first series of studies and debates on the pretext of &ldquo;Mobilization for integration&rdquo;. Laurent Hanseeuw (fellow Itinera Institute) concludes in his report that a quarter of the Belgian population has at least one parent born abroad. In the past ten years Belgium witnessed a net migration of about 500.000 people, or 4,5% of the population, by which Belgium scores higher than the United States and Canada. Itinera pleas for a policy mobilization that addresses all levels and is based on a firm consensus regarding strategy. <br/>Jozef De Witte (director CECGK) discussed the failure of the integration policy and pleas for a result-oriented integration policy, with a clear mission and concrete policy instruments. Rachida Azdouz, specialist in intercultural relations at University of Montreal, holds up a Canadian mirror: the sterile debate on the multicultural society is out of date. <br/>]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 May 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/belgium-is-an-immigration-nation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/belgium-is-an-immigration-nation/</guid>
</item>
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<title>From respect for the being different to an ethics of living together</title>
<description><![CDATA[ All immigration countries are facing huge challenges and need to find a solution for the growing diversification of the population. The quest for the ideal model of living together is one of the big current issues for which every political party needs to give an answer in its program. In this study Rachida Azdouz is giving a description of the two most spread models, followed by a short analysis of their purpose and their restrictions. Finally some recommendations and measures are given in the form of challenges and prospects. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 May 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-respect-for-the-being-different-to-an-ethics-of-living-together/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-respect-for-the-being-different-to-an-ethics-of-living-together/</guid>
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<title>Has integration policy failed?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ More than twenty years the issue of integration has been part of the preoccupations of our country, since the famous report of the royal commissariat, the predecessor of the current Centrum for Equity of Chances. This analysis report on the reality of questions on integration, discriminations and broader living together in our society. We need inevitably to recognize that enormous challenges remain to exist and that the problems are present. Solutions do however exist and we can and must touch upon them. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 May 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/has-integration-policy-failed/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/has-integration-policy-failed/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Immigration nation Belgium: statistics and trends</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The second part of the twentieth century Belgium has become an immigration nation. After the Glorious Thirty and the famous agreements to let foreign workers come to Belgium, immigration in our country has more and more evolved towards the channels of family reunification and asylum, together with a growing impact of the intra-European mobility. This analysis presents the reality behind the statistics of this migration phenomenon. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 May 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/immigration-nation-belgium-statistics-and-trends/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/immigration-nation-belgium-statistics-and-trends/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Integration: what&#8217;s in a name? Going beyond multiculturalism for immigration nation Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 May 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/integration-whats-in-a-name/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/integration-whats-in-a-name/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Austerity or growth: a law of nature or a question of choice?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos recognizes the need to counter the effects of necessary austerity measures, but warns that a period of limited growth is as good as unavoidable. Stringent budgetary targets are necessary to make growth durable again.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 May 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/austerity-or-growth-a-law-of-nature-or-a-question-of-choice/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/austerity-or-growth-a-law-of-nature-or-a-question-of-choice/</guid>
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<title>Itinera welcomes debate on the corporate tax</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Itinera made a calculation of the income of the corporate tax. This calculation caused a great deal of controversy in the media. Itinera supports and welcomes every debate on fiscal reform, also with regard to the corporate tax. A good debate necessitas a correct interpretation of the data. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 11 May 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/itinera-welcomes-debate-on-the-corporate-tax/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/itinera-welcomes-debate-on-the-corporate-tax/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Memento: tabel corporate tax</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 11 May 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/itinera-welcomes-debate-on-corporate-tax/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/itinera-welcomes-debate-on-corporate-tax/</guid>
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<title>Reforms for medicine policies</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 10 May 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/reforms-for-medicine-policy-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/reforms-for-medicine-policy-in-belgium/</guid>
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<item>
<title>The cash cow of medicines in Belgium: reform or preserve?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Government policy targets the price and volume of medicine use to cut healthcare spending. In
this analysis, Itinera examines the need and potential for such reforms, what are the advantages
and disadvantages, and how to proceed further. The need for reform is substantial in short
term, with a potential of 444 million euro in yearly savings because of price competition after patent
expiry. In the long run, a refocusing towards evidence based medicine use is needed to partially
address the issue of rising care expenditure.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 May 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-cash-cow-of-medicines-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-cash-cow-of-medicines-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Video: Ivan Van de Cloot on the result of elections in France and Greece</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 08 May 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-ivan-van-de-cloot-on-the-result-of-elections-in-france-and-greece/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-ivan-van-de-cloot-on-the-result-of-elections-in-france-and-greece/</guid>
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<title>Equity and quality in education</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The highest performing education systems are those that combine equity with quality. They give all children opportunities for a good quality education. This report presents policy recommendations for education systems to help all children succeed in their schooling. It looks into system level and school level policies to promote equity and quality. It also provides evidence on how to support disadvantaged students and schools, in order to improve the opportunities for them to take as much as possible benefit from the education system as a whole.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/equity-and-quality-in-education/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/equity-and-quality-in-education/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Labor market effects of migration in OECD</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This paper studies the labor market effects of net immigration and emigration during the 1990&#8217;s in all OECD countries. Using micro level database, they find that migration is mainly a fact from educated people. It has positive impacts on wages for low-educated natives while it has no significant impact on overall wages or employment in the host country. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labor-market-effects-of-migration-in-oecd/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labor-market-effects-of-migration-in-oecd/</guid>
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<title>Regulating high salaries</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Since the start of the crisis, the discourse about high earnings has changed: people explain and excuse them ever less. In this report, Terra Nova, a French progressive think-tank, analyses the reality of high and very-high earnings in France and give policy recommendations to regulate it better. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/regulating-high-salaries/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/regulating-high-salaries/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>From Growth to Green Growth</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With this new paper, the World Bank is giving a point of view on how an economy can shift to more environment-friendly growth and the necessary adaptation it requires on the labor market. Obviously, economies which have based their industrial production on cheap carbon energy will need to adapt much more.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 26 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-growth-to-green-growth/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-growth-to-green-growth/</guid>
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<title>Gender gap in self-employment</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Using a large dataset for Germany, this paper shows that both the raw and the unexplained gender earnings gap are higher in self-employment than in paid employment. More than a quarter of the difference in monthly self-employment earnings can be traced back to women working fewer hours than men. In contrast variables like family background, working time flexibility and career aspirations do not seem to contribute much to the gender earnings gap, suggesting that self-employed women do not earn less because they are seeking work-family balance rather than profits. Segregation does not contribute either to the gender earnings gap in a robust way.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 26 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gender-gap-in-self-employment/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gender-gap-in-self-employment/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Migration and Health in the European Union</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This book explores key features of health and migration in the European Union. The increasing diversity of populations in Europe creates new challenges for health systems, which have to adapt in order to remain responsive. These challenges are increasingly recognized with regard to migrants, who comprise a growing share of European populations.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 26 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migration-and-health-in-the-european-union/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migration-and-health-in-the-european-union/</guid>
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<title>Population aging and the evolving care needs of older Canadians  </title>
<description><![CDATA[ As the first members of Canada&#8217;s baby boom generation turn 65, the official age of retirement, this study by gerontologist Neena Chappell provides a timely overview of the main health and social policy challenges as a result of aging  population in three areas: informal care, formal care, and prevention.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 26 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/population-aging-and-the-evolving-care-needs-of-older-canadians/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/population-aging-and-the-evolving-care-needs-of-older-canadians/</guid>
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<title>Protect deposits against speculation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The United Kingdom has decided to compel banks to separate their commercial activities from their investment activities in order to protect the depositors. The European Union wishes to compel all its member to do the same but the big banks resist this idea. Belgium has to think about a solution that would not only protect the depositors and the State, but also banks themselves.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 26 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/protect-deposits-against-speculation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/protect-deposits-against-speculation/</guid>
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<title>Sudden stops in the euro area</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This paper by Bruegel explains how balance of payments issues have evolved throughout the euro crisis. Southern European countries ran important current account deficits since the launch of the single currency in 1999. After the euro crisis, private capital inflows to these countries collapsed and were replaced by public one, essentially loans from Eurozone countries and the IMF as well as inter-central bank loans within the Eurozone. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 26 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/sudden-stops-in-the-euro-area/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/sudden-stops-in-the-euro-area/</guid>
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<title>The new financing law </title>
<description><![CDATA[ This study of the KUL analyses the impact of the Belgian financing law on the revenues of regions and communities in Belgium. The authors judge this new framework in regard to three aspects: autonomy, responsibility and the nature of solidarity between regions and communities. They conclude that autonomy will probably rise while responsibility will probably not change and might even be reduced. They see no possible perverse or excessive solidarity coming out of the new framework. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 26 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-new-financing-law/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-new-financing-law/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Currency union needs macroprudential policy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Policy makers need to bury the Greenspan doctrine that says it would be impossible to identify bubbles and one can only clean up after bubbles burst. The currency union needs macroprudential policy to fight excesses. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 25 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/currency-union-needs-macroprudential-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/currency-union-needs-macroprudential-policy/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Video: Private healthcare expenditure in Belgium: Pieter Van Herck</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Institute presented on 18th of April an analysis in which the personal share of the patient in sickness costs is mapped out. Senior fellow Pieter Van Herck gives some explanation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 23 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-private-healthcare-expenditure-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-private-healthcare-expenditure-in-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Spanish crisis claims for deep measures</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Spain is too big to be saved from outside. The reforms the country needs are deep and will take time to be effective.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 19 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/spanish-crisis-claims-for-deep-measures/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/spanish-crisis-claims-for-deep-measures/</guid>
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<title>Stimulus must counter the Euro-depression and complement austerity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos argues that the Olive-zone of Euro-land is trapped in a depressionary spiral. Austerity and reform are necessary but need to be complemented with a European investment plan. Failing to do so will moreover polarize elections beyond control. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 19 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/stimulus-must-counter-the-euro-depression-and-complement-austerity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/stimulus-must-counter-the-euro-depression-and-complement-austerity/</guid>
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<title>Opening the black box of private healthcare expenditure in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/opening-the-black-box-of-private-expenditure-on-health-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/opening-the-black-box-of-private-expenditure-on-health-in-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Presentation: Private healthcare expenditure in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-private-healthcare-expenditure-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-private-healthcare-expenditure-in-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Private healthcare expenditure in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In this Itinera paper, we examine the current status and evolution of not publicly covered health
expenses in Belgium. A detailed overview of relevant data for both institutional and ambulatory
care is presented, with time trends and comparison with neighboring countries. We observe that
private health expenses in Belgium are high and rising. Out-of-pocket expenses even surpass the
level of the US. We make far less use of additional coverage possibilities than our neighbors,
regardless of the fact that the self-reported negative consequences of the healthcare related
financial burden are expanding.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-private-uitgaven-in-de-belgische-gezondheidszorg/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-private-uitgaven-in-de-belgische-gezondheidszorg/</guid>
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<title>Private healthcare expenditure in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/private-healthcare-expenditure-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/private-healthcare-expenditure-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Private healthcare expenditure: some concrete cases</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/private-healthcare-expenditure-some-concrete-cases/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/private-healthcare-expenditure-some-concrete-cases/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Anchoring a debt brake in the constitution</title>
<description><![CDATA[ By a constitutional binding deficit rule policy makers will be forced to take the necessary budget measures and to stipulate a real long term policy for the public finances. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 29 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/anchoring-a-debt-brake-in-the-constitution/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/anchoring-a-debt-brake-in-the-constitution/</guid>
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<title>Video: Itinera Brainstorm: Laurent Hanseeuw and Ivan Van de Cloot</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Institute launches the Itinera Brainstorm: an open reflection containing more than 100 surprising proposals by experts from politics, civil society and academics. With these new ideas we hope, also in 2012, to keep the debate alive in Belgium and its regions. 
More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas! ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 23 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-itinera-brainstorm/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-itinera-brainstorm/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Immigration nation Belgium is graying and colouring</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos traces the trajectory of immigration into Belgium and concludes that we are quickly colouring, as well as greying. Immigration nation Belgium will have to develop a broad integration strategy and will have big needs in reception, training, housing, schooling, child care, and the labour market.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 22 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/immigration-nation-belgium-is-graying-and-colouring/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/immigration-nation-belgium-is-graying-and-colouring/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Video: Itinera Brainstorm: Ivan Van de Cloot</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 22 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-itinera-brainstorm-ivan-van-de-cloot/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-itinera-brainstorm-ivan-van-de-cloot/</guid>
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<title>Housing in Brussels: an ongoing construction site</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Laurent Hanseeuw recalls the housing issues prevailing in Brussels. He explains how housing policies favoring the building of large houses and apartments have anti-social and counterproductive effects.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 20 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/housing-in-brussels-an-ongoing-construction-site/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/housing-in-brussels-an-ongoing-construction-site/</guid>
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<title>Itinera Brainstorm: more than 50 experts present more than 100 new ideas for reform!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/itinera-brainstorm-press/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/itinera-brainstorm-press/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Itinera Brainstorm</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. With these new ideas we hope to keep, also in 2012, the debate alive in Belgium and its regions. 
More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!
]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 14 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-itinera-brainstorm/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-itinera-brainstorm/</guid>
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<title>Adnet: calculer autrement la pension pour donner plus de poids aux journ&#233;es de travail</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/adnet-calculer-autrement-la-pension-pour-donner-plus-de-poids-aux-journees-de-travail/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/adnet-calculer-autrement-la-pension-pour-donner-plus-de-poids-aux-journees-de-travail/</guid>
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<title>Aernoudt: Depolitisering administraties en media</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/aernoudt-depolitisering-administraties-en-media/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/aernoudt-depolitisering-administraties-en-media/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Annemans: Voluit gaan voor preventie, in al haar facetten</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/annemans-voluit-gaan-voor-preventie-in-al-haar-facetten/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/annemans-voluit-gaan-voor-preventie-in-al-haar-facetten/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Babylon: Gratis &#8220;geneesmiddelen check-up&#8221; </title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/babylon-gratis-geneesmiddelen-check-up/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/babylon-gratis-geneesmiddelen-check-up/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Bienstman: Nood aan LEV in plaats van grasmobiel</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bienstman-nood-aan-lev-in-plaats-van-grasmobiel/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bienstman-nood-aan-lev-in-plaats-van-grasmobiel/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Broeckx: De beslissing rond politieke aspecten en keuzes scheiden van de technische uitvoering ervan </title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/broeckx-de-beslissing-rond-politieke-aspecten-en-keuzes-scheiden-van-de-technische-uitvoering-ervan/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/broeckx-de-beslissing-rond-politieke-aspecten-en-keuzes-scheiden-van-de-technische-uitvoering-ervan/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Broeckx: kwaliteit incentives: Pay for Quality or Performance</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/broeckx-kwaliteit-incentives/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/broeckx-kwaliteit-incentives/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Broeckx: Leven op een breuklijn</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Ben Broeckx: Leven op een breuklijn]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/broeckx-leven-op-een-breuklijn/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/broeckx-leven-op-een-breuklijn/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Calcoen: De hoge out-of-pocket uitgaven voor gezondheidszorg aanpakken</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/calcoen-de-hoge-out-of-pocket-uitgaven-voor-gezondheidszorg-aanpakken/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/calcoen-de-hoge-out-of-pocket-uitgaven-voor-gezondheidszorg-aanpakken/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>De Boe: Edushock</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Dirk De Boe: Edushock]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-boe-edushock/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-boe-edushock/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>De Boe: Een Belgische Creashock</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-boe-een-belgische-creashock/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-boe-een-belgische-creashock/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>De Maeseneer: Een toegankelijke, kwaliteitsvolle en pati&#235;ntgerichte gezondheidszorg</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-maeseneer-gezondheidszorg/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-maeseneer-gezondheidszorg/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>De Wever: Assurer le cout-efficacit&#233; des nouvelles technologies m&#233;dicales</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-wever/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-wever/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Deeltijds pensioen</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/deeltijds-pensioen/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/deeltijds-pensioen/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Degadt: effici&#235;ntiewinsten in de gezondheidszorg</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/degadt-efficientiewinsten-in-de-gezondheidszorg/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/degadt-efficientiewinsten-in-de-gezondheidszorg/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Deneef/Vandenbergh: BEMU : the Brussels European Metropolitan University</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bemu/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bemu/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Deneef: accorder le droit de vote aux Europ&#233;ens aux &#233;lections r&#233;gionales &#224; Bruxelles</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/deneef-accorder-le-droit-de-vote-aux-europeens-aux-elections-regionales/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/deneef-accorder-le-droit-de-vote-aux-europeens-aux-elections-regionales/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Deneef: Des &#233;coles europ&#233;ennes ouvertes profitant aux habitants de Bruxelles et du Brabant</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/deneef-ecoles-europeennes/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/deneef-ecoles-europeennes/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Deneef: La cr&#233;ation d&#8217;un m&#233;canisme de gouvernance d&#8217;une Communaut&#233; m&#233;tropolitaine</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/deneef-mecanisme-de-gouvernance-dune-communaute-metropolitaine/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/deneef-mecanisme-de-gouvernance-dune-communaute-metropolitaine/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Deneef: Un plan ambitieux de transport dans, vers et autour de Bruxelles</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/deneef-un-plan-ambitieux-de-transport/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/deneef-un-plan-ambitieux-de-transport/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Denys: Een kenniselitair arbeidsmarktbeleid </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/denys-een-kenniselitair-arbeidsmarktbeleid/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/denys-een-kenniselitair-arbeidsmarktbeleid/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Devolder/Boulet: Refonte des d&#233;parts &#224; la pension: d&#233;parts progressifs, r&#233;gimes cumul&#233;s </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/devolder-boulet-departs-progressifs-regimes-cumules/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/devolder-boulet-departs-progressifs-regimes-cumules/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Devolder/boulet: une vraie perspective d&#8217;avenir: les comptes notionnels</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/les-comptes-notionnels/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/les-comptes-notionnels/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Een paritaire Staten-Generaal</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/een-paritaire-staten-generaal/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/een-paritaire-staten-generaal/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Eyskens: een confederaal congres</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/eyskens-een-confederaal-congres/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/eyskens-een-confederaal-congres/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>G&#233;rard: un imp&#244;t des personnes physiques en trois tranches</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gerard-un-impot-des-personnes-physiques-en-trois-tranches/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gerard-un-impot-des-personnes-physiques-en-trois-tranches/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Ginsburgh: Pour une politique linguistique consensuelle et concert&#233;e</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ginsburgh-politique-linguistique/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ginsburgh-politique-linguistique/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Grietens: Kadastraal inkomen als instrument pro wonen in de stad</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/grietens/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/grietens/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Gyory: Un transfert des moyens de soutien &#224; l'emploi vers l'enseignement</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Michel Gyory: Un transfert des moyens de soutien &#224; l'emploi vers l'enseignement]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gyory-un-transfert-des-moyens-de-soutien-lemploi-vers-lenseignement/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gyory-un-transfert-des-moyens-de-soutien-lemploi-vers-lenseignement/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Hellings: Quality and Safety structureel integreren in de ziekenhuiswerking</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hellings-quality-and-safety-structureel-integreren-in-de-ziekenhuiswerking/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hellings-quality-and-safety-structureel-integreren-in-de-ziekenhuiswerking/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>hervorming grendelgrondwet</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hervorming-grendelgrondwet/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hervorming-grendelgrondwet/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Hindriks: Une agence pour lutter contre la fraude fiscale et sociale</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hindriks-une-agence-pour-lutter-contre-la-fraude-fiscale-et-sociale/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hindriks-une-agence-pour-lutter-contre-la-fraude-fiscale-et-sociale/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Janssens: Naar een radicale herziening van het innovatiebeleid : van aanbodgericht naar vraaggericht</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/janssens-innovatiebeleid/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/janssens-innovatiebeleid/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Keulen: Anders evalueren in ons onderwijs</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/keulen-anders-evalueren-in-ons-onderwijs/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/keulen-anders-evalueren-in-ons-onderwijs/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Keulen: Van nieuwkomers nieuwe ondernemers maken </title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/keulen-van-nieuwkomers-nieuwe-ondernemers-maken/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/keulen-van-nieuwkomers-nieuwe-ondernemers-maken/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Kitantou: Cr&#233;ation d&#8217;un Conseil consultatif de l&#8217;Interculturalit&#233;</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Jean-Yves Kitantou: Cr&#233;ation d&#8217;un Conseil consultatif de l&#8217;Interculturalit&#233;]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/kitantou-conseil-consultatif-de-interculturalite/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/kitantou-conseil-consultatif-de-interculturalite/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Kitantou: Diminution des charges sur les petits salaires</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/kitantou-diminution-des-charges-sur-les-petits-salaires/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/kitantou-diminution-des-charges-sur-les-petits-salaires/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Kitantou: Instauration d&#8217;une clause diversit&#233; dans les march&#233;s publics dans les conditions d&#8217;ex&#233;cution</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Jean-Yves Kitantou: Instauration d&#8217;une clause diversit&#233; dans les march&#233;s publics dans les conditions d&#8217;ex&#233;cution]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/kitantou-instauration-une-clause-diversite/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/kitantou-instauration-une-clause-diversite/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Kitantou: L&#8217;instauration d&#8217;un stage obligatoire durant les &#233;tudes sup&#233;rieures</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/kitantou--stage-obligatoire-durant-les-etudes-superieures/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/kitantou--stage-obligatoire-durant-les-etudes-superieures/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Lanjri: Nationaliteitsverwerving als sluitstuk van integratie- en participatieparcours</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/lanjri-nationaliteitsverwerving-als-sluitstuk-van-integratie-en-participatieparcours/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/lanjri-nationaliteitsverwerving-als-sluitstuk-van-integratie-en-participatieparcours/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Laruelle: R&#233;forme du mode de calcul des cotisations sociales des travailleurs ind&#233;pendants</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/laruelle-calcul-des-cotisations-sociales-des-travailleurs-independants/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/laruelle-calcul-des-cotisations-sociales-des-travailleurs-independants/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Leroy: Ontsla het ontslagrecht</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/leroy-ontsla-het-ontslagrecht/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/leroy-ontsla-het-ontslagrecht/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Man&#231;o: La gestion du multilinguisme</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Altay Man&#231;o: La gestion du multilinguisme]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/manco-la-gestion-du-multilinguisme/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/manco-la-gestion-du-multilinguisme/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Martiniello: Repenser le r&#244;le villes dans la nouvelle architecture institutionnelle belge</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/martiniello-repenser-le-role-villes/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/martiniello-repenser-le-role-villes/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Maskens: Bruxelles : d&#233;coupler fronti&#232;re linguistique et fronti&#232;re r&#233;gionale.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/maskens-decoupler-frontiere-linguistique-et-frontiere-regionale/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/maskens-decoupler-frontiere-linguistique-et-frontiere-regionale/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Maskens: Donner &#224; Bruxelles les cl&#233;s de son enseignement </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/maskens-donner-a-bruxelles-les-cles-de-son-enseignement/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/maskens-donner-a-bruxelles-les-cles-de-son-enseignement/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Muyldermans: Blijven investeren in opleiding</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/muyldermans-blijven-investeren-in-opleiding/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/muyldermans-blijven-investeren-in-opleiding/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Nuyens: sociale gezondheidskloof verkleinen</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/nuyens-sociale-gezondheidskloof-verkleinen/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/nuyens-sociale-gezondheidskloof-verkleinen/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Pagano: augmentation des accises</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pagano-augmentation-des-accises/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pagano-augmentation-des-accises/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Peeters: Een vernieuwde rol voor de ziekenfondsen</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/peeters-een-vernieuwde-rol-voor-de-ziekenfondsen/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/peeters-een-vernieuwde-rol-voor-de-ziekenfondsen/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Schoors: Een eerlijke belastingsherverdeling</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/schoors-een-eerlijke-belastingsherverdeling/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/schoors-een-eerlijke-belastingsherverdeling/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Sleuwaegen: Diensten als groeimotor van de economie</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/sleuwaegen-diensten-als-groeimotor-van-de-economie/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/sleuwaegen-diensten-als-groeimotor-van-de-economie/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Staes: Geef het vee goed te eten! </title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/staes-geef-het-vee-goed-te-eten/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/staes-geef-het-vee-goed-te-eten/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Tanghe: De multiculturele samenleving: samenspraak van volwaardige burgers</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tanghe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tanghe/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Temmerman: Gezondheidszorg moet kwalitatief hoogstaand, toegankelijk en betaalbaar zijn voor iedereen</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/temmerman/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/temmerman/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Tulkens: Laisser les communes d&#233;cider de leur r&#233;gime linguistique</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tulkens-laisser-les-communes-decider-de-leur-regime-linguistique/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tulkens-laisser-les-communes-decider-de-leur-regime-linguistique/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Turtelboom: de pensioensplit</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/turtelboom-de-pensioensplit/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/turtelboom-de-pensioensplit/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Turtelboom: Misdaadgeld zinvol recupereren</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/turtelboom-misdaadgeld-zinvol-recupereren/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/turtelboom-misdaadgeld-zinvol-recupereren/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Valenduc: un syst&#232;me d&#8217;imp&#244;t dual, &#224; base large</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/valenduc-un-systeme-dimpot-dual-a-base-large/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/valenduc-un-systeme-dimpot-dual-a-base-large/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Van de Cloot: Succes door samenwerking overheid, kennisinstellingen en private sector</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/van-de-cloot-succes-door-samenwerking-overheid-kennisinstellingen-en-private-sector/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/van-de-cloot-succes-door-samenwerking-overheid-kennisinstellingen-en-private-sector/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Van Dyck: Een klimaatwet met visie op de lange termijn</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/van-dyck-een-klimaatwet-met-visie-op-de-lange-termijn/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/van-dyck-een-klimaatwet-met-visie-op-de-lange-termijn/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>van Rouveroij: Drastische verlaging van de lasten door vereenvoudiging</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/van-rouveroij-drastische-verlaging-van-de-lasten-door-vereenvoudiging/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/van-rouveroij-drastische-verlaging-van-de-lasten-door-vereenvoudiging/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Van Wynsberghe: Bruxelles comme capitale f&#233;d&#233;rale</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/van-wynsberghe-bruxelles-comme-capitale-federale/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/van-wynsberghe-bruxelles-comme-capitale-federale/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Vandenbergh: Apprentissage de la langue de l&#8217;&#233;cole &#224; Bruxelles</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vandenbergh-apprentissage-de-la-langue-de-lecole/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vandenbergh-apprentissage-de-la-langue-de-lecole/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Vandenbergh: La r&#233;allocation de comp&#233;tences des communes vers la R&#233;gion</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vandenbergh-competences-des-communes-vers-la-region/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vandenbergh-competences-des-communes-vers-la-region/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Vandenbergh: Red&#233;coupage des fronti&#232;res communales au sein de la r&#233;gion bruxelloise</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vandenbergh-redecoupage-des-frontieres-communales-au-sein-de-la-region-bruxelloise/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vandenbergh-redecoupage-des-frontieres-communales-au-sein-de-la-region-bruxelloise/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Vandenbergh: Une t&#233;l&#233;vision et une presse bruxelloise</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vandenbergh-une-television-et-une-presse-bruxelloise/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vandenbergh-une-television-et-une-presse-bruxelloise/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Vanthemsche: Een aangepast personeelsbeleid</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vanthemsche-een-aangepast-personeelsbeleid/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vanthemsche-een-aangepast-personeelsbeleid/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Ven: Welke fiscale aftrekken in de personenbelasting zijn zinvol?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ven-welke-fiscale-aftrekken-in-de-personenbelasting-zijn-zinvol/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ven-welke-fiscale-aftrekken-in-de-personenbelasting-zijn-zinvol/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Vermaerke: Een beleid met visie, gericht op effici&#235;ntie en economisch groei</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Michel Vermaerke: Een beleid met visie, gericht op effici&#235;ntie en economisch groei]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vermaerke-een-beleid-met-visie-gericht-op-efficientie-en-economisch-groei/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vermaerke-een-beleid-met-visie-gericht-op-efficientie-en-economisch-groei/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Versterk de werkloosheidsverzekering</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/versterk-de-werkloosheidsverzekering/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/versterk-de-werkloosheidsverzekering/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Vervotte: Verbetering van administratie en overheidsdiensten</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vervotte-administratie/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vervotte-administratie/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Vuye: Brussel anders bekeken</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vuye-brussel-anders-bekeken/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vuye-brussel-anders-bekeken/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Vuye: De taalkwestie oplossen</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vuye-de-taalkwestie-oplossen/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vuye-de-taalkwestie-oplossen/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Walckiers: Lutter plus efficacement contre la fraude</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/walckiers-lutter-plus-efficacement-contre-la-fraude/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/walckiers-lutter-plus-efficacement-contre-la-fraude/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Zibouh: Promouvoir l&#8217;&#233;galit&#233; en reconnaissant les sp&#233;cificit&#233;s culturelles</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Fatima Zibouh: Promouvoir l&#8217;&#233;galit&#233; en reconnaissant les sp&#233;cificit&#233;s culturelles]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/zibouh-les-specificites-culturelles/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/zibouh-les-specificites-culturelles/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Zibouh: Promouvoir l&#8217;&#233;galit&#233; par l&#8217;&#233;largissement du droit de vote</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Fatima Zibouh: Promouvoir l&#8217;&#233;galit&#233; par l&#8217;&#233;largissement du droit de vote]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/zibouh-elargissement-du-droit-de-vote/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/zibouh-elargissement-du-droit-de-vote/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Adnet: augmenter les &#226;ges d&#8217;acc&#232;s aux syst&#232;mes de pr&#233;retraite</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Bernadette Adnet: augmenter les &#226;ges d&#8217;acc&#232;s aux syst&#232;mes de pr&#233;retraite]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/adnet-augmenter-les-ages-dacces-aux-systemes-de-preretraite/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/adnet-augmenter-les-ages-dacces-aux-systemes-de-preretraite/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Aernoudt: Beperk politieke mandaten in de tijd</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Rudi Aernoudt: Beperken politieke mandaten in de tijd]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/aernoudt-beperken-politieke-mandaten-in-de-tijd/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/aernoudt-beperken-politieke-mandaten-in-de-tijd/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Aernoudt: gelijkschakeling pensioenen</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Rudi Aernoudt: gelijkschakeling pensioenen]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/aernoudt-gelijkschakeling-pensioenen/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/aernoudt-gelijkschakeling-pensioenen/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Aernoudt: Individualiseer sociale rechten</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Rudi Aernoudt: Individualiseer sociale rechten]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/aernoudt-individualiseer-sociale-rechten/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/aernoudt-individualiseer-sociale-rechten/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Aernoudt: performantiemeting en prestatievergoeding in de administraties</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Rudi Aernoudt: performantiemeting en prestatievergoeding in de administraties]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/aernoudt-performantiemeting-en-prestatievergoeding-in-de-administraties/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/aernoudt-performantiemeting-en-prestatievergoeding-in-de-administraties/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Bienstman: Hervorm de fiscale gunstregeling voor bedrijfswagens </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bienstman-hervorm-de-fiscale-gunstregeling-voor-bedrijfswagens/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bienstman-hervorm-de-fiscale-gunstregeling-voor-bedrijfswagens/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Broeckx: Betrokkenheid en &quot;doorgroeien&quot; van projecten</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Dirk Broeckx: Betrokkenheid en &quot;doorgroeien&quot; van projecten]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/broeckx-betrokkenheid-en-doorgroeien-van-projecten/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/broeckx-betrokkenheid-en-doorgroeien-van-projecten/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Broeckx: Doelmatigheid van medische technologie&#235;n en innovatie koppelen aan kostencontrole</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Dirk Broeckx: Doelmatigheid van medische technologie&#235;n en innovatie koppelen aan kostencontrole]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/broeckx-doelmatigheid-medische-technologie-en-innovatie-koppelen-aan-kostencontrole/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/broeckx-doelmatigheid-medische-technologie-en-innovatie-koppelen-aan-kostencontrole/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>De Block: enkele voorstellen voor de gezondheidszorg</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Maggie De Block: enkele voorstellen voor de gezondheidszorg]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-block-enkele-voorstellen-voor-de-gezondheidszorg/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-block-enkele-voorstellen-voor-de-gezondheidszorg/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>De Maeseneer: Defederalisering van de gezondheidszorg via de gewesten</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Jan De Maeseneer: Defederalisering van de gezondheidszorg via de gewesten]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/defederalisering-van-de-gezondheidszorg/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/defederalisering-van-de-gezondheidszorg/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>De Wever: un nouveau mode de financement hospitalier</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Alain De Wever: un nouveau mode de financement hospitalier]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-wever-un-nouveau-mode-de-financement-hospitalier/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-wever-un-nouveau-mode-de-financement-hospitalier/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Degadt: Ge&#239;ntegreerde ziekenhuisfinanciering</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Peter Degadt: Ge&#239;ntegreerde ziekenhuisfinanciering]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/degadt-geintegreerde-ziekenhuisfinanciering/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/degadt-geintegreerde-ziekenhuisfinanciering/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Degadt: Zorgcontinu&#239;teit voor alle pati&#235;nten veiligstellen zonder meerkost</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Peter Degadt: Zorgcontinu&#239;teit voor alle pati&#235;nten veiligstellen zonder meerkost]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/degadt-zorgcontinuiteit/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/degadt-zorgcontinuiteit/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Devolder/Boulet: R&#233;forme des bar&#232;mes salariaux </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Pierre Devolder/Jacques Boulet: R&#233;forme des bar&#232;mes salariaux ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/devolder-boulet-reforme-des-baremes-salariaux/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/devolder-boulet-reforme-des-baremes-salariaux/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Devolder/Boulet: Un deuxi&#232;me pilier juste pour chaque statut</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Pierre Devolder/Jacques Boulet: Un deuxi&#232;me pilier juste pour chaque statut]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/devolder-boulet-deuxieme-pilier/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/devolder-boulet-deuxieme-pilier/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Devolder/Boulet: Un troisi&#232;me pilier (&#233;pargne-pension): sponsor de l&#8217;&#233;conomie!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Pierre Devolder/Jacques Boulet: Un troisi&#232;me pilier (&#233;pargne-pension): sponsor de l&#8217;&#233;conomie!]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/devolder-boulet-un-troisieme-pilier/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/devolder-boulet-un-troisieme-pilier/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Duch&#226;telet: Goede en slechte belastingen</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Roland Duch&#226;telet: Goede en slechte belastingen]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/duchtelet-goede-en-slechte-belastingen/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/duchtelet-goede-en-slechte-belastingen/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>G&#233;rard: Financer partiellement les &#233;tudes universitaires par un cr&#233;dit d&#8217;imp&#244;t</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Marcel G&#233;rard: Financer partiellement les &#233;tudes universitaires par un cr&#233;dit d&#8217;imp&#244;t]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gerard-credit-dimpot/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gerard-credit-dimpot/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>G&#233;rard: Moins d&#8217;imp&#244;ts sur le travail mais davantage de pr&#233;l&#232;vements sur la consommation n&#233;faste pour l&#8217;environnement</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Marcel G&#233;rard: Moins d&#8217;imp&#244;ts sur le travail mais davantage de pr&#233;l&#232;vements sur la consommation n&#233;faste pour l&#8217;environnement.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gerard-moins-dimpots-sur-le-travail/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gerard-moins-dimpots-sur-le-travail/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>G&#233;rard: R&#233;duire les d&#233;ductions &#224; l&#8217;imp&#244;t des soci&#233;t&#233;s</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Marcel G&#233;rard: R&#233;duire les d&#233;ductions &#224; l&#8217;imp&#244;t des soci&#233;t&#233;s]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gerard-reduire-deduction-impot-societes/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gerard-reduire-deduction-impot-societes/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Gillabel: Hefbomen voor een effici&#235;nt grondstoffen- en materialenbeleid</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gillabel-grondstoffen-materialenbeleid/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gillabel-grondstoffen-materialenbeleid/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Hindriks: Knowledge Lift</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Jean Hindriks: Knowledge Lift]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hindriks-knowledge-lift/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hindriks-knowledge-lift/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Hindriks: Un syst&#232;me des agences publiques</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Jean Hindriks: Un syst&#232;me des agences publiques]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hindriks-systeme-des-agences-publiques/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hindriks-systeme-des-agences-publiques/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Hindriks: une culture de r&#233;sultats</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Jean Hindriks: une culture de r&#233;sultats]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hindriks-culture-de-resultats/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hindriks-culture-de-resultats/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Kitantou: D&#233;ductibilit&#233; fiscale des frais de kots</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Jean-Yves Kitantou: D&#233;ductibilit&#233; fiscale des frais de kots]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/kitantou-deductibilit-fiscale-des-frais-de-kots/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/kitantou-deductibilit-fiscale-des-frais-de-kots/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Kitantou: un Conseil f&#233;d&#233;ral de la Publicit&#233;</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Jean-Yves Kitantou: Cr&#233;er un Conseil f&#233;d&#233;ral de la Publicit&#233;]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/kitantou-un-conseil-federal-de-la-publicite/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/kitantou-un-conseil-federal-de-la-publicite/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Leroy: Een eCV voor iedere burger</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Fons Leroy: Een eCV voor iedere burger]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/leroy-een-ecv-voor-iedere-burger/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/leroy-een-ecv-voor-iedere-burger/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Leroy: Een retentieplan voor langere en betere loopbanen</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Fons Leroy: Een retentieplan voor langere en betere loopbanen]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/leroy-een-retentieplan-voor-langere-en-betere-loopbanen/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/leroy-een-retentieplan-voor-langere-en-betere-loopbanen/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Leroy: Geen dopGeld, wel jobGeld !?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Fons Leroy: Geen dopGeld, wel jobGeld !?]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/leroy-geen-dopgeld-wel-jobgeld-/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/leroy-geen-dopgeld-wel-jobgeld-/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Leroy: Het einde van de arbeidsovereenkomst</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Fons Leroy: Het einde van de arbeidsovereenkomst]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/leroy-het-einde-van-de-arbeidsovereenkomst/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/leroy-het-einde-van-de-arbeidsovereenkomst/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Leroy: Nieuw Sociaal Pact nodig!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Fons Leroy: Nieuw Sociaal Pact nodig!]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/leroy-nieuw-sociaal-pact-nodig/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/leroy-nieuw-sociaal-pact-nodig/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Leroy: Storende statuten</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Fons Leroy: Storende statuten]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/leroy-storende-statuten/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/leroy-storende-statuten/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Maak een modern eenheidsstatuut</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Marc De Vos: maak een modern eenheidsstatuut]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/maak-een-modern-eenheidsstatuut/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/maak-een-modern-eenheidsstatuut/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Nuyens: Pati&#235;ntenorganisaties: van weeskinderen naar legitieme partners in de Belgisch gezondheidszorg</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Yvo Nuyens: Pati&#235;ntenorganisaties: van weeskinderen naar legitieme partners in de Belgisch gezondheidszorg]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/nuyens-patientenorganisaties/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/nuyens-patientenorganisaties/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Pour une politique volontariste des normes de produits</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pour-une-politique-volontariste-des-normes-de-produits/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pour-une-politique-volontariste-des-normes-de-produits/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Valenduc: Taxer les activit&#233;s g&#233;n&#233;ratrices d&#8217;externalit&#233;s n&#233;gatives</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Christian Valenduc: Taxer les activit&#233;s g&#233;n&#233;ratrices d&#8217;externalit&#233;s n&#233;gatives et r&#233;duire la taxation des revenus du travail]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/valenduc-taxer-les-externalites-negatives/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/valenduc-taxer-les-externalites-negatives/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Vandenbosch: Best practices in dierenwelzijn</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Michel Vandenbosch: best practices in dierenwelzijn]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vandenbosch-best-practices-in-dierenwelzijn/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vandenbosch-best-practices-in-dierenwelzijn/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>de la Croix: Raise the attractiveness of work for people of 58-65 by means of a specific fiscal deduction</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

David de la Croix, Professor Economics UCL
His idea: Raise the attractiveness of work for people of 58-65 by means of a specific fiscal deduction.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 08 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-la-croix/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-la-croix/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Doutrepont: Working on a new wage norm</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Manou Doutrepont, Director social affairs Fevia:
Working on a new wage norm]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 08 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/doutrepont/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/doutrepont/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>PEERSMAN: link wages to inflation objective ECB</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Brainstorm is an open reflection on social reforms by politicians, academics and stakeholders. More than 50 participants, more than 100 ideas!

Gert Peersman, professor economics Ugent:
His idea: link the wage evolution to the inflation objective of 2% of the ECB]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 08 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/peersman/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/peersman/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The housing premium mitigates the fiscal pressure on new housing development from 106% to 60%</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p><font size="2">The housing premium mitigates the fiscal pressure on new housing development from 106% to 60% and is an important fiscal stimulus to acquire a house of its own. However, new housing estate is in further decrease, in spite of the housing premium. Itinera proposes to replace the housing premium by a VAT-reduction to keep new housing estate up to the same level.</font></p><p>&nbsp;</p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 05 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-housing-premium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-housing-premium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The housing premium: an assessment</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The housing premium mitigates the fiscal pressure on new housing development from 106% to 60% and is an important fiscal stimulus to acquire a house of its own. However, new housing estate is in further decrease, in spite of the housing premium. Itinera proposes to replace the housing premium by a VAT-reduction to keep new housing estate up to the same level.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 05 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/housing-premium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/housing-premium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The 2012 budgetary control is not the end, just the beginning</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Also between 2013 and 2015 the budgetary measures of the government agreement will not come up to the mark. Itinera calls the government, when disentangling the budgetary political issues, to make sure that these do not impede the structural solutions of tomorrow, but on the contrary facilitate them.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 02 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/2012-budgetary-control/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/2012-budgetary-control/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The 2012 budgetary control is not the end, just the beginning</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p><font size="2">Also between 2013 and 2015 the budgetary measures of the government agreement will not come up to the mark. Itinera calls the government, when disentangling the budgetary political issues, to make sure that these do not impede the structural solutions of tomorrow, but on the contrary facilitate them.</font></p><p>&nbsp;</p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 02 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-2012-budgetary-control/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-2012-budgetary-control/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Governance European member states needs improvement</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Only citizen initiatives can bring a new political culture. Therefore the problem of collective action needs to be overcome which is of no use when an individual citizen reacts against clientism while his fellow citizens are making use of it.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 29 Feb 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/governance-european-member-states-needs-improvement/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/governance-european-member-states-needs-improvement/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Civil servants: the story behind the numbers</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Laurent Hanseeuw and Jean Hindriks discuss the current issue of the number and wages of civil servants. Beyond the budgetary aspect, the growing discrimination taking place between civil servants working under contracts and those enjoying statutory positions, should be reviewed.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 27 Feb 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/civil-servants/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/civil-servants/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>For technocratic politics</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos illustrates the differences in political culture between Belgium and the Netherlands and remarks how the results are visible. He argues against political technocrats and for technocratic politics.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 22 Feb 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/for-technocratic-politics/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/for-technocratic-politics/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Effective education is focused on the learning improvement alongside the minimal final attainment levels</title>
<description><![CDATA[ To maintain the tradition of excellence, it is important to realize education effectiveness, not only by reaching a number of minimal final attainment levels. It is equally essential to follow up the so-called learning improvement of each individual.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 20 Feb 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/effective-education-is-focused-on-the-learning-improvement-alongside-the-minimal-final-attainment-levels/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/effective-education-is-focused-on-the-learning-improvement-alongside-the-minimal-final-attainment-levels/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Itinera pleads for a healthcare information system</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In response to the recent polemic on the revelation of information on the quality in hospitals, Itinera pleads for a health information system. A well informed patient is a condition sine qua non for a sustainable health care system.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 16 Feb 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/itinera-pleads-for-a-healthcare-information-system-a-well-informed-patient-is-a-condition-sin-qua-non-for-sustainable-healthcare/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/itinera-pleads-for-a-healthcare-information-system-a-well-informed-patient-is-a-condition-sin-qua-non-for-sustainable-healthcare/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>No treatment of the symptoms in bank policies please!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ There is great animation over the introduction of &#8220;covered bonds&#8221; in Belgium for the financing of banks. Today everybody wants the protection of a valid collateral, but the real effort is to attract more real risk capital for banks in order that the fundamental problem of privatizing profits and socializing losses is being tackled.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 16 Feb 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-treatment-of-the-symptoms-in-bank-policies-please/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-treatment-of-the-symptoms-in-bank-policies-please/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Euro-policy in the balance: too little, but not (yet) too late</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos offers a broad reflection on the crisis management of the euro. Notwithstanding all the tribulations, the basic direction is right albeit incomplete. But the European politicians are playing a historic poker game with a different timing than the financial markets. It is therefore improbable that the Eurozone will come through the crisis intact.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 01 Feb 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/euro-policy-in-the-balance-too-little-but-not-yet-too-late/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/euro-policy-in-the-balance-too-little-but-not-yet-too-late/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Belgium divided between strike and anti-strike </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Jean Hindriks and Laurent Hanseeuw shed lights on the popular opposition against the general strike taking place this Monday 30 January. They explain the apparent paradox stating that powerful labor unions can be useful safeguard against inopportune strikes. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 31 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-divided-between-strike-and-anti-strike/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-divided-between-strike-and-anti-strike/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Presentation Marc De Vos: Happiness and politics</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-marc-de-vos-geluk-en-politiek/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-marc-de-vos-geluk-en-politiek/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Presentation Vandenbroucke Happiness and politics</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-vandenbroucke-happiness-and-politics/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-vandenbroucke-happiness-and-politics/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Hooray for the European criticism!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The intervention of the European commission is to be considered a sign of progress on the road towards European integration and a positive consequence of the current crisis.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hooray-for-the-european-criticism/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hooray-for-the-european-criticism/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Why our public debt needs to be reduced</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos and Ivan Van de Cloot explain why the Belgian public debt is problematic. We will over many years, unfortunately, have to pay the debt bill of the past in order to build the future.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-our-public-debt-needs-to-be-reduced/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-our-public-debt-needs-to-be-reduced/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>In Europe, we need to move!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Laurent Hanseeuw recalls the issue of factor mobility, and labor mobility in particular, in the constitution of an optimal currency zone. When comparing to the US, European workers are reluctant to move, even in their own state. Languages are a natural barrier, but they are many others which policymakers should cope. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 26 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/in-europe-we-need-to-move/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/in-europe-we-need-to-move/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>New Year's Event 2012: Reclaiming happiness from politics</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p align="left">Toast with us on a successful 2012, on Wednesday, January 25th. The Itinera Institute welcomes Mr. Frank Vandenbroucke to present and discuss the latest Itinera publication &ldquo;Reclaiming happiness from politics&rdquo;. </p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 25 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/nyevent2012/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/nyevent2012/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>VAT reduction for restaurants: who benefits? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Laurent Hanseeuw and Jean Hindriks analyze the effects of a VAT reduction for the catering industry, introduced in Belgium in 2010. First, they review the economic fundamentals pleading for such a favorable rate. Then they analyze the impact of this reduction based on the reasons which have been used to justify such a reduced rate. We can conclude that the impact has been fairly modest when it comes to job creation and that the sector remains heavily exposed to the black economy.   ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 23 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/xxxx/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/xxxx/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Happiness and politics: a plea for bright thinking</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Saying that the height of the GDP is our best standard for well-being, is just as twisted reasoned as saying that the Gross National Happiness is our best standard, argues Frank Vandenbroucke in a reaction to the discussion essay by Marc De Vos on happiness and politics.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 19 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/happinessandpoliticspleaforbrightthinking/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/happinessandpoliticspleaforbrightthinking/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>VAT reduction for the catering industry: who benefits? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Laurent Hanseeuw and Jean Hindriks analyze the effects of a VAT reduction for the catering industry, introduced in Belgium in 2010. First, they review the economic fundamentals pleading for such a favorable rate. Then they analyze the impact of this reduction based on the reasons which have been used to justify such a reduced rate. We can conclude that the impact has been fairly modest when it comes to job creation and that the sector remains heavily exposed to the black economy.   ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 17 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vatreductioncateringindustry/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vatreductioncateringindustry/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Itinera reacts on the Vande Lanotte proposal to decrease the price of drugs</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Itinera has thoughts about the new Vande Lanotte proposal saying that there should be a decrease in the price of medicines whenever medicine prices&nbsp;in neighbouring countries&nbsp;are dropping. This measure is an example like so many others&nbsp;in the current healthcare policy in which prompt budgetary successes are more important than structural reform or sustainability.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 12 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/itinera-reacts-on-the-vande-lanotte-proposal-to-decrease-the-price-of-drugs/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/itinera-reacts-on-the-vande-lanotte-proposal-to-decrease-the-price-of-drugs/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Less trains is not the solution</title>
<description><![CDATA[ It is inconceivable to weaken rail transport in Belgium as the demographic, economic en environmental needs push us rather to strengthen it. How to justify then the suppression of almost 200 trains by December 2012?]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 12 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/less-trains-is-not-the-solution/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/less-trains-is-not-the-solution/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The euro crisis : everything you always wanted to know, but never dared to ask</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Etienne de Callata&#255; explains the economic fundamentals which lie at the basis of the euro crisis. He then details the consequences this crisis could have and possible solutions we could reach. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 06 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-euro-crisis-everything-you-always-wanted-to-know-but-never-dared-to-ask/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-euro-crisis-everything-you-always-wanted-to-know-but-never-dared-to-ask/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The number of young people who have to repeat their schoolyear in Flanders is double as high as the international average</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 05 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-number-of-young-people-who-have-to-repeat-their-schoolyear-in-flanders-is-double-as-high-as-the-international-average/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-number-of-young-people-who-have-to-repeat-their-schoolyear-in-flanders-is-double-as-high-as-the-international-average/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>More independence and responsibility for the public servant</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Institute congratulates State Secretary Hendrik Bogaert with his intention to improve the functioning of the federal administration. Formalizing personnel evaluations on an annual base is however not the solution for a better public service. Itinera pleas for a results-driven culture and a public agencies system.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 04 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/more-independence-and-responsibility-for-the-public-servant/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/more-independence-and-responsibility-for-the-public-servant/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The future will be bright, if we want it to be</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos opens the new year with a dose of optimism. In the short run many lights are red. But if we undertake the right reforms then the weather at the end of the tunnel will be better than at its beginning.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 04 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-will-be-bright-if-we-want-it-to-be/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-will-be-bright-if-we-want-it-to-be/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Savings in education: 3 pillars</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Our most important winning card for the future are our youth, hence the importance of clear recommendations towards government and education policy. The Itinera Institute offers a platform to Carl Van Keirsbilck, who suggests three pillars that can lead in a simple way to recurrent savings without touching on the quality of our education system.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 03 Jan 2012 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/savings-in-education-3-pillars/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/savings-in-education-3-pillars/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Call for a broad pension strategy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos responds to the demonstrations against pension reform. The debate is poisoned by a combination of denial, fundamentalism and utopic spinning. He argues for a general mobilization for a broad pension strategy, carried by visionary realism.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 22 Dec 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/call-for-a-broad-pension-strategy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/call-for-a-broad-pension-strategy/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Relieve the traffic: trifling work in the short term</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Since some weeks the reserve road on the E313 road is accessible to traffic during peak hours. One could consider reducing the number of paths during peak hours and have an express bus use the reserve road instead. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 21 Dec 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/relieve-the-traffic-trifling-work-in-the-short-term/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/relieve-the-traffic-trifling-work-in-the-short-term/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Healthcare: From star to cash cow? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Lieven Annemans analyses the potential impact of budgetary restrictions in our healthcare system. He pleads for more quality-friendliness in the payment system if we want to maintain a solidary and internationally renowned healthcare system. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 07 Dec 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/healthcare-from-star-to-cash-cow/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/healthcare-from-star-to-cash-cow/</guid>
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<title>Do not obstruct, but construct</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos responds to the union march against the government. The protesters underestimate the situation and the government offers too little positive perspective through structural reforms. We are not reforming too much but too little.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 02 Dec 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/donotobstructbutconstruct/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/donotobstructbutconstruct/</guid>
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<item>
<title>From Dexia to energy invoices</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Laurent Hanseeuw and Ivan van de Cloot recall the structure of a liberalized energy market and the appropriate regulation it requires. Political projects which intend to maintain, or even rise, revenues for municipalities via the so-called distribution tariffs should be avoided. The losses related to Dexia&#8217;s fall should be compensated by other means.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 02 Dec 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-dexia-to-energy-invoices/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-dexia-to-energy-invoices/</guid>
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<title>Reclaiming Happiness from Politics</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Happiness is back, both in the sciences and in politics. While the economy is suffering from a systemic crisis, the time is ripe for an explicit happiness agenda that seeks to steer society consciously towards personal wellbeing. This essay &#8211; the first discussion paper in the series &#8220;Back to Basics&#8221; &#8211; embraces happiness as a relevant policy concern but refutes fundamentally the terms and the purpose of the current happiness revival. It ends with a call to save happiness from politics, and instead promote it through careful facilitation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reclaiming-happiness-from-politics/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reclaiming-happiness-from-politics/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/en/doc/dp_1_uk_final%20versionfor%20website_uk.pdf" length="455083" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>The Budget 2012 through the Itinera Lens</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The government passes the European exam but misses structural reforms. Itinera calls on the new government to implement, within this term, structural reforms and to keep additional fiscal measures in reserve.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/thebudget2012theitinerapointofview/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/thebudget2012theitinerapointofview/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Budget 2012 through the Itinera lens</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-budget-2012-through-the-itinera-lens/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-budget-2012-through-the-itinera-lens/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Video: budgetary reflections IVDC</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/videobudgetaryreflections/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/videobudgetaryreflections/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Vid&#233;o: La Belgique a-t-elle trafiqu&#233; ses comptes?_Jean Hindriks</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labelgiqueatelletrafiquesescomptesjeanhindriks/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labelgiqueatelletrafiquesescomptesjeanhindriks/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Reform in Italy is also important to us </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Italy need better an economic performance than in the last ten years. For this structural reform in the field of pensions, tax policy, labour market, innovation and others are essential. We thus share not only common interests with Italy but also many challenges. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 21 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reform-in-italy-is-also-important-to-us/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reform-in-italy-is-also-important-to-us/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Comparison between Belgium and the Netherlands: tables and figures</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Itinera organised a Belgium-the Netherlands on &#8220;working longer&#8221;. The Netherlands proved to be not the best student in the class. Nevertheless, they beat Belgium on about all parameters characterizing an age-friendly labour market.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 18 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/comparisonbetweenbelgiumandthenetherlandstablesandfigures/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/comparisonbetweenbelgiumandthenetherlandstablesandfigures/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Working on working longer: the Netherlands beat Belgium with a fixed score</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 18 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/workingonworkinglonger/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/workingonworkinglonger/</guid>
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<title>No talent to waste! A Belgium-the Netherlands on Working longer </title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p>Judith Roosblad (Dutch Council for Work and Income) and Marc De Vos (Itinera Institute and Ghent University), commissioned by the Dutch Embassy, will present the report &quot;Working longer: the Netherlands - Belgium&quot;. </p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/no-talent-to-waste/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/no-talent-to-waste/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Presentation: working longer in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ All the political parties are talking about it. The Generation Pact wanted to realize it. But will we manage to create an age-friendly labor market? Marc De Vos pleads for a new Age Pact that must prepare our labor market for the imminent demographic changes. It consists of structural reforms that must be implemented gradually, temporary measures that will have an immediate effect, and a general mobilization through more symbolism.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationworkinglongerinbelgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationworkinglongerinbelgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Presentation: working longer in the Netherlands</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Judith Roosblad from the Council for Work and Revenue makes an evaluation of the situation of older workers on the Dutch labor market. She also analyses the policy initiatives that have thus far been taken. Compared to Belgium, the Netherlands are further in the modernization of the labor market when it comes to facilitating longer careers: less pre-pensions, an active approach to lay-offs, and a more visionary way of looking at the career of the future. Moreover, the Dutch pension system is more adapted to demographic imbalances thanks to an important capitalization component and an increase of the legal pension age.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationworkinglongerinthenetherlands/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationworkinglongerinthenetherlands/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Working longer in the Netherlands</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Judith Roosblad from the Council for Work and Revenue makes an evaluation of the situation of older workers on the Dutch labor market. She also analyses the policy initiatives that have thus far been taken. Compared to Belgium, the Netherlands are further in the modernization of the labor market when it comes to facilitating longer careers: less pre-pensions, an active approach to lay-offs, and a more visionary way of looking at the career of the future. Moreover, the Dutch pension system is more adapted to demographic imbalances thanks to an important capitalization component and an increase of the legal pension age. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/working-longer-in-the-netherlands/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/working-longer-in-the-netherlands/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Working longer: a policy agenda from a Belgian perspective</title>
<description><![CDATA[ All the political parties are talking about it. The Generation Pact wanted to realize it. But will we manage to create an age-friendly labor market? Marc De Vos pleads for a new Age Pact that must prepare our labor market for the imminent demographic changes. It consists of structural reforms that must be implemented gradually, temporary measures that will have an immediate effect, and a general mobilization through more symbolism. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/workinglongerapolicyagendafromabelgianperspective/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/workinglongerapolicyagendafromabelgianperspective/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>A study year&#8217;s value</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Laurent Hanseeuw and Brieuc Van Damme are skeptical of prolonging the studies to become a teacher in Flanders. It increases costs for students and reduces the supply of teachers. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-study-years-value/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-study-years-value/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Does Belgium cheat? Nonsense!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ German scientists distrust the quality of economic data on Belgium, using the Benford law. This law enables to find potential irregularities in accounting books. Jean Hindriks squashes the  rumour  and explains why Belgium distances itself from this &#8220;accounting rule&#8221; in order to cope better with budgetary rules.   ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-belgium-cheat-nonsense/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-belgium-cheat-nonsense/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Tackling with the roots of the european crisis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The European strategy known as kicking the can down the road has proven to have been counterproductive. A vigorous solution cannot escape the need for decisive measures for both insolvent countries and the too big to fail banks. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tackling-with-the-roots-of-the-european-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tackling-with-the-roots-of-the-european-crisis/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Video: a modern and effective public sector: Jean Hindriks</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/videopublicsectorjeanhindriks/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/videopublicsectorjeanhindriks/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Video: From #NoGov to #GoodGov</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/videofromnogovtogoodgov/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/videofromnogovtogoodgov/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Video: Housing in times of scarcity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/videohousingintimesofscarcity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/videohousingintimesofscarcity/</guid>
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<title>Video: How to keep health care affordable?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/videohoegezondheidszorgbetaalbaarhouden/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/videohoegezondheidszorgbetaalbaarhouden/</guid>
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<title>Video: Pension reform by Jean Hindriks</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/videopensionreformbyjeanhindriks/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/videopensionreformbyjeanhindriks/</guid>
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<title>Itinera and the clash of ideas</title>
<description><![CDATA[ It is crucial for democracy to have an open mind towards opposite visions as this reduces the risk  that similar people harbor ever more extreme  opinions in their own incrowd. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/itinera-and-the-clash-of-ideas/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/itinera-and-the-clash-of-ideas/</guid>
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<title>The Dexia Saga</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In a sane banking system there is a difference between saving and investing on the one hand, and speculation on the other. A sane banking system takes responsibility for the consequences of wrong choices instead of passing the bill on to the tax payers. The Dexia saga painfully shows that we have a long way ahead of us, says Ivan Van de Cloot. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-dexia-saga/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-dexia-saga/</guid>
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<title>Will we need to outsource care for the sick and elderly to foreigners? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the short term, foreign nurses can help coping with the shortages of our white economy. In the long term we will need structural solutions, says Brieuc Van Damme. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/will-we-need-to-outsource-care-for-the-sick-and-elderly-to-foreigners/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/will-we-need-to-outsource-care-for-the-sick-and-elderly-to-foreigners/</guid>
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<title>From #NoGov to #GoodGov</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The report &quot;From #NoGov to #GoodGov&quot; is a constructive contribution to the negotiations, from a strategic and long-term perspective. The emphasis lies on the major challenges facing the new government, with 45 concrete recommendations for a vigorous policy.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 25 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fromnogovtogoodgov/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fromnogovtogoodgov/</guid>
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<title>From #NoGov to #GoodGov: Itinera calls on government negotiators to strategic reflection for a key term</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <div><font size="2">Belgium is on the eve of a new federal government. The Itinera Institute pleas for a long-term strategic vision. The major crisis pressure may not limit the government work to crisis measures only. Itinera is equally laying the foundation of a new and sustainable prosperity and protection for the future. The report &quot;From #NoGov to #GoodGov&quot; is therefore a constructive contribution to the negotiations, from a strategic and long-term perspective. The emphasis lies on the major challenges facing the new government, with 45 concrete recommendations for a vigorous policy.</font></div>]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 25 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/fromnogovtogoodgovpr/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/fromnogovtogoodgovpr/</guid>
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<title>Higher education: end the tuition-fee fetishism </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Jean Hindriks and Laurent Hanseeuw counter the current fetishism that surrounds the university tuition-fees. They recall that universities are underfinanced and students with modest backgrounds are the first victims thereof. They plead for an open debate on the refinancing of higher education. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 25 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/higher-education-end-the-tuition-fee-fetishism/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/higher-education-end-the-tuition-fee-fetishism/</guid>
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<title>Presentation: From #NoGov to #GoodGov</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The report &quot;From #NoGov to #GoodGov&quot; is a constructive contribution to the negotiations, from a strategic and long-term perspective. The emphasis lies on the major challenges facing the new government, with 45 concrete recommendations for a vigorous policy.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 25 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationfromnogovtogoodgov/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationfromnogovtogoodgov/</guid>
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<title>Involve babyboomers when financing nursing homes </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The extra subsidies of Flemish Minister for wellbeing Vandeurzen for the construction and renovation of eldercare infrastructure will not be enough to satisfy the growing needs of an ageing population. Thanks to intelligent schemes, babyboomers can finance care infrastructure partly by themselves. If official care initiatives do not need to face new tax increases that is, says Brieuc Van Damme. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 24 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/involve-babyboomers-when-financing-nursing-homes/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/involve-babyboomers-when-financing-nursing-homes/</guid>
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<title>The road to a modern unemployment insurance</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos argues for a modern unemployment insurance, through a combination of degressive benefits, progressive career support and eventual societal service. This also settles the debate on time limits for benefits, and on the waiting benefits for the young.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 24 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-weg-naar-een-moderne-werkloosheidsverzekering/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-weg-naar-een-moderne-werkloosheidsverzekering/</guid>
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<title>A crisis plan : 2 new possible solutions</title>
<description><![CDATA[ On the eve of the social and economic negotiations of the future government, Jean Hindriks, economist specialized in the public sector, proposes two concrete measurements to re-organize labour to get out of the crisis.  A &#8220;knowledge lift&#8221; for formation and labour and halftime pension.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 17 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-crisis-plan-2-new-possibilities/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-crisis-plan-2-new-possibilities/</guid>
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<title>Taxing or getting rid of fat? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Following a new fat tax in Denmark, Brieuc Van Damme recalls the negative externalities implied by junk food and pleads for the introduction of a similar tax in Belgium. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 17 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/taxing-or-getting-rid-of-fat/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/taxing-or-getting-rid-of-fat/</guid>
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<title>The budgetary and fiscal challenges for the next government</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan Van de Cloot and Etienne De Callata&#255; draw an overview of the budgetary challenges for the next government. The focus should be on savings and efficiency. New government resources are necessary but these should go together with structural reforms. In the short term, Itinera pleads for enshrining a budgetary rule in the constitution and the appointment of a commission of experts. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 14 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/budgetfiscalchallenegs/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/budgetfiscalchallenegs/</guid>
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<title>The budgetary and fiscal challenges for the next government</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 14 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/fromnogovtobettergov/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/fromnogovtobettergov/</guid>
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<title>The long-term declared disabled employee caught in its statute</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The way in which incapacity to work is defined is vulnerable to critique: we are either fully valid, either fully invalid. That has to change. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 14 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-long-term-declared-disabled-employee-caught-in-its-statute/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-long-term-declared-disabled-employee-caught-in-its-statute/</guid>
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<title>Modernize dismissal</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos pleads once more for a modern dismissal law with a pillar re-employment and pre-financing. This will not happen unless it is integrated into the coalition negotiations.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 12 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/modernize-dismissal/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/modernize-dismissal/</guid>
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<title>A G-0 world</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sees how the G-20 is becoming a talk shop where only collective threat can produce collective action. Globalization is not globally managed, but the subject of a cabal of limited interest clubs with their own agenda.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 05 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ag0world/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ag0world/</guid>
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<title>Financing university without taboo</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Laurent Hanseeuw and Jean Hindriks highlight the structural underfinancing of universities and the segregation it induces. They plead for a refinancing of our universities via the so-called deferred tuition fees&#8217; system. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 05 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/financing-university-without-taboo/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/financing-university-without-taboo/</guid>
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<title>Selling Belgacom? Yes, but&#8230;</title>
<description><![CDATA[ It is likely that the next government plans to sell its shares in Belgacom, the main telecom operator in Belgium. Laurent Hanseeuw explains this makes sense on economic and governance aspects. However, one should avoid to proceed to such a disinvestment for budgetary purposes. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 23 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/selling-belgacom-yes-but/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/selling-belgacom-yes-but/</guid>
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<title>&#8220;BHV&#8221; casts its shadow</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sees how &#8220;BHV&#8221; casts a long shadow, also on the budget for 2012. He fears for &#8220;Royco Minute Soup&#8221; while the budget should follow from strategic vision and structural reforms.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 22 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bhv-casts-its-shadow/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bhv-casts-its-shadow/</guid>
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<title>&#171; Fast forward &#187;-serie7/7 : &quot;Economic growth in Belgium&quot;.  </title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p align="center"><font size="2"><font size="3"><strong>&laquo; Fast forward &raquo;-serie7/7 :&nbsp; <br/>&ldquo;Economic growth&rdquo;</strong></font> </font></p><p align="center"><font size="2">&nbsp;</font></p><p align="justify"><font size="2">The institutional negotiations keep dragging on. Whatever the result, the fundamental challenges will have to be addressed one way or another. We therefore have an appointment with history in the years to come. Either we make the strategic choices we have delayed for too long now. Or we condemn ourselves to gradual decline. The Itinera Institute still believes the future is ours to win, which is why Itinera has organized a <strong>Fast Forward series on seven crucial topics for socioeconomic reform in Belgium:</strong> the policy priorities for the next government, with or without new elections. <strong>On September the 21st Itinera tackles the issue of &ldquo;Economic Growth&rdquo;.</strong> Economic growth lies in the middle of the debates regarding austerity. Will we be able to reach our goals as fast as wanted? Which political choices, on the middle and long term should be prioritized? What can we conclude from the structural evolutions of growth and productivity during this last decades? Senior Fellow <strong>Johan Albrecht</strong> will present his Itinera report on economic growth, while <strong>Paul Soete</strong> (CEO Agoria)&nbsp; and <strong>Alexis Walckiers</strong> (Chief Economist of the Belgian competition authority) will react and comment on the propositions.<br/></font></p><p align="center"><font size="2"><strong>Program</strong></font></p><p align="center"><font size="2"><strong>12.00:<br/></strong>Welcome and sandwiches</font></p><p align="center"><font size="2"><strong>12.15:<br/></strong>&ldquo;Economic growth&rdquo;, Johan Albrecht (Itinera Institute)</font></p><p align="center"><font size="2"><strong>12.45:<br/></strong>Comments and contributions of Paul Soete (Agoria) et<br/>Alexis Walckiers (Chief Economist of the Belgian competition authority)</font></p><p align="center"><font size="2"><strong>13.15:</strong> <br/>Questions<br/><br/>&nbsp;<br/>The presentation and the reactions will be done in Dutch and French but questions can be asked in the language of your choice. This event is free of charge but the available seats are limited.</font></p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 21 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/fast-forward-serie-7-7-economic-growth/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/fast-forward-serie-7-7-economic-growth/</guid>
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<title>Presentation:The quest for growth</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 21 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationthe-quest-for-growth/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationthe-quest-for-growth/</guid>
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<title>The quest for growth</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The West is facing huge challenges. Decreasing budget deficits and controlling government debt have become universal priorities in no time. But maybe we can grow ourselves out of our problems? Without growth the necessary reforms will be more painful and take more time. In this analysis, Johan Albrecht discusses the importance of productivity and the determining ingredients of the growth recipe. Meanwhile, the author is skeptical about the diminishing industrial capacity of most advanced economies. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 21 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-quest-for-growth/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-quest-for-growth/</guid>
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<title>The quest for growth</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 21 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-quest-for-growth/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-quest-for-growth/</guid>
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<title>How to refinance our universities?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/how-to-refinance-our-universities/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/how-to-refinance-our-universities/</guid>
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<title>How to refinance our universities?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Since higher education has been decentralized in Belgium, public financing of universities in both communities has almost been frozen. Students&#8217; coaching has been continuously scrapped for the last forty years; which certainly does not help the graduation rate. Communities budgets have almost no room to increase means significantly. Therefore, tuition fees need to be increased. In order to avoid creating new hurdles for higher education&#8217;s accessibility, one should implement the so-called deferred tuition fees. Meanwhile, more scholarships should be given to young people from modest backgrounds. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-refinance-our-universities/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-refinance-our-universities/</guid>
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<title>Reducing the influence of principal rating agencies: easier said than done</title>
<description><![CDATA[ For reducing the influence of the three principal rating agencies, one should actively stimulate the creation of other agencies.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reducing-the-influence-of-principal-rating-agencies-easier-said-than-done/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reducing-the-influence-of-principal-rating-agencies-easier-said-than-done/</guid>
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<title>Green arms&#8217; race: China floors the West</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos explains how China is gaining advantage in the development of a green economy. China uses the open world market where it can en abuses it where it musts. Western companies have the choice between demise and collaboration, making Chinese state capitalism more dominant or corrupting.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 16 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/green-armsrace-china-floors-the-west/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/green-armsrace-china-floors-the-west/</guid>
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<title>Why 9/15 is more important than 9/11</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos gives his vision on 9/11. The collapse of Lehman Brothers is for him of greater historical significance, but in ten years&#8217; time it can also be the reverse.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 16 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-915-is-more-important-than-911/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-915-is-more-important-than-911/</guid>
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<title>Libyan oil : will there be an occidental altruism ? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The potential uprising of a democratic State in Libya highlights the question of the oil rent&#8217;s utilization. Laurent Hanseeuw explains the importance of a limited use of this rent in order to avoid economic and political issues that are created by such a money flow.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 15 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/libyan-oil--will-there-be-an-occidental-altruism/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/libyan-oil--will-there-be-an-occidental-altruism/</guid>
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<title>Less fiscal spendings for less fiscal pressure</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Among the austerity measures and the necessary reforms proposed in the note by formateur Di Rupo, more attention should be given to the necessity to simplify our tax system.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 14 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/less-fiscal-spendings-for-less-fiscal-pressure/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/less-fiscal-spendings-for-less-fiscal-pressure/</guid>
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<title>Analysis: Your money or your life? A plea for more cost effectiveness analyses in Belgian healthcare. </title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/your-money-or-your-lifea-plea-for-more-cost-effectiveness-analyses-in-belgian-healthcare4/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/your-money-or-your-lifea-plea-for-more-cost-effectiveness-analyses-in-belgian-healthcare4/</guid>
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<title>Presentation: Your money or your life? A plea for more cost effectiveness analyses in Belgian healthcare. </title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/your-money-or-your-life-a-plea-for-more-cost-effectiveness-analyses-in-belgian-healthcare2/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/your-money-or-your-life-a-plea-for-more-cost-effectiveness-analyses-in-belgian-healthcare2/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/20110913_Your%20money%20or%20your%20life_Presentation.pdf" length="4246036" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>Your money or your life! What role for cost-effectiveness in Belgium? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p><font size="3"><strong><img style="WIDTH: 112px; HEIGHT: 96px" alt="Cost Effectiveness" align="right" src="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/img/CEdefpic.jpg" width="89" height="96"/>Your money or your life! What role for cost-effectiveness in Belgium? <br/></strong></font><font size="2">Healthcare&rsquo;s affordability could be in peril. Demographic, scientific and technological evolutions are increasingly putting financial strain on healthcare systems. Reforms are necessary. How can cost-effectiveness analyses offer an answer to Belgium&rsquo;s healthcare issues?</font></p><p align="left"><font size="2">On September 13th, <strong>Brieuc Van Damme</strong> and <strong>Lieven Annemans</strong> will present the main conclusions from their report &ldquo;Your money or your life! What role for cost-effectiveness in Belgium?&rdquo;, inspired on practical experiences abroad but with a concrete focus on Belgian policy reforms. Their recommendations will enhance our healthcare system&rsquo;s accessibility, without compromising on quality and medical innovation though. Martin Buxton will share his field experiences with NICE in the UK, and 3 Belgian experts will react.<br/><br/></font><font size="2"><u><strong>Program:<br/><br/></strong></u>3.00: Welcome<br/><br/>3.30: <strong>Pr. Dr. Lieven Annemans</strong> (Itinera, UGent and VUB) and <strong>Brieuc Van Damme</strong> (Itinera and Antwerp University) &ndash; Your money or your life! What role for cost-effectiveness in Belgium? <br/><br/>4.15: <strong>Pr. Dr. Martin Buxton</strong> (Brunel University and advisor to the British government) &ndash; Practical experiences with cost-effectiveness in the UK<br/><br/>5.00: Reactions from Belgian experts<br/>&middot;&nbsp;<strong>Irina Cleemput</strong> (Federal Centre of Expertise)<br/>&middot;&nbsp;<strong>Jean Creplet</strong> (pharma.be)<br/>&middot;&nbsp;<strong>Dirk Ramaekers</strong> (ZNA and KULeuven)<br/><br/>5.30: Debate and Q&amp;A<br/><br/>6.00: Reception</font></p><p align="left"><font size="2">The presentation and the reactions will be done in Dutch and French but questions can be asked in the language of your choice. This event is free of charge but the available seats are limited.</font></p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/your-money-or-your-life-what-role-for-cost-effectiveness-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/your-money-or-your-life-what-role-for-cost-effectiveness-in-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Your money or your life? A plea for more cost effectiveness analyses in Belgian healthcare. </title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/your-money-or-your-life-a-plea-for-more-cost-effectiveness-analyses-in-belgian-healthcare3/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/your-money-or-your-life-a-plea-for-more-cost-effectiveness-analyses-in-belgian-healthcare3/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Your money or your life? A plea for more cost effectiveness analyses in Belgian healthcare. </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Belgian healthcare system&#8217;s affordability is at stake. 85-90% of the expense growth can be attributed to the permanent intake of medical innovations. Only by reimbursing the technologies shown to have an acceptable relationship between costs and health effects, can we avoid to have an uncontrollable expense increase. At unchanged policy, 2/3rds of the government budget would go to the national health insurance in 2060. Lieven Annemans and Brieuc Van Damme diagnose Belgium&#8217;s cost-effectiveness policy and formulate concrete recommendations to improve it. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/your-money-or-your-life-a-plea-for-more-cost-effectiveness-analyses-in-belgian-healthcare/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/your-money-or-your-life-a-plea-for-more-cost-effectiveness-analyses-in-belgian-healthcare/</guid>
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<title>No more fiscal gifts!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Today adequacy of the tax distortion between savings accounts and other forms of savings is being questioned. Unfortunately the proposed solutions are not the right ones. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-more-fiscal-gifts/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-more-fiscal-gifts/</guid>
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<title>Shall immigration be a solution to the ageing ? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Immigration can help attenuate the ageing cost but only if Belgium takes measures which permit to reap fully the positive effects of immigration and reduce its costs.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 05 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/immigration-solution-or-ageing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/immigration-solution-or-ageing/</guid>
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<title>What after refusal of the eurobonds ? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ As Germany has blocked the introduction of Eurobonds, alternatives have to be considered. Mechanisms for an orderly exit of a member country, debt reduction schemes have to be considered to open up a new perspective for countries without building castles in the air. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 31 Aug 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-after-refusal-of-the-eurobonds/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-after-refusal-of-the-eurobonds/</guid>
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<title>Why a crisis tax on the super-rich is no solution</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos explains that we need first and foremost to reform taxation for better governance en more strong shoulders in the economy. Rather than through a symbolic crisis tax, the super-rich can serve the country much more through experience, ideas, and a broad culture of philanthropy.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 29 Aug 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-a-crisis-tax-on-the-superrich-is-no-solution/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-a-crisis-tax-on-the-superrich-is-no-solution/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Double Dip is only the beginning</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sees six crises that trouble our times: financial, public debt, the growth model, the welfare state, the political system, and all of us who are used to having more for less. There is no need for despondency but we have to take our responsibility in unity and with vision.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 24 Aug 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/double-dip-is-only-the-beginning/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/double-dip-is-only-the-beginning/</guid>
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<title>More quality for Belgium&#8217;s healthcare &#8211; Di Rupo&#8217;s note analyzed</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Now that the negotiations for a new government and a reform of the state are on the political agenda again, it is useful to analyze some specific themes of Di Rupo&#8217;s note more thoroughly. Lieven Annemans takes up the challenge for healthcare. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 24 Aug 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-quality-for-belgiums-healthcaredi-rupos-note-analyzed/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-quality-for-belgiums-healthcaredi-rupos-note-analyzed/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Deliver us, Lord, from job plans!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos nuances the figures for Belgian job creation and criticizes expensive job plans with plenty of waste and perverse effects. Individual counseling and activation is much more efficient. Eliminating wasteful job plans is a duty in times of budgetary scarcity.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 16 Aug 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/deliver-us-lord-from-job-plans/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/deliver-us-lord-from-job-plans/</guid>
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<title>Creating, instead of debating, economic value </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The creative forces in Greece were too much diverted to a competition for government resources rather than for wealth creating initiatives.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 12 Aug 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/creating-instead-of-debating-economic-value/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/creating-instead-of-debating-economic-value/</guid>
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<title>Eliminate the meal vouchers</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sees only one solution for the fraud with meal vouchers: abolish the vouchers. All exemptions generate needless complexity. We can best replace them by overall tax reduction. That will also ensure economic progress.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 08 Aug 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/eliminate-the-meal-vouchers/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/eliminate-the-meal-vouchers/</guid>
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<title>Renewable energies in Flandres. What will be the extra cost per family in 2020 ?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Green energy has a cost and it is eventually supported by consumers. The expected expansion of green energy for 2020 could lead to a yearly additional cost between 106&#8364; and 159&#8364; for a family in Flanders. The precise amount depends on the discount allocated to industrial users to protect their international competitiveness. The bigger their discount, the bigger shall be the bill for families.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 25 Jul 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/renewable-energies-in-flandres-what-will-be-the-extra-cost-per-family-in-2020-/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/renewable-energies-in-flandres-what-will-be-the-extra-cost-per-family-in-2020-/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Renewable energies in Flandres. What will be the extra cost per family in 2020 ?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 25 Jul 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/renewable-energies-in-flandres-what-will-be-the-extra-cost-per-family-in-2020-/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/renewable-energies-in-flandres-what-will-be-the-extra-cost-per-family-in-2020-/</guid>
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<title>We are living beyond our means</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sees an age of debt everywhere. Our prosperity and welfare are partly rooted in illusion or exploitation, at the expense of the next generation. We will have to become poorer in the upcoming years, in order to become richer again.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 25 Jul 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/we-are-living-beyond-our-means/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/we-are-living-beyond-our-means/</guid>
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<title>The real lesson of the eurocrisis: less is more</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sees a pattern behind the euro-crisis: European hubris in the face of national realities. The members of the European Union have made a habit out of committing the European Union to run while they are only willing to walk themselves. The key lesson of the Euro-crisis is therefore that less can indeed be more.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 Jul 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-real-lesson-of-the-eurocrisis-less-is-more/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-real-lesson-of-the-eurocrisis-less-is-more/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/mdv_56_uk.pdf" length="157403" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>The bill for the Euro-crisis will hit Belgium too</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sees only three ways to pay the bill for the euro-crisis. The easiest path is stealth redistribution among the European tax payers. Belgium will have to bear its share of the burden.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 18 Jul 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-bill-for-the-euro-crisis-will-hit-belgium-too/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-bill-for-the-euro-crisis-will-hit-belgium-too/</guid>
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<title>The Greek-European tango </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan van de Cloot thinks we will come to a rational analysis of the European debt crisis only if we admit responsibility should be shared between Greeks authorities, European politicians and private investors. The goal is not to consider, as it is often the case, everyone is guilty which makes de facto no one responsible but to share the unavoidable burden on the three stakeholders. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 12 Jul 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-greek-european-tango/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-greek-european-tango/</guid>
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<title>A family affair	</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Etienne de Callata&#255; analyses the splitting of family allowances policy between communities as it has been proposed in Di Rupo&#8217;s nota. He sees two essential positive points: the refusal to create sub-nationalities in Brussels and the financial responsibility implied on communities. He nonetheless regrets Di Rupo has not looked at children education costs policies through an integrated view.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 11 Jul 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-family-affair/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-family-affair/</guid>
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<title>The negative side of diploma inflation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos underscores the lowering standards of university education. He warns for a negative spiral of diplomatosis, with ever more students obtaining ever more degrees that are worth ever less.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 11 Jul 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-negative-side-of-diploma-inflation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-negative-side-of-diploma-inflation/</guid>
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<title>Itinera reacts on Di Rupo's nota</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Di Rupo's nota is encouraging. It dresses a broad framework for negociations with a particular attention for the budget and the needed reforms. According to Itinera, more reforms will be needed to guarantee a sustainable socio-economic future for the young.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 05 Jul 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/itinera-reacts-on-di-rupo-nota/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/itinera-reacts-on-di-rupo-nota/</guid>
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<title>Plea against the degradation of our hospital financing </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Today&#8217;s hospital financing is no longer adapted to the evolutions hospital care is undergoing. Jeroen Trybou and Brieuc Van Damme plead in favor of complete transparency of the financial flows through a thorough evaluation. We also need to put an end to the wrong financial incentives. A better hospital financing will be good for your health, and in the end, that&#8217;s what it&#8217;s all about.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 05 Jul 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/plea-against-the-degradation-of-our-hospital-financing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/plea-against-the-degradation-of-our-hospital-financing/</guid>
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<title>Presentation Hospital Financing Event </title>
<description><![CDATA[ This is the presentation from the hospital financing event of July 5th, 2011.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 05 Jul 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-event-hospital-financing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-event-hospital-financing/</guid>
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<title>Towards a new organization and financing of our hospitals: what opportunities for improvement? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="COLOR: black; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US"><font size="3"><font face="Calibri">Hospital care is an important link of our healthcare system. The development of an appropriate organization and financing design that stimulates effective, fair and qualitative care is therefore a crucial challenge. In today&rsquo;s context, Belgian hospital care is being financed in a complex and fragmented way. There are different financial flows that are being designed in close collaboration with the sector. This leads to a rather opaque system, sometimes with very little coordination between the different financial flows. The way physicians and hospitals are being paid needs to be reconsidered and will need to reward quality one way or the other. The patients themselves will also need to take up new roles, and sick funds will need to be involved in improving the current hospital financing system.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span></font></font><p>&nbsp;</p></span></p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 05 Jul 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/hospital-financing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/hospital-financing/</guid>
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<title>Chinese money serves Chinese geopolitics</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos warns for a Chinese agenda behind loans and investments. China considers itself to be more than a country: a civilization-state. Chinese money is an instrument of a geopolitical strategy that is potentially threatening to the West.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 04 Jul 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/chinese-money-serves-chinese-geopolitics/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/chinese-money-serves-chinese-geopolitics/</guid>
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<title>Towards a new organization and financing of our hospitals: what opportunities for improvement?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Today&#8217;s hospital financing is no longer adapted to the evolutions hospital care is undergoing. This is the main conclusion of a report by Jeroen Trybou, health economics researcher at Ghent University, on behalf of Itinera. The way hospitals are being financed is not transparent and fragmented. We plead in favor of complete transparency of the financial flows. This is an essential condition for a serious debate.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 04 Jul 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-new-organization-and-financing-of-our-hospitals-what-opportunities-for-improvement/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-new-organization-and-financing-of-our-hospitals-what-opportunities-for-improvement/</guid>
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<title>Is the Parti Socialiste the objective ally of Flemish nationalism?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sees the Belgian crisis as an issue of party politics: will the success of the Flemish nationalists be durable or not? The Walloon political parties are currently the objective allies of the NV-A. In the meantime, the 2012 local elections are around the corner.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 27 Jun 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/is-the-parti-socialiste-the-objective-ally-of-flemish-nationalism/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/is-the-parti-socialiste-the-objective-ally-of-flemish-nationalism/</guid>
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<title>No age fetishism in pension reform</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos nuances the discussion on the legal retirement age. What really matters is the actual work that our society requires as the solidarity contribution that entitles one to a pension. An adjustment to demographics is unavoidable and needs to be decided as soon as possible. But we need to work longer now if we are to have the Baby-Boomers share in the burden.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 24 Jun 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-age-fetishism-in-pension-reform/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-age-fetishism-in-pension-reform/</guid>
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<title>Book launch: Housing in times of scarcity. To a renovation of the housing policy.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Our housing markets are under considerable pressure. The increase in prices for houses and apartments is consistent with structural factors. In this book we analyze the demand and supply of the various housing markets from the perspective that the purchase and rental markets are linked together. We explain the striking price dynamics in recent years and analyze the possible solutions for the government. Using a detailed mathematical model, we compare the cost of various policy options (social housing, rent subsidies, incentives for new private constructions …) with the same impact. The major cost differences necessitate a cost-effective housing policy. We also pay attention to the significant differences in regional housing policies.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 23 Jun 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/housing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/housing/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Housing in times of scarcity. To a renovation of the housing policy.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 23 Jun 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/housing-in-times-of-scarcity-to-a-renovation-of-the-housing-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/housing-in-times-of-scarcity-to-a-renovation-of-the-housing-policy/</guid>
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<title>No investments, no integration </title>
<description><![CDATA[ There are indeed problems with youngsters from foreign origin. But that insecurity doesn&#8217;t necessarily need to be a fatality of Belgium&#8217;s big cities, says Brieuc Van Damme. The integration levers are known to all: more investments in human capital, a dynamic labor market and efficient law enforcement. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 23 Jun 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-investments-no-integration/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-investments-no-integration/</guid>
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<title>State payment delays&#8230; Be careful with austerity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Jean Hindriks and Laurent Hanseeuw show the worrying payments delay of the public sector in Belgium and the negative consequences it can have on the economy. Moreover, dramatic delays recorded in Southern European Countries highlight that austerity can push governments to further delay their payments. In a time when Belgium opts for budgetary restrictions, one should keep off following a trend with numerous pernicious effects&#8230; ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 22 Jun 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/state-payment-delays-be-careful-with-austerity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/state-payment-delays-be-careful-with-austerity/</guid>
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<title>How Belgium resembles Greece</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos remarks that Belgium also has the Greek disease. We too have a culture where fraud is not only tolerated, but even openly defended. This is an existential problem when the whole of society faces a budgetary challenge of many billions.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 17 Jun 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-belgium-resembles-greece/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-belgium-resembles-greece/</guid>
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<title>The institutional crisis yields a symbolic parliament</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sees how parliament, in the absence of a real government, improvises at the surface with symbolic issues. Without an overarching governmental vision, parliament becomes its own victim and leaves society with legislation that is ineffective and full of perverse effects.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 17 Jun 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-institutional-crisis-yields-a-symbolic-parliament/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-institutional-crisis-yields-a-symbolic-parliament/</guid>
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<title>Only a demand driven sector can really satisfy the &#8216;mediors&#8217; </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Some coast towns have difficulties providing in enough eldercare infrastructure because of the phenomenon of double ageing they face. In this opinion piece, Brieuc Van Damme discusses why the current system is at the very core of this problem and how personalized budgets can help. By financing eldercare from a supply-side perspective, we deny two essential features of the new seniors, the so-called &#8216;mediors&#8217;. They want more budgetary and geographical freedom in the organization of their care. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 16 Jun 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/only-a-demand-driven-sector-can-really-satisfy-the-mediors/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/only-a-demand-driven-sector-can-really-satisfy-the-mediors/</guid>
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<title>Cooperation between generations will lead to a new &#8216;grand design&#8217; for our welfare state </title>
<description><![CDATA[ We can hardly feel the effects of ageing and there are the first generational conflicts already. The societal divides will no longer be vertical, but between the different age groups. In this opinion piece Brieuc Van Damme analyses where the recent indignation from the youngsters comes from and suggests a new &#8216;grand design&#8217; for our welfare state. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 09 Jun 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/cooperation-between-generations-will-lead-to-a-new-grand-design-for-our-welfare-state/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/cooperation-between-generations-will-lead-to-a-new-grand-design-for-our-welfare-state/</guid>
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<title>It&#8217;s the economy, stupid!!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos nuances the victorious claims of how social security saved us from the crisis. Belgium owes its relative better performance mostly to economic and demographic factors, some of which actually bode ill for our future growth potential.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 06 Jun 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/itstheeconomy-stupid/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/itstheeconomy-stupid/</guid>
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<title>The Constitution is being abused into a political instrument</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos attacks the political manipulation of the Belgian Constitution. Depending on the issue, this transpires as strict adherence or cavalier disregard. The infamous &#8220;F&#233;d&#233;ration Wallonie-Bruxelles&#8221; is an example of the latter: a political coup d&#8217;&#233;tat, but with no teeth or guns.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 31 May 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-constitution-is-being-abused-into-a-political-instrument/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-constitution-is-being-abused-into-a-political-instrument/</guid>
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<title>Pension&#8217;s solutions in an ageing country</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan Van de Cloot approves that finally the pension debate is again on the table. In 2011 we cannot longer believe in financing the ageing costs without breaking down the taboo of 65 as the end of the career. As long as responsibility is taken, everyone can make his career choices in full freedom. The notional pension system makes sure it is the contributions to the system which determine the rights and no longer the fetish of the age of a person.Ivan Van de Cloot approves that finally the pension debate is again on the table. In 2011 we cannot longer believe in financing the ageing costs without breaking down the taboo of 65 as the end of the career. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 May 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pensions-solutions-in-an-ageing-country/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pensions-solutions-in-an-ageing-country/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The new law on family reunion copes with symptoms, not the real problems</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The federal parliament has just voted a new law on family reunion, strengthening dramatically migrant&#8217;s ability to come via this channel. According to Laurent Hanseeuw, the problem is that the new law offers only a quantitative response: reduce immigration. The key question is much more to better integrate migrants on our labor market. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 May 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-new-law-on-family-reunion-copes-with-symptoms-not-the-real-problems/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-new-law-on-family-reunion-copes-with-symptoms-not-the-real-problems/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The budgetary challenge is a fundamental societal choice</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos argues that the budgetary crisis is a systemic crisis. Improving the system is therefore the only sustainable solution. That means giving priority to efficiency gains over austerity, and to tax reform over tax increases. If we want to draw the lessons from the crisis and start the future with a clean sheet, we have no choice: we need to reform structurally and strategically.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 25 May 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-budgetary-challenge-is-a-fundamental-societal-choice/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-budgetary-challenge-is-a-fundamental-societal-choice/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>What is at stake with family reunion in Belgium?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Laurent Hanseeuw analyses Belgium&#8217;s new legislation on family reunion. The main issue in our country remains the weak labor market integration of non-European immigrants. Nonetheless, the law will probably only have an impact on the size of immigration flows and presents no real solutions to increase migrants&#8217; integration. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 25 May 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-is-at-stake-with-family-reunion-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-is-at-stake-with-family-reunion-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>What is at stake with family reunion in Belgium?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 25 May 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/what-is-at-stake-with-family-reunion-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/what-is-at-stake-with-family-reunion-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Who is to blame for NIMBY?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos defends the rule of law. Rules apply to everybody and every citizen has the right to have them enforced by independent judges. The authorities should respect their own rules. Politicians have to guard zoning and planning. &#8220;Not in my backyard&#8221; is caused by too little backyard.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 May 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/who-is-to-blame-for-nimby/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/who-is-to-blame-for-nimby/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Can a working couple still afford a new house? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 May 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/can-a-working-couple-still-afford-a-new-house/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/can-a-working-couple-still-afford-a-new-house/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Can a working couple still afford a new house? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ With a relatively low interest rate, a new house building project of 220 000&#8364; can be afforded by 20,6% of the households in our country as long as they manage to come up with 50 000&#8364; own funding. In the typical case of a working couple with two children, 68% can afford such a house but only 18% can finance it without any equity fund (50 000&#8364;). The reduction of building activities could be the consequence of rising costs for housing projects which make potential households fleeing this market. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 17 May 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-a-working-couple-still-afford-a-new-house/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-a-working-couple-still-afford-a-new-house/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Great potential for Philanthropy in Belgium </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan Van de Cloot presented on the second Day of the Philanthropy the first Index of Philanthropy. This was a combined initiative of the Fondation Roi Baudouin and Itinera Institute and the analysis points to a great potential for philanthropy in our country. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 17 May 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/great-potential-for-philanthropy-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/great-potential-for-philanthropy-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Introduction of the Itinera pension book</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The papyboom has started with a hundred new retirees each day. The Social Security has a deficit of several billions due to aging, and not because of the crisis. 

What now? 

Jean Hindriks (Senior Fellow at the Itinera Institute) and Ivan Van de Cloot (Chief Economist at the Itinera Institute) make an alarming conclusion about our pension system. The authors set up concrete and progressive proposals in order to get our system back on track and at the same time preserve the solidarity between generations. Only regeneration will breathe new life into our pension system. 
Read our press release.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 11 May 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-pension-book/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-pension-book/</guid>
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<item>
<title>&#8220;Fast forward&#8221; series 6/7: &#8220;Book launch: The pension book&#8221;</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; COLOR: #4d4d4d; FONT-SIZE: 8.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US"><p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 9pt 0cm" class="MsoNormal"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; COLOR: #4d4d4d; FONT-SIZE: 8.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">The institutional negotiations keep dragging on. Whatever the result, the fundamental challenges will have to be addressed one way or another. We therefore have an appointment with history in the years to come. Either we make the strategic choices we have delayed for too long now. Or we condemn ourselves to gradual decline.<p><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; COLOR: #4d4d4d; FONT-SIZE: 8.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">The Itinera Institute still believes in the future. We organise <b>a Fast Forward series on seven crucial topics: the policy priorities for the next government</b>, with or without new elections. On&nbsp;April the 13th Itinera tackles the issue of public sector performance. <span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; COLOR: #4d4d4d; FONT-SIZE: 8.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US"><p><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; COLOR: #4d4d4d; FONT-SIZE: 8.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">In this context, the Itinera Institute organizes its sixth Fast Forward- conference on &quot;</span><b><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; COLOR: #3366ff; FONT-SIZE: 8.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">The future of taxation</span></b><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; COLOR: #4d4d4d; FONT-SIZE: 8.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">&quot; on the 10th of&nbsp;May 2011. The presentation will be given by <b>Jean Hindriks </b>(Senior Fellow at the Itinera Institute) and <strong>Ivan Van de Cloot</strong> (Chief Economist at the Itinera Institute).&nbsp;&nbsp;Afterwards high-level stakeholders and politicians will add their contributions.</span></p></span></span></p></span></p></span>]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 10 May 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/fast-forward-series-6-7-pension-reform/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/fast-forward-series-6-7-pension-reform/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>An effective public sector</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In all OECD countries, public sector employment is decreasing, but not in Belgium. Given the challenges of ageing and budgetary consolidation, it would make more sense adding public service to the civil servants instead of adding civil servants to the public services. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 09 May 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/un-service-public-efficace/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/un-service-public-efficace/</guid>
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<item>
<title>No elegant exit from Euro-malaise</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sketches the scenarios for the endgame in the euro-crisis. It will hurt and it will last a long time. In the meantime the political project of European unification is crumbling. Europa is bleeding on all fronts. It tries too much and therefore achieves too little. If it continues down this path, it risks drowning itself.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 09 May 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-elegant-exit-from-euro-malaise/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-elegant-exit-from-euro-malaise/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The pensions: concerns us all</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The social contract is ruptured.  We have to re-establish confidence between generations through a new social contract]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 09 May 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-pensions-concerns-us-all/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-pensions-concerns-us-all/</guid>
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<title>Black swan in the Middle-East</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan Van de Cloot makes an economic analysis on the awakening in the Middle East and states these countries constitute the demographic antipode of Western Europe which is characterized by an ageing wealthy population which is afraid of changes as it has a lot to lose.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 28 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/black-swan-in-the-middle-east/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/black-swan-in-the-middle-east/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Belgian voluntarism is political illusionism</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos is astounded by the multi-year plan that Belgium has presented to the European Union. Voluntarism is really political illusionism that once more masks the seriousness and urgency of the situation for a tame public opinion.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 26 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgian-voluntarism-is-political-illusionism/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgian-voluntarism-is-political-illusionism/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Energy chaos in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos regrets the energy chaos in Belgium. Governments fail to make real or sustainable choices and are addicted to the taxation Baxter of a mismanaged energy sector. Instead of policy we have conflicts of interests between politics and energy players.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 26 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/energy-chaos-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/energy-chaos-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Debt crisis as a vulcano with sporadic eruptions </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan Van de Cloot hopes Belgium can square the circle of reducing debt while continuing to grow. Maybe our country can succeed doing this as our industry rides in the slipstream of the German success of exporting to Asian growth markets. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/debt-crisis-as-a-vulcano-with-sporadic-eruptions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/debt-crisis-as-a-vulcano-with-sporadic-eruptions/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Democracy in times of economic turmoil</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan Van de Cloot points out that democratically elected leader shouldn&#8217;t avoid necessary reforms. Key is to show that after difficult choices have been made, economic prosperity is again achievable. Gentle healers make stinking wounds. Experience has demonstrated that even drastic measures can be digested if one can present a positive perspective on the long term. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 14 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/democracy-in-times-of-economic-turmoil/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/democracy-in-times-of-economic-turmoil/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>More equality is no panacea</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos offers some personal perspectives on the thesis that more equality automatically implies more societal wellbeing. Economic growth is critically needed and implies inequalities. Without growth there can be no social security that guarantees wellbeing into the future. Inequalities have downsides, but more equality is no free lunch.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 14 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-equality-is-no-panacea/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-equality-is-no-panacea/</guid>
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<item>
<title>&#8220;Fast forward&#8221; series 5/7: &#8220;A modern and effective public sector&#8221;</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 9pt 0cm" class="MsoNormal"><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; COLOR: #4d4d4d; FONT-SIZE: 8.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">The institutional negotiations keep dragging on. Whatever the result, the fundamental challenges will have to be addressed one way or another. We therefore have an appointment with history in the years to come. Either we make the strategic choices we have delayed for too long now. Or we condemn ourselves to gradual decline.<p><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; COLOR: #4d4d4d; FONT-SIZE: 8.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">The Itinera Institute still believes in the future. We organise <b>a Fast Forward series on seven crucial topics: the policy priorities for the next government</b>, with or without new elections. On&nbsp;April the 13th Itinera tackles the issue of public sector performance.<p><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; COLOR: #4d4d4d; FONT-SIZE: 8.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">In all OECD countries, public sector employment is decreasing, but not in Belgium. Given the challenges of ageing and budgetary consolidation, it would make more sense adding public service to the civil servants instead of adding civil servants to the public services. Other major challenges such as global labour mobility, increasing democratic pressures and the digital revolution will ask a thorough mutation of the organization and production structures of public services in Belgium. In his analysis, Senior Fellow Jean Hindriks recommends 10 domains of reform, going from simplification, coordination and clarification to enhanced mobility and excellence. After Professor Hindriks&rsquo; presentation, high-level civil servants will respond.<p><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; COLOR: #4d4d4d; FONT-SIZE: 8.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">In this context, the Itinera Institute organizes its fifth Fast Forward- conference on &quot;</span><b><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; COLOR: #3366ff; FONT-SIZE: 8.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">The future of taxation</span></b><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; COLOR: #4d4d4d; FONT-SIZE: 8.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">&quot; on the 13th of&nbsp;April 2011 between 12h and 14h in it its offices in Brussels. The presentation will be given by <b>Jean Hindriks </b>(Senior Fellow at the Itinera Institute).&nbsp;&nbsp;Afterwards three high-level stakeholders will add their contributions: <strong>Frank Van Massenhove</strong> (Federal Public Service Social Security), <strong>Luc Melotte</strong> (Public Service Wallonia) and <strong>Gil Houins</strong> (Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain).</span></p></span></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p></span></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p></span></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 13 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/fast-forward-series-5-7-public-sector-performance-/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/fast-forward-series-5-7-public-sector-performance-/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>A modern and effective public sector</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 13 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/a-modern-and-effective-public-sector/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/a-modern-and-effective-public-sector/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Presentation: A modern and effective public sector</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 13 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/amodernandeffectivepublicsector/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/amodernandeffectivepublicsector/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Not banker bonuses, but bank profits are the problem.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos gives an alternative reading of the hysteria surrounding banker bonuses. The real issue is not the bonuses, but the profits that come from explicit or implicit state support. Governments should tackle this underlying disease, rather than focusing on the symptom.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 12 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/not-banker-bonuses-but-bank-profits-are-the-problem/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/not-banker-bonuses-but-bank-profits-are-the-problem/</guid>
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<title>Will Belgium become the Italy of the North?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sees Italy as a possible future version of Belgium that will become reality if we maintain the politics of denial and impasse. The budget is the first major appointment. Will we go for genuine restoration, or just for cosmetics?]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 12 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/will-belgium-become-the-italy-of-the-north/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/will-belgium-become-the-italy-of-the-north/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>A modern and effective public sector</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In all OECD countries, public sector employment is decreasing, but not in Belgium. Given the challenges of ageing and budgetary consolidation, it would make more sense adding public service to the civil servants instead of adding civil servants to the public services. Other major challenges such as global labour mobility, increasing democratic pressures and the digital revolution will ask a thorough mutation of the organization and production structures of public services in Belgium. In his analysis, Senior Fellow Jean Hindriks recommends 10 domains of reform, going from simplification, coordination and clarification to enhanced mobility and excellence. After Professor Hindriks&#8217; presentation, high-level civil servants will respond. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 11 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-modern-and-effective-public-sector/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-modern-and-effective-public-sector/</guid>
</item>
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<title>The right price per kWh?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Johan Albrecht puts forward that the distribution costs of electricity in Belgium are one third higher than in the rest of the Euro zone. They account for 37% of the electricity bill. Brussels leads the field and is 82% more expensive than the capitals of our neighboring countries. The importance of the distribution costs is underexposed in the debate on our country&#8217;s electricity prices. The author wants to put these high network costs at the very center of the debate, as the risks of these costs continuing to increase in the future is real because of a not carefully designed policy framework for renewable energy projects. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 07 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-right-price-per-kwh/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-right-price-per-kwh/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The right price per kWh?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 07 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-right-price-per-kwh/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-right-price-per-kwh/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Chinese economy on an unsustainable path </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan Van de Cloot points out that China&#8217;s neomercantile policy is not sustainable. On the one hand this creates international tensions and on the other hand internal monetary policy risks losing traction. While America is spreading new money everywhere, until now Chinese central bankers succeeded in draining the surplus money but everybody realizes how delicate this exercise is. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 06 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-chinese-economy-on-an-unsustainable-path/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-chinese-economy-on-an-unsustainable-path/</guid>
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<title>A limited increase of the distribution prices by taxing excessive returns of solar panels </title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 04 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/a-limited-increase-of-the-distribution-prices-by-taxing-excessive-returns-of-solar-panels/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/a-limited-increase-of-the-distribution-prices-by-taxing-excessive-returns-of-solar-panels/</guid>
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<title>How can we solve the white economy&#8217;s HR problem? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The care sector is angry. The wages are not in line with the irregularity of the working hours. The pressure is high too. The sector needs more money and more people. This is, in a nutshell, one of the most worrisome social challenges we will have to face in the nearby future. Brieuc Van Damme analyses why supply and demand are out of balance on the &#8216;white&#8217; labor market and advances concrete policy proposals to help solving the sector&#8217;s HR problem. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 04 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-can-we-solve-the-white-economys-hr-problem/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-can-we-solve-the-white-economys-hr-problem/</guid>
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<title>The &#8220;Fries-revolution&#8221;: revolutionaries or reactionaries?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos is critical about the demands of the so-called &#8220;Fries-revolution&#8221;. Real revolution is about giving more, not about claiming more. One cannot fill a hole by digging other and deeper ones.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 04 Apr 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-fries-revolution-revolutionaries-or-reactionaries/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-fries-revolution-revolutionaries-or-reactionaries/</guid>
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<title>Skipping a year at school: beyond the myths. </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Our education system needs to focus on gaining skills, not on every pupil achieving a certain level of skills. Minimal standards do make sense, but we need to be aware that a certain group has already got the required level in the beginning of the school year. Not considering accelerating this group constraints education to occupational therapy. This report from Carl Van Keirsbilck and Ivan Van de Cloot argues that pupils and students should be allowed to skip a year more often in Flanders. It is fundamental to accurately detect these gifted children through recurring standardized tests above level. The authors also hope that the issue of children with an educational advance will not be forgotten in the secondary education reform plans. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Mar 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/skipping-a-year-at-school-beyond-the-myths/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/skipping-a-year-at-school-beyond-the-myths/</guid>
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<title>Skipping a year at school: beyond the myths. </title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Mar 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/skipping-a-year-at-schoolbeyondthemyths/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/skipping-a-year-at-schoolbeyondthemyths/</guid>
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<title>Towards a more demand driven care sector</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Our policymakers only modestly take into account the aspirations of their care needing citizens. They want to have their say en be given the possibility to compose and pay for their care basket. A bigger demand injection in other words and personal care budgets will achieve just that. Foreign examples have shown that by doing so new initiatives have seen the light. Furthermore, economists expect the increased dynamism will translate into lower prices and better quality, fellow Brieuc Van Damme says.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Mar 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-more-demand-driven-caresector/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-more-demand-driven-caresector/</guid>
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<title>Bye-bye Globocop</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos tells us that we now experience the beginning of the end of the American period. The US cannot pay its imperial status any longer. That is a primer with worldwide implications and a new geopolitical reality follows for Belgium and Europe. Either we escape from our responsibilities or the new game will cost us blood and money.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 28 Mar 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bye-bye-globocop/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bye-bye-globocop/</guid>
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<title>The european economy in existential crisis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan Van De Cloot points out that three fundamental institutions of economic prosperity are at stake: market regulation institutions that prevent abusive market power, social institutions that legitimize the market are becoming unsustainable, and finally market stabilizing institutions like exchange rate mechanisms, budget and monetary rules that are under pressure because of the euro crisis. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 28 Mar 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-europese-economie-in-existentile-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-europese-economie-in-existentile-crisis/</guid>
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<title>Why Belgium is heading for the wall</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos contests Belgium&#8217;s good news show. The economic context is temporarily favourable. But we are on the threshold of the great awakening from years of non-governance, in budget, pensions, labour market, and healthcare. The resigning government has the pedagogical duty to raise awareness among the general public.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 28 Mar 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-belgium-is-heading-for-the-wall/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-belgium-is-heading-for-the-wall/</guid>
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<title>The Japanese disaster is also an economic catastrophy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan Van de Cloot points out that origins of wealth are very complex and lie deeper than reconstructing physical, financial or even human capital. The silver lining for Japan is that the tsunami didn&#8217;t affect the deeper institutions although confidence and other forms of social capital are under pressure. The challenge for Japan is to make sure that there&#8217;s no permanent damage to its productive potential.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Mar 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-japanese-disaster-is-also-an-economic-catastrophy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-japanese-disaster-is-also-an-economic-catastrophy/</guid>
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<title>&#8220;Fast forward&#8221; series 4/7: &#8220;The future of taxation&#8221;</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p align="justify">The institutional negotiations keep dragging on. Whatever the result, the fundamental challenges will have to be addressed one way or another. We therefore have an appointment with history in the years to come. Either we make the strategic choices we have delayed for too long now. Or we condemn ourselves to gradual decline. </p><p align="justify">The Itinera Institute still believes in the future. We organise a Fast Forward series on seven crucial topics: the policy priorities for the next government, with or without new elections. On March the 16th Itinera tackles the issue of fiscality. </p><p align="justify">The Belgian tax burden is among the highest in the world, with an average total tax rate for companies of 52%. And it does not appear that our fiscal situation will improve. In fact, in recent years no significant reduction in the total tax burden has been observed. On the contrary, 20 additional taxes have been introduced since 2007. This is most certainly a remarkable evolution in a country whose necessary budgetary recovery will depend on a healthy, transparent and balanced fiscal policy.</p><p align="justify">But how can this be translated into reality? How can we create an efficient fiscal policy environment with a simple and fair tax system that goes hand in hand with budgetary recovery? The Itinera Institute examines this issue and provides detailed answers and practical solutions to questions that have confused many, specialists included. </p><p align="justify">In this context, the Itinera Institute organizes its fourth Fast Forward- conference on &quot;The future of taxation&quot; on the 16th of March 2011 between 12h and 14h in it its offices in Brussels. The presentation will be given by Mr. Axel Haelterman (Tax Expert at the KULeuven). </p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 16 Mar 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/fast-forward-series-4-7-the-future-of-taxation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/fast-forward-series-4-7-the-future-of-taxation/</guid>
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<title>Reforming Belgium&#8217;s fiscal system: from necessity to opportunity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Mar 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/reforming-belgiums-fiscal-systemfrom-necessity-to-opportunity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/reforming-belgiums-fiscal-systemfrom-necessity-to-opportunity/</guid>
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<title>Presentation: Reflections on fiscal policy 2011 &#8211; 2015</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Mar 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reflections-on-fiscal-policy-2011/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reflections-on-fiscal-policy-2011/</guid>
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<title>Presentation: Reforming Belgium&#8217;s fiscal system: from necessity to opportunity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Mar 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-reforming-belgiums-fiscal-system-from-necessity-to-opportunity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-reforming-belgiums-fiscal-system-from-necessity-to-opportunity/</guid>
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<title>Reflections on fiscal policy 2011&#8211;2015</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Institute has asked fiscal expert Axel Haelterman (KULeuven and Freshfields) to give his view on our country&#8217;s fiscal future. Haelterman identifies 5 important reform domains: fiscal simplification, fiscal investigations and procedures, a reallocation of the fiscal burden, exploring new fiscal horizons, and the regionalization of certain fiscal competences. With this report, the Itinera Institute merely wishes to provoke the debate. The opinions expressed are those of the author. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Mar 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reflections-on-fiscal-policy-20112015/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reflections-on-fiscal-policy-20112015/</guid>
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<title>Reforming Belgium&#8217;s fiscal system: from necessity to opportunity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Most industrialized countries have problems with their public finances. Fiscal reforms have become a must. How does are fiscal system look like today and what are our options? What are the basic principles to respect when reforming a fiscal system? Senior Fellow Etienne de Callata&#255; tries to answer these questions through the concrete application of a consumption tax. The paper is a part of the Fast Forward series. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Mar 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reforming-belgiums-fiscal-system-from-necessity-to-opportunity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reforming-belgiums-fiscal-system-from-necessity-to-opportunity/</guid>
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<title>Palace revolution in the Flemish eldercare</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Zorgnet Vlaanderen, the most important actor in the eldercare sector, wants to do away with the renovation and construction subsidies of nursing homes. A good idea, says Brieuc Van Damme, because the VIPA subsidies are counterproductive. Instead of financing bricks, government should use the subsidies to help make quality care accessible for the poorest elders.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 08 Mar 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/palace-revolution-in-the-flemish-eldercare/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/palace-revolution-in-the-flemish-eldercare/</guid>
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<title>Why gender quota are no solution</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos takes issue with gender quotas for company boards. Quality, not gender, must remain the touch stone. Quotas are cosmetic measures that do not address causes. Government must fight discrimination, not organize it. A society with equal opportunities is not one with equal results.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 07 Mar 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-gender-quota-are-no-solution/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-gender-quota-are-no-solution/</guid>
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<title>Why is there a gap between Flemish and French-speaking schools?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Hindriks and Verschelde review the possible reasons for the regional divergence in educational attainments. They suggest that the gap between Flemish and French-speaking pupils can be compared to the difference between girls and boys in learning attitudes and motivations. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 07 Mar 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-is-there-a-gap-between-flemish-and-french-speaking-schools/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-is-there-a-gap-between-flemish-and-french-speaking-schools/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/10_jh.pdf" length="222544" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>A new growth path for Europe</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This Euractiv paper pushes forward the numerous opportunities brought by green energy investment and the general switch towards a low-carbon economy. The different dynamics throughout Europe -either by sector or by regions - are reviewed and proposals are written down to make Europe shifting in the right direction. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 24 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-new-growth-path-for-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-new-growth-path-for-europe/</guid>
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<title>Cross-border care EU: How to choose the best hospital?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This study by the &#8216;health consumer powerhouse&#8217; makes a cross-border comparison between 5 EU countries on the disposable of information to patients by hospitals and medical institutions. Though information is increasingly available for patients, significant efforts are still to be done in order to empower the &#8216;consumer&#8217; as the key decider once facing health choices.   ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 24 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/cross-border-care-eu-how-to-choose-the-best-hospital/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/cross-border-care-eu-how-to-choose-the-best-hospital/</guid>
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<title>Efficiency of activation's policies</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In its latest release, the journal &#8216;Regards &#233;conomiques&#8217; looks at the efficiency of employment activation policies put in place by the federal government since 2004. The report reminds the broad lines of the activation policies and discusses their impact on Belgium&#8217;s labor market. Several proposals with regards to incitation policies are introduced in order to encourage a swift and smooth come-back on the labor market for all unemployed.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 24 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/efficiency-of-activation-policies/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/efficiency-of-activation-policies/</guid>
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<title>Family reunification in Belgium </title>
<description><![CDATA[ This study tries to give an accurate statistical snapshot of family reunification in Belgium, using several data sources.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 24 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/family-reunification-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/family-reunification-in-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Flanders within Europe's top regions? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ &#8216;Vlaanderen in actie&#8217; is a platform put in place by the Flemish government in order to bring Flanders at the top of the European regions by 2020. The goal is to make Flanders a top region with respect to several indicators in different fields, from the economic climate to the environment and education. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 24 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/flanders-within-europe-top-regions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/flanders-within-europe-top-regions/</guid>
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<title>New contract for pensions is necessary</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This new report from the Dutch planning office shed the lights on the Dutch pension funds&#8217; increasing deficit. They call for a thorough reform of the pension contract in order to avoid an impoverishment of future retirees while guaranteeing a balance in intergenerational solidarity. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 24 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/new-contract-for-pensions-is-necessary/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/new-contract-for-pensions-is-necessary/</guid>
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<title>New French integration policy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In a second intermediary report, the French government assess the &#8216;revenu de solidarit&#233; active&#8217;s efficiency (rSa). The rSa is a policy that has been introduced in 2009 which replaced other integration and solidarity policies in France. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 24 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/revenu-de-solidarite-active/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/revenu-de-solidarite-active/</guid>
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<title>The Bologna process</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This report/presentation of the European Commission looks at the improvement of higher education in Europe since the famous Bologna reforms. It first gives an overview of the main steps of the process before discussing its evaluation up until today.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 24 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-bologna-process/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-bologna-process/</guid>
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<title>The cost of tax expenditures in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In this HIVA report (KUL), the authors sum up the cost of tax expenditures in Belgium as a whole. They start with an overview of our tax system before analyzing in detail several highly visible policies such as the notional interests and the &#8216;title-services&#8217;. Hence, they run an international comparison of our present tax system. Their conclusions are breathtaking: tax expenditures cost enormously for the state&#8217;s budget and increase inequality between taxpayers. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 24 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-cost-of-tax-expenditures-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-cost-of-tax-expenditures-in-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Healthcare barometer 2010: Informing the patient: expectations &amp; solutions for the 21st century</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p align="justify">The Itinera Institute, in close collaboration with Knack &amp; Le Vif/L&rsquo;Express, takes the pulse of the Belgian healthcare system. Interested in the quality, availability and performance of our healthcare system, we have surveyed the healthcare professionals themselves. This year, we wish to specifically focus on the information available to patients. Each citizen is responsible for his own health and must be sufficiently informed to adequately choose between diverse options. Which hospital better fits his needs? Should we trust diagnosis &amp; medical advises on the internet? Which stakeholders &amp; means should be used to guarantee accurate information vis-&agrave;-vis the patient? How can ICT help? </p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/healthcare-2010-barometer-informing-the-patient-expectations-solutions-for-the-21st-century/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/healthcare-2010-barometer-informing-the-patient-expectations-solutions-for-the-21st-century/</guid>
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<title>Presentation:Healthcare barometer: Information to the patient: expectations and solutions for the 21st century</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationhealthcare-barometer-information-to-the-patientexpectations-and-solutions-for-the-21st-century/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationhealthcare-barometer-information-to-the-patientexpectations-and-solutions-for-the-21st-century/</guid>
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<title>Healthcare barometer: Information to the patient: expectations and solutions for the 21st century</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 21 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/healthcare-barometer-information-to-the-patient-expectations-and-solutions-for-the-21st-century/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/healthcare-barometer-information-to-the-patient-expectations-and-solutions-for-the-21st-century/</guid>
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<title>Healthcare barometer:Information to the patient: expectations and solutions for the 21st century</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Together with Knack and Le Vif, the Itinera Institute presents the results of its 2010 healthcare barometer.  Three out of four responding physicians expect patient information to be improved. Doctors want to be able to properly answer their patients when facing questions such as: &#8220;Which hospital for which pathology? How much should I get back from the social security?, etc.&#8221;  To make this happen, doctors will need necessary instruments  in order to accurately inform patients. Development of trusted and approved websites about healthcare, public computers in hospitals, a and better information and education of physicians will all be required to achieve those goals. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 21 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/healthcare-barometerinformation-to-the-patient-expectations-and-solutions-for-the-21st-century/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/healthcare-barometerinformation-to-the-patient-expectations-and-solutions-for-the-21st-century/</guid>
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<title>A region must be empowered to enact what the rest of the world does</title>
<description><![CDATA[  In a federal state, it is not acceptable that a Region would be prevented from implementing a policy which is a general practice in peer countries. The rest of the World must inspire us in our policy choices. The principle of &#8216;benchmarking&#8217; should therefore be included in our institutional reforms next to the other key principles such as responsibility, solidarity and collaboration. One cannot impose to a region a federal policy which way too different from policies prevailing in Belgium&#8217;s peers. That tells us Etienne de Callata&#255;&#8217;s last paper.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 16 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-region-must-be-empowered-to-enact-what-the-rest-of-the-world-does/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-region-must-be-empowered-to-enact-what-the-rest-of-the-world-does/</guid>
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<title>Revolution in the making</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan Van de Cloot makes an economic analysis on the awakening in the Middle East. The desire for political freedom becomes stronger as a population becomes more prosperous, but we witness that in our current age the mobilization of opposition that can make regimes tumble becomes easier.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/revolution-in-the-making/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/revolution-in-the-making/</guid>
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<title>We need to break through the crisis of the Belgian consensus model</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos diagnoses the ongoing difficulties with the new inter-sectorial bargaining agreement. Our consensus model is failing. Politicians and social partners stare at each other and freeze our democracy into one big Stockholm Syndrome. In the absence of political leadership, only a collective awakening to urgency and necessity can force a breakthrough.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/we-need-to-break-through-the-crisis-of-the-belgian-consensus-model/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/we-need-to-break-through-the-crisis-of-the-belgian-consensus-model/</guid>
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<title>The poor percentage. Searching for the meaning of a 15% poverty rate</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Johan Albrecht reflects about poverty measurement. Poverty is a relative and hardly measurable concept with one certitude: we are better poor in a rich country.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 11 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/johan-albrecht-reflects-about-poverty-measurement-poverty-is-a-relative-and-hardly-measurable-concept-with-one-certitude-we-are-better-poor-in-a-rich-country/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/johan-albrecht-reflects-about-poverty-measurement-poverty-is-a-relative-and-hardly-measurable-concept-with-one-certitude-we-are-better-poor-in-a-rich-country/</guid>
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<title>&#8220;Fast forward&#8221; series 3/7: &#8220;Challenges for our healthcare system&#8221;</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p align="justify">The institutional negotiations keep dragging on. Whatever the result, the fundamental challenges will have to be addressed one way or another. We therefore have an appointment with history in the years to come. Either we make the strategic choices we have delayed for too long now. Or we condemn ourselves to gradual decline.</p><p align="justify">The Itinera Institute still believes in the future. We organise a Fast Forward series on seven crucial topics: the policy priorities for the next government, with or without new elections. On February the 9th Itinera tackles the issue of healthcare reform.</p><p align="justify">The most important challenge for the future is to secure a sustainable healthcare system. Rising expectations from the citizen-patient, the growing prevalence of chronic diseases, technological evolutions and new medical therapies, an ageing population, etc. are continuously putting strain on our healthcare expenses. These trends will way on Belgium&rsquo;s healthcare system and eventually lead to important problems in terms of financing and accessibility. It is fundamental to address these and to advance concrete solutions.</p><p align="justify">The Itinera Institute takes the lead. Its report &ldquo;Healthcare: how to combine quality, accessibility and effectiveness?&rdquo; will be presented on February 9th 2011 at noon in the offices of the Institute. In their report, Fran&ccedil;ois Daue (Senior Fellow) and Lieven Annemans (Senior Fellow) expose concrete and innovative actions to build a sustainable healthcare system. Prof. Alain De Wever (ULB) and Dr. Hugo Robays (UZGent) will react on the policy recommendations.</p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/fast-forward-series-3-7-challenges-for-our-healthcare-system/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/fast-forward-series-3-7-challenges-for-our-healthcare-system/</guid>
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<title>Healthcare opinion: how to combine quality, accessibility and effectiveness?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The most important challenge for the future is to secure a sustainable healthcare system. Our system should hence provide the people with accessible prevention and healthcare in an efficient and equitable manner. In their analysis, Fran&#231;ois Daue and Lieven Annemans offer some recommendations to improve health policy in order to deliver the optimal health for all with disposable means.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/healthcareopinion/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/healthcareopinion/</guid>
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<title>Healthcare: how to combine quality, accessibility and effectiveness?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The most important challenge for the future is to secure a sustainable healthcare system. Our system should hence provide the people with accessible prevention and healthcare in an efficient and equitable manner. In their analysis, Fran&#231;ois Daue and Lieven Annemans offer some recommendations to improve health policy in order to deliver the optimal health for all with disposable means.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/healthcare-how-to-combine-quality-accessibility-and-effectiveness/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/healthcare-how-to-combine-quality-accessibility-and-effectiveness/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Healthcare: how to combine quality, accessibility and effectiveness?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/healthcare-how-to-combine-quality-accessibility-and-effectiveness/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/healthcare-how-to-combine-quality-accessibility-and-effectiveness/</guid>
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<title>Presentation: Healthcare:how to combine quality, accessibility and effectiveness?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Feb 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationhealthcare-how-to-combine-quality-accessibility-and-effectiveness/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationhealthcare-how-to-combine-quality-accessibility-and-effectiveness/</guid>
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<title>A new institutional design for Belgium&#8217;s healthcare system</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The future organization of the system of health care and health insurance is one of the main challenges for our society. In this Re-Bel paper, Eric Schokkaert and Carine Van de Voorde first situate Belgium in the broader spectre of the large international variety in healthcare institutions. They then describe the main challenges for these systems and the way they try to cope with them. One possibility is to move in the direction of the model of regulated competition and they consider the potential desirability of that move in Belgium. Finally the issues of transparency and interpersonal solidarity in the Belgian context are discussed. A refreshing alternative in the light of Belgium&#8217;s current political negotiations. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-new-institutional-design-for-belgium-healthcare-system/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-new-institutional-design-for-belgium-healthcare-system/</guid>
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<title>A new understanding of poverty</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Within our developed western societies &#8211; most of them with efficient social security schemes &#8211; it is now significantly more difficult and controversial to clearly define what poverty is about. Indeed, poverty includes nowadays social, financial and sometimes even cultural aspects. In this British study, the author proposes new poverty&#8217;s indicators (in absolute and relative terms) in order to further analyze poverty and push forward new policies which could adequately cope with modern precariousness. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-new-understanding-of-poverty/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-new-understanding-of-poverty/</guid>
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<title>CREG study on the electricity law&#8217;s modification</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In 2009 The European council and Parliament have adopted a new directive relative to the organisation of the European electricity market. This directive has recently been translated into Belgian law through the modification of the 1999&#8217;s electricity law. The CREG, the electricity &amp; gas regulator in Belgium, releases a study on the modification this new legal framework will have on the organisation of the Belgian electricity market and its potential positive impact for consumers.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/creg-study-on-the-electricity-law-modification/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/creg-study-on-the-electricity-law-modification/</guid>
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<title>European bank stress-tests: third time lucky?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Systemic bank crises are always difficult to resolve. In Europe, the difficulty is compounded by cross- order interdependencies. Policy paralysis throughout 2009 and 2010 has resulted in precariousness the banking system that puts a serious drag on the old continent&#8217;s recovery. An even more dramatic consequence is to force the euro zone to systematically choose bail-outs over restructurings, whenever one of its members faces macroeconomic difficulties. Systemic banking crises are almost never self-correcting: even with low central-bank rates, retained earnings cannot plug all holes after a major shock. Unless one decides to commit an ever larger amount of tax-payer&#8217;s money, policymakers need to tackle fundamental banking problems, not the least in Belgium.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/european-bank-stress-tests-third-time-lucky/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/european-bank-stress-tests-third-time-lucky/</guid>
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<title>Is the Minimum Wage a Pull Factor for Immigrants?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This IZA paper studies the impact of the minimum wage on immigration and the analysis focuses on the US minimum wage increase of 1996 and 1997. The findings show that States in which the growth of expected wages was relatively large (around 20%) exhibit inflow rate increases that are four to five times larger than States in which average wages grew 10% less. Moreover, placebo tests confirm that the policy did not affect the immigration of high wage earners.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/is-the-minimum-wage-a-pull-factor-for-immigrants/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/is-the-minimum-wage-a-pull-factor-for-immigrants/</guid>
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<title>Tax revenues and tax reforms in the EU</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The financial and economic crisis resulted in severe challenges for public finances in many EU Member States. Tax revenue, which had been boosted during the boom years by tax-rich growth and rising asset prices, plummeted as a consequence of the automatic stabilisers inherent in the tax system, a reversal of the revenue windfalls from asset prices and the discretionary measures taken in support of domestic demand. Against this background, this European Commission report analyses tax revenue developments and recent tax reforms in EU Member States. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tax-revenues-and-tax-reforms-in-the-eu/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tax-revenues-and-tax-reforms-in-the-eu/</guid>
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<title>Unesco education report: reaching the marginalised</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This edition of the EFA Global Monitoring Report 2010, reaching the marginalized, comes at a time of great uncertainty. We are still grappling with the far-reaching impact of the global financial and economic crisis not only on the world&#8217;s banking systems, but on all areas of human development &#8211; including education. We are at a crossroads. Either we continue with business as usual and risk undoing the considerable progress made over the past decade, or we use this crisis as an opportunity to create sustainable systems which promote inclusion and put an end to all forms of marginalization. The gains achieved since the Education for All and Millennium Development Goals were adopted in 2000 are undeniable: great strides have been made towards universal primary education, increased participation in secondary and tertiary education and, in many countries, gender equality.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unesco-education-report-reaching-the-marginalised/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unesco-education-report-reaching-the-marginalised/</guid>
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<title>What Drives the Demand for Temporary Agency Workers?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Temporary agency employment has grown steadily in most European countries over the past three decades as part of the general trend towards increased employment flexibility. Yet to this day, it remains an open question what drives the demand for temporary agency workers. This LASER paper examines, first, whether the deregulation of temporary agency employment is responsible for the growth of the flexible staffing industry. The analysis reveals, moreover, that temporary agency employment exhibits strong cyclical behavior and correlates with main economic indicators in real time, like production indices and real GDP. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-drives-the-demand-for-temporary-agency-workers/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-drives-the-demand-for-temporary-agency-workers/</guid>
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<title>Who is afraid of a Japanese decade?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ For the second time in a decade, central banks around the world have responded to the collapse of an asset bubble by moving aggressively to ease monetary policy, a tactic explicitly justified by the need to avoid a Japanese-style &#8216;lost decade&#8217;. The problem, however; as argued in this commentary, is that Japan never lost a decade&#8230; The reason is simple: Japan&#8217;s overall growth rates have been quite low, but growth was achieved despite a rapidly shrinking working-age population. With regards to its working-age population, Japan has actually outperformed comparing to most other rich countries. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/who-is-afraid-of-a-japanese-decade/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/who-is-afraid-of-a-japanese-decade/</guid>
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<title>Financing Belgium&#8217;s regions and communities: analysis of the &#8220;Vande Lanotte proposal&#8221;</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The reform proposal of the regions and communities&#8217; financing, put forward on January 3rd by the Royal conciliator Johan Vande Lanotte, is an important step towards the institutional evolution of Belgium. It could significantly inspire a political agreement that will eventually be found. An in-depth analysis of Vande Lanotte&#8217;s note is therefore crucial, although acknowledging the time pressure under which the Royal conciliator had to finalize his proposal.  In this respect, the reader should keep in mind that this analysis from Etienne de Callata&#255; mainly focuses on still-to-be-improved proposals, but does not enumerate the numerous merits of Vande Lanotte&#8217;s note. Five fundamental observations emerge from de Callata&#255;&#8217;s analysis. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 25 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-belgian-regions-and-communities-financing--analysis-of-the-vande-lanotte-proposal/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-belgian-regions-and-communities-financing--analysis-of-the-vande-lanotte-proposal/</guid>
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<title>The Belgian regions and communities financing opinion: analysis of the &#8220;Vande Lanotte proposal&#8221; </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The reform&#8217;s proposal of the regions and communities&#8217; financing, put forward on January 3rd by the Royal conciliator Johan Vande Lanotte, is an important step towards an institutional evolution of Belgium. It could significantly inspire a political agreement that will eventually be found. In this article, the authors mainly focus on still-to-be-improved proposals and highlight five fundamental observations.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 25 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-belgian-regions-and-communities-financinganalysis-of-thevande-lanotte-proposal/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-belgian-regions-and-communities-financinganalysis-of-thevande-lanotte-proposal/</guid>
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<title>The special financing law for dummies</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Given its crucial role in the ongoing governmental negotiations, The Special Financing Law (SFL) has been in the spotlights for over 4 months now. In fact, this is a good thing as politicians often find the law way too technical for a thorough public debate and, according to them, only specialists are able to have an opinion on the matter. We firmly disagree. That something would be too complex to explain, for those who believe in a democratic &#8211; and therefore informed &#8211; debate, is a dubious point. It is up to the experts to reduce complexity and explain the fundamental political choices to an enlarged public. In this paper we try to meet this need by explaining the SFL in a comprehensive and understandable way.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 25 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-special-financing-law-for-dummies/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-special-financing-law-for-dummies/</guid>
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<title>The inter-sectorial agreement: a Belgian compromise too far</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos detects a typical Belgian compromise in the new inter-sectorial bargaining agreement. The glass is half-full and half-empty: the social partners have played their roles as curators but have failed in their responsibility of reformers. Especially the construction of a uniform protection for blue collar and white collar workers misses a historical opportunity for modernizing dismissal protection.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 21 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-inter-sectorial-agreement-a-belgian-compromise-too-far/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-inter-sectorial-agreement-a-belgian-compromise-too-far/</guid>
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<title>Why are the prices of the cheapest houses increasing the quickest? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The prices of the cheapest houses have increased by 51% on average between 2005 and 2009. The prices of the most expensive houses only increased by 23%. Because of the rising construction costs thousands of potential investors turned to the secondary housing market. More people with relatively less means are thus competing for the same amount of existing and a priori affordable houses, authors Johan Albrecht and Rob Van Hoofstat say. This results in a more aggressive purchasing strategy from the households. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 20 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-are-the-prices-of-the-cheapest-houses-increasing-the-quickest/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-are-the-prices-of-the-cheapest-houses-increasing-the-quickest/</guid>
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<title>Why are the prices of the cheapest houses increasing the quickest? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 20 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/why-are-the-prices-of-the-cheapest-houses-increasing-the-quickest/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/why-are-the-prices-of-the-cheapest-houses-increasing-the-quickest/</guid>
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<title>A step-by-step plan to regionalize the unemployment insurance</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos reacts to the quarrel about the possible regionalization of unemployment insurance with a concrete step-by-step plan. The existing regional competences in labour market policy can be strengthened, resulting in a better labour market for all. The combination of autonomy and solidarity can be achieved through an appropriate financing mechanism.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 18 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-step-by-step-plan-to-regionalize-the-unemployment-insurance/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-step-by-step-plan-to-regionalize-the-unemployment-insurance/</guid>
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<title>Beautiful Belgian tradition</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Dave Sinardet recalls the benefits of prohibiting the accumulation of political mandates. In regards with the decree recently approved by the Walloon Parliament, he regrets the lack of action on the Flemish side and traces back the political context leading to this immobilism.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/beautiful-belgian-tradition/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/beautiful-belgian-tradition/</guid>
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<title>Conflict and stability</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the US the shift of power to the Far East creates a lot of unease. Countries like Belgium should also reflect on the shifting power structures, says Ivan Van de Cloot.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/conflict-and-stability/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/conflict-and-stability/</guid>
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<title>Proposal: Finding the right budgetary path</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 13 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/findingtheightbudgetarypath/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/findingtheightbudgetarypath/</guid>
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<title>&#8220;Fast forward&#8221; series 2/7: &#8220;Finding the right budgetary path&#8221; + New Year's drink 2011 : FULLY BOOKED</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p align="justify">The institutional negotiations keep dragging on. Whatever the result, the fundamental challenges will have to be addressed one way or another. We therefore have an appointment with history in the years to come. Either we make the strategic choices we have delayed for too long now. Or we condemn ourselves to gradual decline.</p><p align="justify">The Itinera Institute still believes in the future. We organise a Fast Forward series on seven crucial topics: the policy priorities for the next government, with or without new elections. On January the 12th Itinera tackles the issue of austerity.</p><p align="justify">Belgium is facing a public deficit of 16 billion Euros and an official government debt of 100% of GDP. The savings that need to happen are too far-reaching to be decided in one night in a castle lost in the Belgian countryside. Important reforms need to be put in place immediately.</p><p align="justify">Itinera takes the lead and presents the budgetary challenges our country faces in its analysis &ldquo;Finding the right budgetary path&rdquo;. In his report, Chief Economist Ivan Van de Cloot uses, among others, Dutch and British examples and suggests concrete and necessary reform measures. Koen Schoors (Ghent University) and Wim Moesen (KULeuven) will give their reactions on the proposed policy measures. </p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 12 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/fast-forward-series-finding-the-right-budgetary-path/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/fast-forward-series-finding-the-right-budgetary-path/</guid>
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<title>Finding the right budgetary path</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium not only has to cut its deficit but also needs budget surpluses to consolidate public debt. It&#8217;s important not to be blinded by cyclical improvements as they will be dwarfed by new costs due to ageing. An ad hoc austerity committee can start preparing by identifying savings which will be predominantly expenditure cuts given our high tax burden.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 12 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/finding-the-right-budgetary-path/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/finding-the-right-budgetary-path/</guid>
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<title>Finding the right budgetary path: presentation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium not only has to cut its deficit but also needs budget surpluses to consolidate public debt. It&#8217;s important not to be blinded by cyclical improvements as they will be dwarfed by new costs due to ageing. An ad hoc austerity committee can start preparing by identifying savings which will be predominantly expenditure cuts given our high tax burden.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 12 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/finding-the-right-budgetary-path-presentation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/finding-the-right-budgetary-path-presentation/</guid>
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<title>Finding the right budgetary path</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 11 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/finding-the-right-budgetary-path/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/finding-the-right-budgetary-path/</guid>
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<title>Pessimism in the Old West</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Rising economies from the Far East are increasingly putting pressure on the Old West. However, there is no reason why progress in say China should go at the expense of our prosperity. Structural measures are the best remedy against pessimism. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 07 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pessimism-in-the-old-west/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pessimism-in-the-old-west/</guid>
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<title>The Baby-boom Generation needs to take up its responsibility now</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos reflects on the new year. The year in which the first Baby-boomers reach the legal retirement age must be the year when this generation takes up its responsibility. The intergenerational solidarity upon which our welfare state is built is becoming a Ponzi scheme on the back of the young generation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 03 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-baby-boom-generation-needs-to-take-up-its-responsibility-now/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-baby-boom-generation-needs-to-take-up-its-responsibility-now/</guid>
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<title>The papy-boom has started. What now?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ While the rest of Europe awakens to put order into their public finances and to prepare the pension shock, Belgium goes back to bed with its institutional problems. But the problem needs to be addressed now. With half a million pensioners more within the next 10 years the pension crisis has become acute. Moreover, the legal pensions are too low and their financing too uncertain. All the productivity gains of the past years have already been used. According to Jean Hindriks and Isabelle Martin, the real solution consists of creating more jobs and have people working longer, not only in theory but in practice. This is a collective responsibility as we will need to create more than a hundred new jobs every day in order to maintain a balanced pension budget. Together we can manage this challenge. We need a treaty between generations and the social partners.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 17 Dec 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-papy-boom-has-started-what-now/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-papy-boom-has-started-what-now/</guid>
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<title>Looking for 24 000 new homes per year. Does supply follow the yearly increase in demand for housing? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 15 Dec 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/looking-for-24-000-new-homes-per-year-does-supply-follow-the-yearly-increase-in-demand-for-housing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/looking-for-24-000-new-homes-per-year-does-supply-follow-the-yearly-increase-in-demand-for-housing/</guid>
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<title>Looking for 24 000 new homes per year.Does supply follow the yearly increase in demand for housing? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Belgian housing prices have increased by one third since 2005. Structural factors can partly explain this price explosion. The difference between the yearly increase in the demand for houses and the yearly increase in the supply of new houses is central to this analysis. We conclude that there&#8217;s a shortage of 20 to 24 000 new houses per year for total housing supply to evolve at the same pace as total housing demand. This relative undersupply results in upward price pressure and is a consequence of a considerable increase in external migration since 2004 and the stabilisation or even shrinkage of the new estate activity during that same period. Moreover, the high real estate prices do not have a positive impact on the supply of extra houses through renovation or reconversion activities. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 15 Dec 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/lookingfor24000-new-homes-per-year-does-supply-follow-the-yearly-increase-in-demand-for-housing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/lookingfor24000-new-homes-per-year-does-supply-follow-the-yearly-increase-in-demand-for-housing/</guid>
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<title>Another Copernican revolution</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Etienne de Callata&#255; scrutinizes the German reforms of the past couple of years that have improved the country&#8217;s socioeconomic performance. When comparing with Belgium he has serious doubts about the revolutionary nature of the measures discussed during the institutional negotiations. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 13 Dec 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/another-copernican-revolution/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/another-copernican-revolution/</guid>
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<title>&#8220;Fast forward&#8221; series 1/7: &#8220;From necessity to virtue: are we finally going to work longer?!&#8221;</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p align="justify">The institutional negotiations keep dragging on. Whatever the result, the fundamental challenges will have to be addressed one way&nbsp;or another. We therefore have an appointment with history in the years to come. Either we make the strategic choices we have delayed for too long now. Or we condemn ourselves to gradual decline.</p><p align="justify">The Itinera Institute still believes in the future. We organise a Fast Forward series on seven crucial topics: the policy priorities for the next government, with or without new elections. On December the 8th the first topic of the series to be scrutinized is &ldquo;Working longer&rdquo;.</p><p align="justify">We all know it is inevitable. It&rsquo;s on every political party&rsquo;s agenda. We&rsquo;ve had the Generation Pact. But it&rsquo;s not working. How do we finally evolve from necessity to reality? How do we transform this necessity into a virtue? The Itinera Institute goes practical. Our action plan includes short and middle term measures. It will be presented by Marc De Vos, Itinera&rsquo;s general director, and will be followed by interventions by Antoine de Borman, Minister Milquet&rsquo;s employment advisor, and Jan Denys, Randstad&rsquo;s labour market specialist who will give their objective reactions on the proposed policy measures. </p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 08 Dec 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/fast-forward-series-from-necessity-to-virtue-are-we-finally-going-to-work-longer/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/fast-forward-series-from-necessity-to-virtue-are-we-finally-going-to-work-longer/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Presentation: Turning necessity into opportunity: working longer, at last!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 08 Dec 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/turningnecessityworking/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/turningnecessityworking/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Turning necessity into opportunity: working longer, at last!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sees how all political parties acknowledge the necessity of working longer while the reality on the labour market does not follow, notwithstanding the Generation Pact. The crisis has again put older workers in the firing line. A new Generation Pact is not necessary: we need to address the root causes of the marginalisation of older workers on the labour market. He proposes an action plan with measures for both the short term and the medium term. The Itinera Institute calls upon policy makers and social partners to urgently implement structural reforms that will yield an age-friendly labour market to the benefit of everybody, including the worker.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 08 Dec 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/xxxxxxxxxxxxxx/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/xxxxxxxxxxxxxx/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Turning necessity into opportunity: working longer, at last!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 03 Dec 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/turningnecessitintoopportunityworkinglongeratlast/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/turningnecessitintoopportunityworkinglongeratlast/</guid>
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<title>How the crisis is exposing our national character</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sees in national crisis policies an expression of the national character, in several countries. In Belgium one makes due. That mentality was our strength in times of foreign rule. But it is a major weakness in times of domestic political crisis.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 02 Dec 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-the-crisis-is-exposing-our-national-character/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-the-crisis-is-exposing-our-national-character/</guid>
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<title>The time of boom and bust</title>
<description><![CDATA[ We are living through turbulent times which shed a new light on the foundations of our system. During the period of Bretton Woods the economy knew more stability which could be inspiring for the way forward.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 29 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-time-of-boom-and-bust/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-time-of-boom-and-bust/</guid>
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<title>The curtain falls on Ireland</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Irish story once again shows that banks being too big to fail can be fatal for small open economies. They should rationally be more risk adverse towards risks of systemic banks.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 24 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-curtain-falls-on-ireland/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-curtain-falls-on-ireland/</guid>
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<title>15 proposals for the employment of the young and the old</title>
<description><![CDATA[ We have a problem: our social model is confronted with a demographic situation that is radically different from the period it was designed. In 1945 people stopped working when they were 65 and the life expectancy was on average 68 years, says this report from the French Institut Montaigne. Today, people leave the labour market at 60 and men live 78 years and women even 84 years on average. Moreover, the part of the population that bears the double costs of higher studies and pensions has sensibly decreased. We don&#8217;t have a choice: more young people and more old people need to get to work to feed the social security pot. This report discusses 15 ways of how this can be done.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/15-proposals-for-the-employment-of-the-young-and-the-old/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/15-proposals-for-the-employment-of-the-young-and-the-old/</guid>
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<title>Can we make schools responsible for the performances of their students?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Flemish educational system is a high performer according to international research. The most recent PISA 2006 figures confirm that no other country has a higher score for math and that only a handful of countries are doing better in sciences (Finland and Hong Kong) and reading (Korea, Finland and Hong Kong). But there&#8217;s also a downside. Although the achievements in Flanders are very good on average, there are huge differences between pupils (knowledge inequality). There is also a strong correlation between the performance of Flemish students and their socioeconomic background (social inequality). How can we achieve good education for every child? Is the central question of this Leuvens Economisch Standpunt. The author thereby investigates whether it makes sense to make the schools partly responsible for the results of their students.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-we-make-schools-responsible-for-the-performances-of-their-students/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-we-make-schools-responsible-for-the-performances-of-their-students/</guid>
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<title>Currency wars?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A widespread currency war is in prospect. Because many countries are simultaneously seeking to improve their trade position, they are seeking a more competitive exchange rate. However, a weaker exchange rate of one country implies a stronger rate for some other country or countries. The questions are: Who is to accept this outcome and how will it be decided who that is to be? The aim of this Peterson Institute policy brief is to illuminate how such issues should be determined and to advance policy implications for how to rebalance global demand.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/currency-wars/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/currency-wars/</guid>
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<title>Does inequality make us sick ?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The idea that income inequality would negatively affect personal health is a controversial issue. Some find it really troublesome that income inequality, and not (only) levels of absolute income, would affect someone&#8217;s health. This CBS analysis states that this negative inequality effect is said to run via the individual&#8217;s psychological perception and interpretation of inequality by making social comparisons. &#8220;The significance of the negative inequality effect is to remain a much debated topic, and consensus is a long way off&#8221;, author Stijn Rottiers concludes.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-inequality-make-us-sick-/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-inequality-make-us-sick-/</guid>
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<title>Effects of the proposed regional income tax on the regions&#8217; receipts</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Fiscal autonomy is the political issue of the past couple of months. Negotiations between Flanders and French speaking Belgium have been tripped up by it several times. It is essential that the financial consequences of a new, modified finance law are correctly being represented. No political or societal debate can benefit from wrong representations of the consequences of certain choices. On the contrary, only an open debate that takes nobody for a fool can and will lead to an agreement. This is the purpose of this Leuvens Economisch Standpunt that uses a calculation model that differs from all computations presented so far as it takes into account the taxation burden for every Flemish, Walloon and Brussels family. This allows to truly representing the progressivity effects of the proposed reform. Macro computations cannot do this. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/effects-of-the-proposed-regional-income-tax-on-the-regions-receipts/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/effects-of-the-proposed-regional-income-tax-on-the-regions-receipts/</guid>
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<title>Green R&amp;D investments in times of financial uncertainty</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Achieving global energy security, climate change and access goals will require nothing short of an energy revolution. There are different technological possibilities at hand: low carbon energy technologies (LCETs), including energy efficiency in buildings, industry and transport; the near decarbonisation of the electricity sector through rapid acceleration in the use of renewable energy and of cleaner, higher efficiency coal combustion and carbon capture and storage (CCS); and the introduction of a new generation of advanced vehicles. This International Energy Agency report seeks to inform decision makers seeking to prioritise RD&amp;D investments in a time of financial uncertainty.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/green-rd-investments-in-times-of-financial-uncertainty/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/green-rd-investments-in-times-of-financial-uncertainty/</guid>
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<title>Projecting future healthcare expenditures in the EU </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Predicting the future evolution of health care expenditure is one of crucial challenges facing the European Union and its Member States in the context of the demographic and social changes currently taking place. This, however, is a complex undertaking. This European Commission paper provides a comprehensive overview of the theoretical background, practical aspects of projecting health care expenditure and the actual results of the projections undertaken in the context of long-term budgetary forecasting. The model incorporates the most recent developments in demography and epidemiology and draws on new insights from health economics.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/projecting-future-healthcare-expenditures-in-the-eu/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/projecting-future-healthcare-expenditures-in-the-eu/</guid>
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<title>The Economic Consequences of &#8220;Brain Drain&#8221;</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Brain drain has long been a common concern for migrant-sending countries, particularly for small countries where high-skilled emigration rates are highest. This IZA paper presents the results of innovative surveys which tracked academic high-achievers from five countries to wherever they moved in the world in order to directly measure at the micro level the channels through which high-skilled emigration affects the sending country.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-economic-consequences-of-brain-drain/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-economic-consequences-of-brain-drain/</guid>
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<title>Working and Ageing</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With the ageing issue, raising the labour-market participation of ageing people has become a relevant option in the attempt to preserve the sustainability of the pension systems and to avoid big labour-market shortages. This study from the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (CEDEFOP) analyzes the link between ageing, performance, learning and working, and the factors enabling or hampering people to continue working at advanced age. It also shares reflexions and recommendations about the policies that could match individual and organization needs and stimulate older workers&#8217; motivation to work longer.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/working-and-ageing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/working-and-ageing/</guid>
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<title>Do not expect too much of a very expected reform</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium&#8217;s institutional organisation is a problem and the distribution of competences between the federal state and the regions needs to be clarified. Although Etienne de Callata&#255; pleads for a necessary reform he warns that this reform will not solve our country&#8217;s troubles overnight. Reforms in other domains are needed as well. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 16 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/do-not-expect-too-much-of-a-very-expected-reform/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/do-not-expect-too-much-of-a-very-expected-reform/</guid>
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<title>How the social negociations can go beyond the wage norm</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos vents frustration at the recurrent black-and-white debate on wage moderation in Belgium. We need a broader social compact and a new consensus on competitiveness and a better labour market. That can break the tunnel vision on the bi-annual wage norm.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 16 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-the-social-negociations-can-go-beyond-the-wage-norm/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-the-social-negociations-can-go-beyond-the-wage-norm/</guid>
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<title>What comes after multiculturalism ?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos acknowledges the death of multiculturalism. He formulates three subsequent priorities: selective immigration with efficient enforcement, a broad strategy to combat exclusion, and the reassessment of nationality as the crowning of integration. The latter demands the rediscovery of identity.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 16 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-comes-after-multiculturalism-/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-comes-after-multiculturalism-/</guid>
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<title>Grey gold &#8211; How the babyboomers can make eldercare a success story </title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p align="justify">Elder care stands on the verge of the historic baby-boom expansion. The sector that specializes in the final stages of life, will itself become very much alive. It will soon be a political priority, a social issue, a budgetary test, and a bustling economic market. Will we be able to turn these challenges into opportunities? What can we learn from national and international experiences? What levers do we have at our disposal, and what are the obstacles we need to eliminate? How do we make sure that quality and accessibility do not decline despite enormous demographic pressure? </p><p align="justify">At this event, the Itinera Institute will present its strategic vision for the future of elder care in Belgium. A brand new book by Itinera fellow Brieuc Van Damme explores new avenues and offers concrete policy solutions for one of the most pressing issues of our time. </p><p align="justify">Hans Beckers, a renowned care-guru and president of Stichting Humanitas will stimulate the debate further by offering his views on the future of elderly care: &ldquo;Should we care for our grandparents? The Yes - culture in elder care. &ldquo; </p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 10 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/eldercare/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/eldercare/</guid>
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<title>Grey gold &#8211; How the babyboomers can make eldercare a success story </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The debate on ageing has been going on for quite a few years, but nothing has actually been done. The clock keeps ticking&#8230; With this book we want to stimulate the reform process, and offer a new reference frame for the debate. All too often the debate is focussed on the costs and burdens. Eldercare is more than retirement homes, homecare and care for the demented. In this book we offer concrete policy proposals on the financing of eldercare, on how the available money is best spent (we strongly believe the elderly are best placed to make such decisions, and not the care facilities), on how we can resolve the personnel shortage, and how we can prepare our houses and neighbourhoods for the 3rd age.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 09 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/xxxxxxxxxxxx/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/xxxxxxxxxxxx/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Grey gold &#8211; How the babyboomers can make eldercare a success story </title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 08 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/grey-gold-how-the-babyboomers-can-make-eldercare-a-success-story/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/grey-gold-how-the-babyboomers-can-make-eldercare-a-success-story/</guid>
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<title>Grey gold &#8211; How the babyboomers can make eldercare a success story: Memento </title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 08 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/grey-gold-how-the-babyboomers-can-make-eldercare-a-success-story/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/grey-gold-how-the-babyboomers-can-make-eldercare-a-success-story/</guid>
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<title>Grey gold:How the babyboomers can make eldercare a success story: Executive Summary </title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 08 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/x/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/x/</guid>
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<title>The green car runs on emotions. How economically rational is it to invest in ultra-efficient cars?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The additional cost of green or extremely efficient vehicles can be compensated by a lower fuel cost. To recover the higher economic cost of the most efficient diesels (3.8 l / 100 km) compared to &#8216;average&#8217; diesel (4.5 l / 100 km) , one has to drive every year at least 35 000 kilometers, say Johan Albrecht. In Belgium, cars are on average used for 15 000 kilometers per year. Because of the rather low usage rate of vehicles, fiscal discounts of 3 and 15% are very expensive measures to save fossil energy. These fiscal discounts furthermore have a high opportunity cost. 

Download the press release here]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 02 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-green-car-runs-on-emotions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-green-car-runs-on-emotions/</guid>
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<title>The Itinera Institute doubts the effectivness of fiscal deduction for green cars</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Institute doubts the effectivness of fiscal deduction on green cars. It is not efficient fo entice consumers who only drive few kilometers per year to buy extremely efficient, but very expensive vehicles.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 02 Nov 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/deductions-fiscales/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/deductions-fiscales/</guid>
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<title>The country should function better</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Dave Sinardet analyses the Belgian political negotiations. Reforming the country in the general interest is more than trying to find win-win deals between Flemish and Francophone parties. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 29 Oct 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-country-should-function-better/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-country-should-function-better/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Unavoidable austerity can also be useful</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos explains why austerity is necessary and inevitable in Europe and Belgium. But the essence is smart austerity through structural reforms that have been postponed for too long. Austerity will hurt in the short run but should benefit us for ever afterwards.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 29 Oct 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unavoidable-austerity-can-also-be-useful/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unavoidable-austerity-can-also-be-useful/</guid>
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<title>How to measure of the added value of the public authorities</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan Van de Cloot looks at the way the added value of the public authorities is measured. The traditional approach consists in measuring the government output via de costs in de national accounts. But this implies that we develop other measuring tools in order to control the government effectiveness.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 28 Oct 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-measure-of-the-added-value-of-the-public-authorities/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-measure-of-the-added-value-of-the-public-authorities/</guid>
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<title>No evident solution to the monetary chaos</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos reflects on the monetary chaos. The globalization crisis has reached a turning point. Will the West tolerate that China rewrites the rules in its own interests, or will it rise to defend a fair globalization for all?]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 22 Oct 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-wage-norm-crisis-institutional/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-wage-norm-crisis-institutional/</guid>
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<title>Education at a glance 2010</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Following the crisis, the governments must ensure the durability of public finances while seeking to develop the growth potential of their economy in the long run, and answer the demographic and technological changes on the labour market. For this purpose, the performances and the output of the systems of education must be more constant. This OECD report provides a series of relevant indicators so that each country can carry out a study of its system in the light of results from abroad. 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 14 Oct 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/education-at-a-glance-2010/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/education-at-a-glance-2010/</guid>
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<title>Education towards citizenship in Flemish schools</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Children are encouraged to become responsible and active citizens, with rights and obligations. Schools are one of the very first places of integration in society. One of the tasks of teaching consists in educating towards citizenship. This report of the Fondation Roi Baudouin analyzes the supply and demand of this kind of education in Flemish schools. The supply is still too fragmented and should rather be adapted to the various types of schools.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 14 Oct 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/education-towards-citizenship-in-flemish-schools/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/education-towards-citizenship-in-flemish-schools/</guid>
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<title>Fiscal policy after the crisis in the EU Member States</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Since the crisis, public finances strongly lost balance all over Europe. Governments try to adopt the necessary policies and reforms for a budgetary strictness, without discouraging the economic revival. This report of the European commission studies the evolution of the revenues from taxes as well as the recent tax reforms in Europe. Considering the high tax pressure on the labour market, how can we modify the structure of our tax system to generate new incomes without slowing down the demand? Experiences of our neighbours help us judging which measures should be taken and which ones to avoid.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 14 Oct 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fiscal-policy-after-the-crisis-in-the-eu-member-states/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fiscal-policy-after-the-crisis-in-the-eu-member-states/</guid>
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<title>Inequalities between men and women in the world</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This report of the World Economic Forum sketches the inequalities between men and women in the world throughout the world in 2010. It shows us the strong correlation between low inequalities and economic competitiveness of a country. Belgium makes true progress compared to last year, while passing from 19th in the 14th place in the ranking of the countries having the weakest inequalities between men and women in various fields such as the level of education, the wages, the access to highly qualified employment, the life expectancy, etc. The Scandinavian countries are still in the lead, and remain a true model for Belgium and others countries in the fight against sex inequalities.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 14 Oct 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/inequalities-between-men-and-women-in-the-world/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/inequalities-between-men-and-women-in-the-world/</guid>
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<title>Living planet 2010: Biodiversity, biocapacity and development</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What is the ecological footprint of Belgium? Up to what point do we exploit the natural resources of our planet? In this report the WWF establishes a series of indicators of the health of our biosphere and proposes series of recommendations intended to mitigate amongst others the overconsumption of the rich countries. At the present time, the Earth takes one year and half to produce the natural resources that we consume and to absorb waste which we generate in the one year space.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 14 Oct 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/living-planet-2010-biodiversity-biocapacity-and-development/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/living-planet-2010-biodiversity-biocapacity-and-development/</guid>
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<title>The impoverishment of Wallonie is not a threat but a reality</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to Etienne de Callata&#255; we shouldn&#8217;t worry about Wallonia&#8217;s impoverishment as a consequence of institutional reform, but as a current reality.  We should therefore develop a long-term strategy that raises GDP per capita in a durable way.  To obtain a win-win situation the debate should focus on labour market an social security reform.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 14 Oct 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-impoverishment-of-wallonie-is-not-a-threat-but-a-reality/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-impoverishment-of-wallonie-is-not-a-threat-but-a-reality/</guid>
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<title>The origins of income inequality</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A lot of recent work in the labour economics literature has focused on the growing income inequality in the US and some countries in Europe. According to this Eurostat study, the real source of this inequality on the labour market is the job and skills polarisation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 14 Oct 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-origins-of-income-inequality/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-origins-of-income-inequality/</guid>
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<title>The sustainability of reforms in the pension system in Europe</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Many countries already reformed their pension system. But are these reforms sufficient to counter the demographic impact? Or do they reduce the generosity of the old system too much? This report of the Centre of Analysis of Social Exclusion (London School off Economics) analyzes the sustainability of the pension system, taking into account these reforms. It also makes some political considerations and in addition justifies pushing back the retirement age.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 14 Oct 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-sustainability-of-reforms-in-the-pension-system-in-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-sustainability-of-reforms-in-the-pension-system-in-europe/</guid>
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<title>Trade crisis? What trade crisis?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This report of the National Bank of Belgium analyzes the evolution of international trade in 2008 and 2009 and tries to explain Belgium&#8217;s decreasing exports. If the growth rate of our trading partners&#8217; GDP had not decreased that much, if the exchanges of consumer durables and capital equipment had been less affected than the exchanges of other categories of goods and if the financial variables and the participation in chains of world value had not weakened, Belgian exports would have fared better. Demand factors thus explain most of our international market share drawback. But this cannot be used as an excuse to do nothing about it.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 14 Oct 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/trade-crisis-what-trade-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/trade-crisis-what-trade-crisis/</guid>
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<title>What healthcare benefits of a cleaner Europe? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ It is estimated in this Health and Environmental Alliance report that cleaner air in Belgium resulting from the achievement of a 30% rather than a 20% reduction in emissions would result in public health benefits of between &#8364;320 million and &#8364;923 million per year from 2020. The costs of implementing the rise to a 30% target would amount to 150% of the possible public health benefits though.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 14 Oct 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-healthcare-benefits-of-a-cleaner-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-healthcare-benefits-of-a-cleaner-europe/</guid>
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<title>A social Europe needs austerity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos reflects on the unions&#8217; European demonstration against austerity. Lax budgetary policy prior to the crisis, the missed opportunity of the Lisbon strategy, and the haphazard preparation of ageing have made the toll of the crisis very heavy. Austerity is not an option: it is a duty. Its terms can and should be debated, but our social model cannot survive without reforms and sound budgets.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 01 Oct 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-social-europe-needs-austerity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-social-europe-needs-austerity/</guid>
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<title>Avoiding a limited perspective in politics</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan Van de Cloot insists on the importance of hearing all reasonable opinions in a societal debate.  A recent example is the reform of secondary education in Flanders. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 29 Sep 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/avoiding-a-limited-perspective-in-politics/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/avoiding-a-limited-perspective-in-politics/</guid>
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<title>The wage norm crisis is institutional</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos explains how unions and employers both have their share of the truth in the discussion for wage development over 2011-12. We need an institutional framework that allows for variation between sectors and companies. Failing that, no priority strategy can be chosen without a strong government.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 27 Sep 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-wage-norm-crisis-is-institutional/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-wage-norm-crisis-is-institutional/</guid>
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<title>Where is the Chinese danger for our export economy?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos warns for increasing nationalism and protectionism in China. The rise of Chinese state capitalism can become a Trojan horse for the West. An assertive Western trade policy, built upon a trans-Atlantic understanding, is essential.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 23 Sep 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/where-is-the-chinese-danger-for-our-export-economy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/where-is-the-chinese-danger-for-our-export-economy/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Nota%2059uk_MDV.pdf" length="133738" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>Fully booked: Lunch lecture: Information on quality of care: lessons from abroad</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p>The Itinera Institute offers a platform to Pierre-Yves Geoffard, professor at the Paris School of Economics. He discusses the inequality in access to the health system which is more than a matter of money: the access to information on the quality of care also plays a big role. Despite the development of specific health IT, communication of this information remains poor. In France, different initiatives have been launched to improve the access to information on the quality of&nbsp;care and to help spread the key indicators. What lessons can we learn from France? How can we improve the access to this information?</p><p>&nbsp;</p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 20 Sep 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/itineras-reform-debates-health-care-reform/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/itineras-reform-debates-health-care-reform/</guid>
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<title>Information on quality of care: lessons from abroad</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Institute offers a platform to Pierre-Yves Geoffard, professor at the Paris School of Economics. He discusses the inequality in access to the health system which is more than a matter of money: the access to information on the quality of care also plays a big role. Despite the development of specific health IT, communication of this information remains poor. In France, different initiatives have been launched to improve the access to information on the quality of care and to help spread the key indicators. What lessons can we learn from France? How can we improve the access to this information?
]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 20 Sep 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/geoffard/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/geoffard/</guid>
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<title>Stronger capital rules, enforcing them now</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The new rules that the international financial community agreed upon through the Basel committee last weekend include higher capital buffers. According to Ivan Van de Cloot these will make sure that the financial sector pays a part of the costs whenever taken risks go bad.  Both profits and losses should be privatised. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 17 Sep 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/stronger-capital-rules-enforcing-them-now/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/stronger-capital-rules-enforcing-them-now/</guid>
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<title>Decline is the alternative for reform and austerity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos criticizes the unions&#8217; demonstration against pension reform and austerity. Working longer is crucial to absorbing the enormous demographic shift, to keeping pensions affordable and decent and to balancing the solidarity between the generations. Obstinate resistance postpones the necessary until it becomes inevitable and very painful.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 15 Sep 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/decline-is-the-alternative-for-reform-and-austerity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/decline-is-the-alternative-for-reform-and-austerity/</guid>
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<title>The crisis is our collective failure</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos explains how the budgetary crisis is our collective failure: neglect prior to the crisis and self-interest after the crisis. The morality of our crisis tale is that we have the duty to pass on the economy in better health to the next generation. Austerity to improve and by improving is the key ingredient of successful fiscal consolidation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 09 Sep 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-crisis-is-our-collective-failure/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-crisis-is-our-collective-failure/</guid>
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<title>Solutions for Brussels</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Within the framework of the governmental negotiations on Brussels, Ivan Van de Cloot analyses the budgetary situation of our capital as well as its capacity to reimburse its debt. In the light of the relative uncertainty of the reorganisation of our country he advances lines of thinking and solutions about the difficulties and challenges that a capital as ours has to deal with. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 03 Sep 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/solutions-for-brussels/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/solutions-for-brussels/</guid>
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<title>Towards a mature system of financing ?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium&#8217;s political complexity too often hampers effective and efficient policymaking. Given the precarious budgetary situation of the federal state we need to thoroughly reconsider our country&#8217;s financial mechanisms. In his analysis, Ivan Van de Cloot insists on the importance of expense responsibility and on the fact that there are several ways to achieve that goal. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Aug 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-mature-system-of-financing-/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-mature-system-of-financing-/</guid>
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<title>A sound fiscal relation between the federal and the regional level </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium&#8217;s political complexity too often hampers effective and efficient policymaking. Given the precarious budgetary situation of the federal state we need to thoroughly reconsider our country&#8217;s financial mechanisms. In his analysis, Ivan Van de Cloot insists on the importance of expense responsibility and on the fact that there are several ways to achieve that goal. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 25 Aug 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-sound-fiscal-relation-between-the-federal-and-the-regional-level/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-sound-fiscal-relation-between-the-federal-and-the-regional-level/</guid>
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<title>The Great Recession&#8217;s real labor market legacy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos offers perspectives on the differing labour market performances among countries during the Great Recession. The main cause is economics, not labour market policies. But the crisis has further deepened the rift between insiders and outsiders on the labour market, while the temptation for more political management of the labour market is continuing.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 24 Aug 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/xx/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/xx/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Nota%2053_recession_MDV.pdf" length="156323" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>What we do ourselves we do better (maybe): What state reform for a better labour market in Belgium?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos presents a pragmatic road map for the debate on devolution for a better labour market. He sees three scenarios &#8211; Mini, Medium, Maxi &#8211; with a total of sixteen topics for regionalization of labour market policy. He proposes to focus on three priority clusters: unemployment policy, transition policy, and target group policy. It is moreover essential to construct sustainable organization and financing, including policies to incentivize the regions. For this he sketches three options: Logic, Predictability, and Refinement.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 23 Aug 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/xxx/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/xxx/</guid>
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<item>
<title>What we do ourselves we do better (maybe): What state reform for a better labour market in Belgium?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 23 Aug 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/xxx/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/xxx/</guid>
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<title>Regionalize the use of unemployment benefits</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos makes three proposals to fortify the regional capacity for more job opportunities in Belgium: competence over control and sanctions, master of the suitable job description, and the use of unemployment benefits. In this way, one overcomes old dogmas while having the best of three worlds.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Aug 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/regionalize-the-use-of-unemployment-benefits/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/regionalize-the-use-of-unemployment-benefits/</guid>
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<title>The rise of the health economy: challenges, opportunities and options for reform</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Demographic, scientific and technological evolutions are increasingly putting financial strain on Belgium&#8217;s healthcare system. Both public and private healthcare expenditures are on the rise. Without thorough, structural reforms we risk the unfortunate but inevitable decline of a system previously renowned for its quality and accessibility. The purpose of this article is to offer some food for thought on healthcare policy reform in Belgium. We will focus on new roles for all the actors of the healthcare system, new financial and non-financial incentives for the healthcare providers and organisations to accept and expand these new roles, and a broader (horizontal?) reorganisation of the system placing the patient and the pathology at its very core (also known as the continuum of care). In their conclusion, Marc De Vos and Brieuc Van Damme plead for a better reflection on healthcare funding.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 17 Aug 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/xxxx/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/xxxx/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/health_12_NL.pdf" length="457904" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>More cushions to face a volatile food market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Only two years after the food crisis of 2008, something is wrong again with our food production. According to Ivan Van de Cloot we have to look beyond our short-term self interest. Not only should we evaluate what a change of the European agricultural policy will do with farmers in the South, but we should also learn from recent experiences to develop a more sustainable agricultural production. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 11 Aug 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-cushions-to-face-a-volatile-food-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-cushions-to-face-a-volatile-food-market/</guid>
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<title>Football World Cup 2018: economic opportunity or own-goal?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium &amp; the Netherlands are putting themselves forward to organize the 2018 World cup. According to Johan Albrecht and Ruben Laleman, the word cup could be a nice economic opportunity if a clever investment strategy is put in place.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 09 Aug 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/footballworldcup2018economicopportunityorowngoal/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/footballworldcup2018economicopportunityorowngoal/</guid>
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<title>Football World Cup 2018: economic opportunity or own-goal?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 06 Aug 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/wk2018/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/wk2018/</guid>
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<title>Austerity measures and the need of political coordination (2)</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Even if we manage to save 22 billion Euros, that will not be enough to cushion the magnitude of our public debt and the increasing costs of ageing after 2015, says Ivan Van de Cloot. In order to face these two challenges, we will need more coordination of European policies. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 04 Aug 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx/</guid>
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<title>Retire the Claeys Formula </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos qualifies as a necessary evil the so-called &#8220;Claeys Formula&#8221; that has been used to calculate redundancy periods for over 35 years. The formula symbolizes a discriminatory and outdated dismissal system. It is high time for a modern and uniform dismissal law that allows the formula to retire.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 02 Aug 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww/</guid>
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<title>Why the battle for democracy remains important</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos reflects on the international decline of democracy. He sees democracy discredited, both through impotence and unwillingness. But rich authoritarian regimes are dangerous. The West must continue to defend democracy and spread its ideals.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-the-battle-for-democracy-remains-important/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-the-battle-for-democracy-remains-important/</guid>
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<title>Belgium&#8217;s migration policy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In its third annual report, the Centre for Equal Opportunities and Opposition to Racism analyzes Belgium&#8217;s migration policies throughout 2009.  Contrary to the preceding year, 2009 turned out to be the year in which the federal government came into action, carrying out a regularization based on the principle of &#8216;enduring anchoring&#8217;.  While the topic of economic migration has ceased to be a priority since the economic crisis has hit the country, the Centre continues to plead for a transparent, clear-cut and proactive migration policy.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 26 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-migration-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-migration-policy/</guid>
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<title>Data Privacy Principles for Innovation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Technological innovation, particularly in information technology, is at the heart of economic growth.  Widespread digitization of the economy is critical in ensuring robust economic growth and thus a higher standard of living.  One barrier to more rapid progress to a digitally enabled society is the fear by some people that this will entail a loss of privacy.  In this respect, there have been come privacy related concerns regarding the introduction of the eHealth-platform in the Belgian healthcare sector.  This paper by The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation intends to provide an answer to these concerns.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 26 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/data-privacy-principles-for-innovation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/data-privacy-principles-for-innovation/</guid>
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<title>Income and diversity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ It is widely known that there is an income gap between native Belgians and non-Western immigrants in Belgium.  This report by the Herman Deleeck Centre for Social Policy quantifies this gap for four different categories of immigrants, focusing on employment as an explanatory factor. The gap turns out to be substantially smaller for immigrants who acquired the Belgian nationality.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 26 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/income-and-diversity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/income-and-diversity/</guid>
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<title>Low-carbon jobs</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Government action on climate change promises economic opportunity.  Stimulating new economic activity around green energy production will generate growth and offer new, skilled employment to workers. This paper by The Global Climate Network shows that globally millions of &#8216;low-carbon&#8217; jobs will be created, that these &#8216;low-carbon&#8217; jobs are likely to outnumber job losses in carbon-intensive sectors and that the jobs created will on the whole attract above-average salaries.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 26 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/low-carbon-jobs/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/low-carbon-jobs/</guid>
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<title>Pensions reform: why and how</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A much debated topic is the precarious financial situation of the Belgian pension system.  Drastic structural reforms are inevitable to keep the current repartition system afloat.  This report by the French Institut Montaigne brings up a number of interesting ideas in this respect.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 26 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pensions-reform-why-and-how/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pensions-reform-why-and-how/</guid>
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<title>Propositions for a sustainable healthcare system</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Although Western Europe&#8217;s healthcare systems are of relatively high quality, they face a number of threats regarding their financial sustainability.  In this respect, a much debated topic in Belgium has been the legally anchored growth rate of 4,5% in the healthcare budget.  This note by the French Institut Montaigne suggests three main fields of reform for the coming years: reinventing health insurance, improving the access to an adapted healthcare and assessing the quality of healthcare.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 26 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/propositions-for-a-sustainable-healthcare-system/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/propositions-for-a-sustainable-healthcare-system/</guid>
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<title>Total tax contribution</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With an average total tax rate of 52%, companies in Belgium continue to bear one of the heaviest overall tax burdens at an international level. In recent years, no significant reduction in the overall tax burden has taken place.  Instead, 20 additional taxes have been identified since 2007. These are the highlights of the second Total Tax Contribution report by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the Federation of Enterprises in Belgium.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 26 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/total-tax-contribution/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/total-tax-contribution/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Transfers and regional growth</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Interregional redistribution in Europe, and more specifically in Belgium, curbs the economic growth of the less prosperous regions. Based on an econometric analysis, this Vives report suggests that a hypothetical reduction in interregional redistribution of 1/3 would lead to an annual increase in economic growth by 0,30 percentage points in Flanders and 0,42 percentage points in Wallonia, thus resulting in a convergence of both regions&#8217; economic performance.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 26 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/transfers-and-regional-growth/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/transfers-and-regional-growth/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Wage evolution and labour market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ To what degree do shortages and surpluses on the labour market lead to wage increases and wage restraints respectively?  The degree to which these labour market conditions affect wages is called wage flexibility.  This report by the Research Department of the Flemish Government analyses wage flexibility in Belgium, its regions, its neighbouring countries and the EU15, both at an industry level and at a macroeconomic level.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 26 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wage-evolution-and-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wage-evolution-and-labour-market/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Bring more talent to schools: bring the best staff into schools with better starting pay and intense selection </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bring-more-talent-to-schools-bring-the-best-staff-into-schools-with-better-starting-pay-and-intense-selection/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bring-more-talent-to-schools-bring-the-best-staff-into-schools-with-better-starting-pay-and-intense-selection/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Give more responsibility to schools: provide an external evaluation based on densely and clearly defined targets </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/give-more-responsibility-to-schools-provide-an-external-evaluation-based-on-densely-and-clearly-defined-targets/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/give-more-responsibility-to-schools-provide-an-external-evaluation-based-on-densely-and-clearly-defined-targets/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Slow greening of the fiscal system in the employment area</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Greening the fiscal system is a good idea in times of large budget deficits. It seems more difficult to quickly and profoundly change a system that predominantly taxes labour though. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/slow-greening-of-the-fiscal-system-in-the-employment-area/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/slow-greening-of-the-fiscal-system-in-the-employment-area/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Strive for more equity in schools: adopt a no child left behind policy </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/strive-for-more-equity-in-schools-adopt-a-no-child-left-behind-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/strive-for-more-equity-in-schools-adopt-a-no-child-left-behind-policy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Strive for more mobilisation in schools: involve parents and the community network to participate to lift up education</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/strive-for-more-mobilisation-in-schools-involve-parents-and-the-community-network-to-participate-to-lift-up-education/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/strive-for-more-mobilisation-in-schools-involve-parents-and-the-community-network-to-participate-to-lift-up-education/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Why do we persist to underinvest in energy R&amp;D?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Yes, we need better renewable energy technologies. Yes, free markets fail to provide appropriate incentives for radical energy R&amp;D-projects. So yes, governments stepped in and created several incentive schemes. But no, most renewable energy technology companies do not seriously invest in R&amp;D...]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/whydowepersisttounderinvestinenergyrd/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/whydowepersisttounderinvestinenergyrd/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/ja_48_energy.pdf" length="144587" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>Give more autonomy to schools: give back the power to teachers and principals</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 16 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/give-more-autonomy-to-schools-/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/give-more-autonomy-to-schools-/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Policy reform is ageing&#8217;s real challenge</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos vents his frustration at the occasion of the umpteenth annual report of Belgian Commission on Ageing. The preparation for Ageing has simply failed. The figures do not match. Only strong policy reform and a clear growth strategy can save us. We do not need commissions that calculate budgets, but rather commissions that advise on reform.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 07 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/policy-reform-is-ageing-real-challenge/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/policy-reform-is-ageing-real-challenge/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Make governments push &amp; pull new energy technologies</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/make-governments-push--pull-new-energy-technologies/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/make-governments-push--pull-new-energy-technologies/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Reduce the complexity of the fiscal and parafiscal wage structure</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reduce-the-complexity-of-the-fiscal-and-parafiscal-wage-structure/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reduce-the-complexity-of-the-fiscal-and-parafiscal-wage-structure/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Refine and improve the application of the wage standard</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/refine-and-improve-the-application-of-the-wage-standard/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/refine-and-improve-the-application-of-the-wage-standard/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Create learning effects through targeted experiences in the fight against poverty</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/create-learning-effects-through-targeted-experiences-in-the-fight-against-poverty/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/create-learning-effects-through-targeted-experiences-in-the-fight-against-poverty/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Empower civil servants</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/empower-civil-servants/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/empower-civil-servants/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Link a &quot;poverty test&quot; to fiscal measures</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/link-a-poverty-test-to-fiscal-measures/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/link-a-poverty-test-to-fiscal-measures/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Link the debate on poverty to social mobility</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/link-the-debate-on-poverty-to-the-social-mobility/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/link-the-debate-on-poverty-to-the-social-mobility/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Make a &quot;New Deal&quot; for an agefriendly labourmarket, where working longer becomes more realistic, and early retirement disappears</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/make-a-/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/make-a-/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Make the cost of government more transparent</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/clarifier-les-couts-dans-le-service-publique/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/clarifier-les-couts-dans-le-service-publique/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Make the public sector accountable</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/test/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/test/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Mobilise for diversity on the labour market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/mobilise-for-diversity-on-the-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/mobilise-for-diversity-on-the-labour-market/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Put a price on CO2</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/put-a-price-on-co2/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/put-a-price-on-co2/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Stop wasting our human capital!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos condemns the widespread waste of Belgium&#8217;s only natural resource: human talent. In migration and integration, in education, and on the labour market waste is ubiquitous. We need a broad policy strategy for human capital, without dogmas. The clock of demography is ticking ominously.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/stop-wasting-our-human-capital/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/stop-wasting-our-human-capital/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Strengthen the levers for social mobility</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/strengthen-the-levers-for-social-mobility/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/strengthen-the-levers-for-social-mobility/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Create individual career accounts </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 28 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/create-individual-career-accounts/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/create-individual-career-accounts/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Cut back in the amount of job schemes</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 28 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/cut-back-in-the-amount-of-jobschemes/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/cut-back-in-the-amount-of-jobschemes/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Towards a better and more modern single employment status for both blue collar and white collar workers </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this languague]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 28 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-better-and-more-modern-single-employment-status-for-both-blue-collar-and-white-collar-workers/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-better-and-more-modern-single-employment-status-for-both-blue-collar-and-white-collar-workers/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Turn temporary unemployment into a volontary insurance regime, combined to activation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 28 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/turn-temprary-unemployment-into-a-volontary-insuranceregime-combined-to-activation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/turn-temprary-unemployment-into-a-volontary-insuranceregime-combined-to-activation/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Austerity measures and the need of political coordination </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Even if we manage to save 22 billion Euros, that won&#8217;t be enough to cushion the magnitude of our public debt and the increasing costs of ageing after 2015, says Ivan Van de Cloot. In order to face these two challenges, we&#8217;ll need more coordination of European policies. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 24 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/austerity-measures-and-the-need-of-political-coordination/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/austerity-measures-and-the-need-of-political-coordination/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Coordinate industrial policy at European level</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 24 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/coordinate-industrial-policy-at-european-level/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/coordinate-industrial-policy-at-european-level/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Use public funds only to support activities with an already established base of private knowledge and R&amp;D </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 24 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/use-public-funds-only-to-support-activities-with-an-already-established-base-of-private-knowledge-and-rd/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/use-public-funds-only-to-support-activities-with-an-already-established-base-of-private-knowledge-and-rd/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Allow children to skip a level if they are up to it</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/allow-children-to-skip-a-level-if-they-are-up-to-it/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/allow-children-to-skip-a-level-if-they-are-up-to-it/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Assess public investments based on clear objectives </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/assess-public-investments-based-on-clear-objectives/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/assess-public-investments-based-on-clear-objectives/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Create &#8220;kangaroo classes&#8221; in every school or in every association of schools</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/create-kangaroo-classes-in-every-school-or-in-every-association-of-schools/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/create-kangaroo-classes-in-every-school-or-in-every-association-of-schools/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Invest public funds only in promising areas ; do not favour entire sectors </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/invest-public-funds-only-in-promising-areas--do-not-favour-entire-sectors/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/invest-public-funds-only-in-promising-areas--do-not-favour-entire-sectors/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Reserve public funds for new technologies only </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reserve-public-funds-for-new-technologies-only/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reserve-public-funds-for-new-technologies-only/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Systematically screen school children, in order to identify gifted children at an early age</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/screen/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/screen/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The price of health</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Health is our most valuable good. No wonder we do everything to preserve our psychological and physical integrity, whatever the cost. But because of budgetary frontiers, our social security will not be able to reimburse all the new treatments to come. Brieuc Van Damme pleads for an objective evaluation of medical treatments based on the generated gains for public health. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-price-of-health/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-price-of-health/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Train teachers, Pupil Guidance Centres and Education Inspectors to guide gifted children</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/train-teachers/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/train-teachers/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Europe 2020 and Belgium: the challenges</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What do we have to do in order to achieve a better and sustainable growth after the crisis? What are the main challenges in our social and economic policy? What choices does Belgium have to make after the federal elections of June 13th? 

The European Commission aims to inspire with the &#8220;Europe 2020&#8221; strategy. 

During a conference day organised by the Itinera Institute and the European Commission, prominent speakers from the political, economic and academic world debated on the main themes of this European strategy and its application in Belgium.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 21 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/europe-2020-and-belgium-the-challenges/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/europe-2020-and-belgium-the-challenges/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>There is no alternative for austerity and reform</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos explains why the international economic context further complicates the Belgian scene. Slower growth and the risk of a double dip require level-headed policy. The state can do no more. Austerity and reform are inevitable. A stable and strong government is necessary.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 21 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/there-is-no-alternative-for-austerity-and-reform/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/there-is-no-alternative-for-austerity-and-reform/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Europe 2020 and Belgium: the challenges</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p align="justify">What do we have to do in order to achieve a better and sustainable growth after the crisis? What are the main challenges in our social and economic policy? What choices does Belgium have to make after the federal elections of June 13th? </p><p align="justify">The European&nbsp;Commission aims to inspire with the &ldquo;Europe 2020&rdquo; strategy. </p><p align="justify">On the <strong>18th of June 2010,</strong> the <strong>Itinera Institute</strong>, in collaboration with the <strong>European Commission</strong>,&nbsp;organised a study and conference day: <strong><u>&ldquo;Europe 2020 and Belgium: the challenges&rdquo;.</u></strong></p><p align="justify">Prominent speakers from the political, economic and academic world debated on the main themes of the European strategy and its application in Belgium.</p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 18 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/europe-2020-and-belgium-the-challenges/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/europe-2020-and-belgium-the-challenges/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Allow demotion as a means to extend careers</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/allow-demotion-as-a-means-to-extend-careers/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/allow-demotion-as-a-means-to-extend-careers/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Allow pensioners to cumulate and combine</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/allow-pensioners-to-cumulate-and-combine/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/allow-pensioners-to-cumulate-and-combine/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Change the nomenclature for the reimbursement of medical expenses</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/change-the-nomenclature-for-the-reimbursement-of-medical-expenses/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/change-the-nomenclature-for-the-reimbursement-of-medical-expenses/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Create a coordinating body which puts the patient first and which aligns all parties involved</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/create-a-coordinating-body-which-puts-the-patient-first-and-which-aligns-all-parties-involved/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/create-a-coordinating-body-which-puts-the-patient-first-and-which-aligns-all-parties-involved/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Double the IT budget in healthcare</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/double-the-it-budget-in-healthcare/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/double-the-it-budget-in-healthcare/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Hospitals must specialize in surgery where they reach a critical mass</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hospitals-must-specialize-in-surgery-where-they-reach-a-critical-mass/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hospitals-must-specialize-in-surgery-where-they-reach-a-critical-mass/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Limit the &#8220;equal periods&#8221; in the calculation of pension amounts</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/limit-the-equal-periods-in-the-calculation-of-pension-amounts/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/limit-the-equal-periods-in-the-calculation-of-pension-amounts/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Tax income from labour and pensions in the same way</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tax-income-from-labour-and-pensions-in-the-same-way/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tax-income-from-labour-and-pensions-in-the-same-way/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Dedicate at least an extra 100 milion euros per year to prevention</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/elk-jaar-minstens-100-miljoen-euro-extra-besteden-aan-preventie/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/elk-jaar-minstens-100-miljoen-euro-extra-besteden-aan-preventie/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Democracy needs economic growth</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan Van de Cloot warns for the consequences of stagnating economic growth. In parts of the world where the economy is stationary, more resources are invested in the exploitation of others. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/democratie-needs-economic-growth/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/democratie-needs-economic-growth/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Develop a policy to speed up investments in renewable energy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/develop-a-policy-to-speed-up-investments-in-renewable-energy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/develop-a-policy-to-speed-up-investments-in-renewable-energy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Evaluate recent measures in the fight against poverty and inequality</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/evaluer-les-recentes-mesures-de-lutte-contre-la-pauvrete-et-de-promotion-de-legalite-des-chances/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/evaluer-les-recentes-mesures-de-lutte-contre-la-pauvrete-et-de-promotion-de-legalite-des-chances/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Generalize complementary pensions</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/generalize-complementary-pensions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/generalize-complementary-pensions/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Give absolute priority to obesity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/absolute-voorrang-geven-aan-de-strijd-tegen-de-zwaarlijvigheid/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/absolute-voorrang-geven-aan-de-strijd-tegen-de-zwaarlijvigheid/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Increase the budget for R&amp;D into &#8220;green&#8221; energy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/increase-the-budget-for-rd-/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/increase-the-budget-for-rd-/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Individualize pension rights</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/individualize-pension-rights/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/individualize-pension-rights/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Make recruitment and appointments in the public sector more objective</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language

]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/make-recruitment-and-appointments-in-the-public-sector-more-objective/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/make-recruitment-and-appointments-in-the-public-sector-more-objective/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Make the labour market age-conscious</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/make-the-labour-market-age-conscious/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/make-the-labour-market-age-conscious/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Move to a single statute for civil servants</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/move-to-a-single-statute-for-civil-servants/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/move-to-a-single-statute-for-civil-servants/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Promote annuities to safeguard pensions in the future</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/promote-annuities-to-safeguard-pensions-in-the-future/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/promote-annuities-to-safeguard-pensions-in-the-future/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Promote job satisfaction in the public sector</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/promote-job-satisfaction-in-the-public-sector/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/promote-job-satisfaction-in-the-public-sector/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Promote mobility in the public sector</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not avaiable in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/promote-mobility-in-the-public-sector/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/promote-mobility-in-the-public-sector/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Simplify management plans in public administration</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-overheid-moet-eenvoudigere-beheersplannen-nastreven-met-een-beperkt-aantal-duidelijke-en-strategische-doelstellingen/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/de-overheid-moet-eenvoudigere-beheersplannen-nastreven-met-een-beperkt-aantal-duidelijke-en-strategische-doelstellingen/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Specify the results of public administration</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/het-overheidsbeleid-moet-door-onafhankelijke-structuren-en-aan-de-hand-van-key-performance-indicators-beoordeeld-en-opgevolgd-worden/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/het-overheidsbeleid-moet-door-onafhankelijke-structuren-en-aan-de-hand-van-key-performance-indicators-beoordeeld-en-opgevolgd-worden/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Strive for excellence in the public sector</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/strive-for-excellence-in-the-public-sector/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/strive-for-excellence-in-the-public-sector/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Switch to a system of notional accounts to safeguard pensions in the future</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/switch-to-a-system-of-notional-accounts-to-safeguard-pensions-in-the-future/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/switch-to-a-system-of-notional-accounts-to-safeguard-pensions-in-the-future/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Train all health workers in the economics of healthcare, in management and in IT </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/train-all-health-workers-in-the-economics-of-healthcare-in-management-and-in-it/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/train-all-health-workers-in-the-economics-of-healthcare-in-management-and-in-it/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Draw up a long term strategic plan for the health sector, managed by the government</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 10 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/plan/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/plan/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Publish the data on the quality of hospitals </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not available in this language]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 10 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/publish-the-data-on-the-quality-of-hospitals/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/publish-the-data-on-the-quality-of-hospitals/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Hit parade of the election promises: how to finance? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ In these election times the political parties seem to have forgotten the harsh economic reality. The programmes propose a series of expenses but say very little about how they should be financed. Jean Hindriks and Isabelle Martin wonder how parties will be able to keep their word given the budgetary and demographic challenges our economies face. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hit-parade-of-the-election-promiseshowtofinance/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hit-parade-of-the-election-promiseshowtofinance/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Austerity through reform in public governance and in healthcare</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos supports the austerity goals but stresses that austerity needs to be tied to clever and structural reform. Linear cost reduction is the easy way that will not necessarily yield effective public governance and efficient healthcare. Structural reform can turn the crisis into a great opportunity.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 07 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/austerity-through-reform-in-public-governance-and-in-healthcare/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/austerity-through-reform-in-public-governance-and-in-healthcare/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Common-sense and realism have to stop the culture of promises.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Austerity has become the hot topic in the election debate.
The voters finally get the debate they deserve, because the budgettary effort for Belgium will be immense.
The Itinera Institute analysed the lection programmes from both sides of the linguistic border, and offers her recommendations.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 04 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/verkiezingsprogramma/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/verkiezingsprogramma/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>No endless negotiations in times of crisis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The financial markets are still very nervous about government debts. Governments cannot seriously expect to print bonds endlessly and see their problems vanish into thin air. Our population cannot be sacrificed because of a lack of decisiveness in turbulent times. In fact, we cannot even afford long government negotiations and vagueness about our determination to solve the budgetary challenge, Ivan Van de Cloot says.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 04 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-endless-negotiations-in-times-of-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-endless-negotiations-in-times-of-crisis/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Common-sense and realism have to stop the culture of promises</title>
<description><![CDATA[ One week before the elections savings are the subject of the day, at least in Flanders. The voters finally get the debate they deserve: what recovery policy do we need to realize a structural budgetary effort of 22 billion Euros? According to Marc De Vos, Ivan Van de Cloot and Brieuc Van Damme, the gap between the needed budgetary efforts and what is being promised in the election programmes is astonishingly deep however.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 03 Jun 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/common-sense-and-realism-have-to-stop-the-culture-of-promises/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/common-sense-and-realism-have-to-stop-the-culture-of-promises/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Evaluation of tax evasion in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In 2008, the fight against tax evasion gave rise to &#8364;4billions. However, according to many social partners, this fight is far from being won and has to be strengthened. In this period of budgetary crisis, extra revenues would be more than needed to restore the stability of our public finance and face the financing issue of ageing. By using two different evaluation methods, this DULBEA report highlights us on the scope of current tax evasion and convinces us to adjust our fight.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tax-evasion-in-belgium-evaluation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tax-evasion-in-belgium-evaluation/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Fostering sustainability in Europe</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Europe has been substantially hit by the crisis and is now confronted to huge budgetary deficits and public debts. Growth has to come back while austerity measures are needed to restore some stability in the public finances. This IMF report studies the signs of recovery in Europe compared to the rest of the world and makes its recommendations in terms of macroeconomic, financial and prudential policies, to manage and stabilise capital inflows.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fostering-sustainability-in-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fostering-sustainability-in-europe/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Migrants&#8217; income in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This CSB report confirms results previously published in other studies: wages and labour market opportunities are on average lower for migrants than for autochthones.  Immigration and integration policies should therefore be adapted and improved. Our country needs to take the appropriate measures to activate immigrants on the labour market which will contribute to our economy&#8217;s growth.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migrants-income-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migrants-income-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The 1st pillar pensions in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In January 2008, the average legal pension in Belgium was equal to 1155&#8364; but could more of less vary with the pension regime, the age, the career, etc. But is this amount sufficient to maintain the purchasing power of elderly people and preserve them from poverty? Which role has to be given to the 2d and 3d pillars? This report from the Federal Plan Bureau analyses our 1st pillar pension system and its efficiency to respond to social objectives. In one word, it provides interesting figures and reflections to feed the pension and ageing debate.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-1st-pillar-pensions-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-1st-pillar-pensions-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The impact of age on the reservation wage</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How can we stimulate older workers to stay longer in the labour force? What is the minimum wage employers have to offer for them to accept a job? Age influences the willingness to work and the ease of movement on the labour market. In this report from the Steunpunt Werk en Sociale Economie (KUL), the author uses these two employability concepts and their relation with age to analyze the relation between age and the reservation wage. This relation is complex but helps us to better tackle the ageing challenge.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-impact-of-age-on-the-reservation-wage/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-impact-of-age-on-the-reservation-wage/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The impact of the Bologna process</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With the Bologna process, many important reforms in higher education have been achieved. This report from Eurydice makes an evaluation of the progresses and failures realized in terms of student mobility, lifelong learning, quality assurance and social dimension of higher education. With the crisis and the necessary return of growth, our countries have to learn from each other, make their education system even more efficient and provide their citizens with the levels of education and skills required by a globally competitive, knowledge-based society.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-impact-of-the-bologna-process/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-impact-of-the-bologna-process/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Wage differences between men and women in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This report from the Center for Equal Opportunities points out that the wage difference between men and women amounted to 11.69% in 2007, against 12.47% in 2006. This report studies the factors influencing this difference - professional and individual characteristics, and the family situation- and provides a list of political recommendations aimed at pursuing the reduction of this wage difference.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wage-differences-between-men-and-women-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wage-differences-between-men-and-women-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The figures of realism on budget and ageing</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos explains how Belgium faces a daunting budgetary challenge, with major austerity in the short-run and the need for budget surpluses in the medium term. At the same time, structural reforms in social security are inevitable and economic potential must improve, while state reform will crown it all. The following government will be on of blood, sweat, toil, and tears.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 21 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-figures-of-realism-on-budget-and-ageing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-figures-of-realism-on-budget-and-ageing/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>A stable euro requires more economic potential</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos argues that the real euro-crisis is not today&#8217;s fiscal profligacy, but tomorrow&#8217;s economic potential. The cardinal issue for the euro is whether its member states will be able to avoid a welfare state trap: will they be able to reform before such reform becomes mutilation that furthers decline, instead of reversing it. Political scapegoating needs to stop. Structural reforms to boost growth and competitiveness are essential.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 17 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-stable-euro-requires-more-economic-potential/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-stable-euro-requires-more-economic-potential/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/en/doc/mdv_OpinionTemp_uk37.pdf" length="132019" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>A European response to the speculation twister</title>
<description><![CDATA[ If your house burns down because of imprudence, don&#8217;t worry, firemen will come. It is the insurance company you may have trouble with. By analogy, the EU can help the Greek and other economies, but cannot bail them out. We can blame the financial market&#8217;s speculative irrationality, but that doesn&#8217;t mean that a certain number of countries will not have to push for fundamental reforms in order to be creditworthy. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 11 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-european-response-to-the-speculation-twister/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-european-response-to-the-speculation-twister/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Evolutions of the Belgian pension schemes</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium is not prepared for ageing.  There is no need to panic, however, appropriate immediate action is essential.  The red book about pensions evaluates the situation and the evolution of the pensions, and recommends a plan to maintain our pension scheme.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 10 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/evolutions-of-the-belgian-pension-schemes/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/evolutions-of-the-belgian-pension-schemes/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Executive Summary:Pensions: Itinera&#8217;s little red book</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium is not prepared for ageing.  There is no need to panic, however, appropriate immediate action is essential.  The red book about pensions evaluates the situation and the evolution of the pensions, and recommends a plan to maintain our pension scheme.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 10 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/summary/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/summary/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Note on reforming Belgian pensions</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium is not prepared for ageing.  There is no need to panic, however, appropriate immediate action is essential.  The red book about pensions evaluates the situation and the evolution of the pensions, and recommends a plan to maintain our pension scheme.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 10 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/note-on-reforming-belgian-pensions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/note-on-reforming-belgian-pensions/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/MEMO%204_pp.pdf" length="244486" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>Pensions: Itinera's little red book</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium is not prepared for ageing.  There is no need to panic, however, appropriate immediate action is essential.  The red book about pensions evaluates the situation and the evolution of the pensions, and recommends a plan to maintain our pension scheme.


]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 10 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pensions-itineras-little-red-book/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pensions-itineras-little-red-book/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Pensions: Itinera's little red book</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium is not prepared for ageing.  There is no need to panic, however, appropriate immediate action is essential.  The red book about pensions evaluates the situation and the evolution of the pensions, and recommends a plan to maintain our pension scheme.


]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 10 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/pension/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/pension/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Pensions: Itinera's little red book</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p align="justify">So far we have had a white book and a green book where pensions are concerned.</p><p align="justify">The Itinera Institute compiled its policy recommendations in its very own little red book.</p><p align="justify">The presentation of this red book will take place on the <u>10th of May,18h30</u>, at Euronext Brussels (<u>Palais de la Bourse</u>), and will be followed by a debate with <strong>Frank Vandenbroucke</strong>, <strong>Michel Jadot</strong>, and <strong>Luc Everaert</strong>.</p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 10 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/pensioenen-itineras-rode-boekje/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/pensioenen-itineras-rode-boekje/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Presentation:Itinera's little red book on pensions</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium is not prepared for ageing. There is no need to panic, however, appropriate immediate action is essential. The red book about pensions evaluates the situation and the evolution of the pensions, and recommends a plan to maintain our pension scheme.

]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 10 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationitineras-little-red-book-on-pensions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationitineras-little-red-book-on-pensions/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/PPT%20pensions-JH%20IVDC.pdf" length="3059802" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>Time to put the pension system on ABS</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium is not prepared for ageing.  There is no need to panic, however, appropriate immediate action is essential.  The red book about pensions evaluates the situation and the evolution of the pensions, and recommends a plan to maintain our pension scheme.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 10 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/time-to-put-the-pension-system-on-abs/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/time-to-put-the-pension-system-on-abs/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/everaert_6.pdf" length="194173" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>Gender and time utilisation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Institute for the equality of women and men has made a thorough analysis of the differences and similarities of time utilisation of Belgian women and men. On top of the general differences between the genders, the researchers analyse time spent on caring for others, paid and unpaid labour, the combination of professional and private life, and leisure time. Differences between women and men according to family type, education level, revenue and age are also discussed in the report.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 06 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gender-and-time-utilisation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gender-and-time-utilisation/</guid>
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<title>How Do Labour Markets Affect Crime?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ For nearly 50 years academics have been studying how labour markets affect crime. This literature is characterized by an intriguing puzzle &#8211; the large gap between the theory and empirical work. To solve the puzzle, this IZA paper discusses a few very important empirical problems that until the last 10 years have not been systematically addressed. The author concludes that recent research consistently provides evidence to buttress the contention that labour market opportunities have important effects on crime, especially property crime.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 06 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-do-labour-markets-affect-crime/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-do-labour-markets-affect-crime/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Long-term care in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This report describes the organization of the Belgian long-term care system. According to the Plan Bureau it can be characterized as a mixed system with extensive public care provision and substantial support from informal care mainly within the family. While the current volume and quality of services appears to be adequate, the future increase in the number of dependent elderly persons over the next two decades as a result of demographic ageing can be expected to become a serious challenge, both in terms of required formal and informal care capacity and financially.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 06 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/long-term-care-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/long-term-care-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The economic and social role of Internet intermediaries</title>
<description><![CDATA[ As the Internet has grown to permeate all aspects of the economy and society, so too has the role of Internet intermediaries that give access to, host, transmit and index content originated by third parties or provide Internet-based services to third parties. They enable a host of activities through both wired and increasingly, mobile technologies. By doing so, they have brought unprecedented user and consumer empowerment through greater information, facilitating product and price comparisons and creating downward pressure on prices. This, and more, is discussed and analysed in this OECD report.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 06 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-economic-and-social-role-of-internet-intermediaries/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-economic-and-social-role-of-internet-intermediaries/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Towards a resource-efficient transport system</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Between 1990 and 2007, transport sector greenhouse gas emissions have increased by 26% in Belgium, against 16% in France and 11% in Sweden. We have no choice but making our transports less polluting if we want to meet the EU&#8217;s 2020 environmental objectives. This report from the European Environment Agency gives us an overview of the main policy options available to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 06 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-resource-efficient-transport-system/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-resource-efficient-transport-system/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Unions and Upward Mobility for Immigrant Workers</title>
<description><![CDATA[ On average, immigrant workers earn less than their autochthon peers. In the literature, it is often suggested that this is due to a lesser understanding of the host country&#8217;s labour market and the possibilities to benefit from some sort of protection. This report reviews the characteristics of the immigrant workforce and analyzes the impact of unionization on the pay and benefits of immigrant workers. After controlling for systematic differences between union and non-union workers, this CEPR paper says, union representation substantially improves the pay and benefits received by immigrants.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 06 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unions-and-upward-mobility-for-immigrant-workers/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unions-and-upward-mobility-for-immigrant-workers/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Belgian chocolate and pharmaceutical innovation </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Innovation is important for Belgium&#8217;s healthcare system. Fran&#231;ois Daue discusses the innovation initiatives and legal evolutions of the beginning of the year. From this analysis he develops three minimal dimensions for a more global reflexion and an integrated innovation policy. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 04 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgian-chocolate-and-pharmaceutical-innovation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgian-chocolate-and-pharmaceutical-innovation/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Belgium&#8217;s elections are too important to boycott.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos reacts against the grassroots movement to boycott Belgium&#8217;s early elections in June. He shares must of its frustration but underscores the historical importance of the elections. We not only have a date with the political class on June 13, but also with the next generation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 04 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgiums-elections-are-too-important-to-boycott/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgiums-elections-are-too-important-to-boycott/</guid>
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<title>The cost of Belgium's political structure</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In a well managed company there is a clear strategy and the company&#8217;s structure is fashioned in order to reach that target. A political structure is more complex because there&#8217;s a lot of disagreement on the strategy to follow. It remains nevertheless crucial to manage the administration as efficiently as possible, which is absolutely not the case in Belgium today.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 04 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-cost-of-the-politic-structure/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-cost-of-the-politic-structure/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Video: Green cars: the salvation of the car industry?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ It&#8217;s all over the news, and politicians talk about it non-stop: Green cars are the ultimate answer to the decaying car industry. Everyone agrees that we need a solid industrial policy, but should the government invest massively in green cars? For Johan Albrecht, environmental economist and senior fellow at the Itinera Institute, the answer is a straightforward no.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 04 May 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/green-cars/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/green-cars/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Luncheon Lecture: &#8220;Green cars: the salvation of the car industry?&#8221;</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p align="justify">It&rsquo;s all over the media, and politicians talk about it non-stop: Green cars are the ultimate answer to decaying car industry. Everyone agrees that we need a solid industrial policy, but should the government invest massively in green cars? Johan Albrecht, environmental economist and senior fellow at the Itinera Institute examines the case. Victor Heylen, a car industry analyst reacts. </p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 29 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/luncheon-lecture-green-cars-the-salvation-of-the-car-industry/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/luncheon-lecture-green-cars-the-salvation-of-the-car-industry/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Executive Summary: Will the green car save the Flemish car assembly industry?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ &#8216;The green car can save Opel Antwerp.&#8217; Is this popular statement really making sense? Can policies to support the development of green cars guarantee employment benefits in the short run or is this simply utopian thinking?]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/executive-summary-will-the-green-car-save-the-flemish-car-assembly-industry/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/executive-summary-will-the-green-car-save-the-flemish-car-assembly-industry/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Presentation: Victor Heylen, a car industry analyst, reacts.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ &#8216;The green car can save Opel Antwerp.&#8217; Is this popular statement really making sense? Can policies to support the development of green cars guarantee employment benefits in the short run or is this simply utopian thinking?]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationvictor-heylen-a-car-industry-analyst-reacts/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationvictor-heylen-a-car-industry-analyst-reacts/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Presentation: Will the green car save the Flemish car assembly industry?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ &#8216;The green car can save Opel Antwerp.&#8217; Is this popular statement really making sense? Can policies to support the development of green cars guarantee employment benefits in the short run or is this simply utopian thinking?]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-will-the-green-car-save-the-flemish-car-assembly-industry/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-will-the-green-car-save-the-flemish-car-assembly-industry/</guid>
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<title>Towards a new vehicle industry in Flanders: reaction of Wilson De Pril, Agoria</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-new-vehicle-industry-in-flanders/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-new-vehicle-industry-in-flanders/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/2010_Forum1%20veh%20ind.pdf" length="142810" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>Will the green car save the Flemish car assembly industry?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ &#8216;The green car can save Opel Antwerp.&#8217; Is this popular statement really making sense? Can policies to support the development of green cars guarantee employment benefits in the short run or is this simply utopian thinking?]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/will-the-green-car-save-the-flemish-car-assembly-industry/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/will-the-green-car-save-the-flemish-car-assembly-industry/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Will the green car save the Flemish car assembly industry?	</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ‘The green car can save Opel Antwerp.’ Is this popular statement really making sense? Can policies to support the development of green cars guarantee employment benefits in the short run or is this simply utopian thinking?]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/will-the-green-car-save-the-flemish-car-assembly-industry/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/will-the-green-car-save-the-flemish-car-assembly-industry/</guid>
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<title>China can also be Belgium&#8217;s locomotive</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos identifies three big trends in our post-crisis world. Slow growth, high unemployment and public debt are the West&#8217;s destiny. But the developing countries are a bright spot for us. China &amp; co are not only competitors, but increasingly also our potential customers.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 27 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/china-can-also-be-belgiums-locomotive/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/china-can-also-be-belgiums-locomotive/</guid>
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<title>What is the matter with Belgium?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sketches Belgium&#8217;s regime crisis. He explains how the surreal and symbolic division over &#8220;BHV&#8221; has fundamental value, but that it is also only the precursor of internal divisions over very real policy reform issues.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 27 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-is-the-matter-with-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-is-the-matter-with-belgium/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Can we afford a political crisis?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan Van de Cloot analyses the impact of a political crisis on the financial markets. It&#8217;s a good thing financial crises require extra risk premiums from countries with a credibility problem. This can discipline them to push for structural reforms so as to improve their long term solvability. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 23 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-we-afford-a-political-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-we-afford-a-political-crisis/</guid>
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<title>Belgian exports are losing ground </title>
<description><![CDATA[ During the past decade Belgium has been losing export market shares when it comes to industrial products. But this report from the Plan bureau wants to underscore a structural weakness in the first place: the geographic orientation of Belgium&#8217;s export is very unfavourable which leads to market share losses. The favourable product specialisation can only partly offset this. And, we are losing competitiveness as well, the authors know.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 21 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgian-exports-are-losing-ground/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgian-exports-are-losing-ground/</guid>
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<title>Effective ways to realise policy reforms in health systems</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Sometimes it is argued that the content of a reform is less important in determining whether or not it receives public and legislative approval than the timing of the proposal; the way in which the reform is presented; the discussions with stakeholders; and a multitude of other factors. This OECD report studies the factors lying behind successful implementation of reforms in health systems.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 21 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/effective-ways-to-realise-policy-reforms-in-health-systems/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/effective-ways-to-realise-policy-reforms-in-health-systems/</guid>
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<title>Effectively fighting obesity </title>
<description><![CDATA[ In an attempt to contain rising trends in obesity and associated chronic diseases, many governments have implemented a range of policies to promote healthy lifestyles. Evaluations of the cost-effectiveness and distributional impacts of such interventions are rare and narrow in terms of numbers of options considered. In this report, an economic analysis was developed jointly by the OECD and the WHO with the aim of strengthening the existing evidence-base on the efficiency of interventions to tackle unhealthy diets and sedentary lifestyles.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 21 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/effectively-fighting-obesity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/effectively-fighting-obesity/</guid>
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<title>The future of public debt</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Since the start of the financial crisis, industrial country public debt levels have increased dramatically. And they are set to continue rising for the foreseeable future, the authors of this Bank of International Settlements publication warn us. Their projections of public debt ratios lead them to conclude that the path pursued by fiscal authorities in a number of industrial countries is unsustainable. Drastic measures are necessary to check the rapid growth of current and future liabilities of governments and reduce their adverse consequences for long-term growth and monetary stability.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 21 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-of-public-debt/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-of-public-debt/</guid>
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<title>Wealthcare or healthcare?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ After the US, the debate about Belgium&#8217;s cost efficiency in healthcare can begin. The rise of the &#8216;health economy&#8217;, spectacularly increasing public and private expenditures for healthcare, is the next step of our economic development process. This will compel us to make important choices. Brieuc Van Damme pleads for the creation of a High Authority for Healthcare that would have to make sure that the scarce resources are only being invested when public health truly benefits. 

]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wealthcare-or-healthcare/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wealthcare-or-healthcare/</guid>
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<title>Obesity can damage the environment</title>
<description><![CDATA[ On average, Belgians are getting heavier and our body mass index keeps increasing, new research showed us. On top of the healthcare and budgetary costs, there are obesity-related costs that we often tend to forget, says Brieuc Van Damme, those for the environment. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 16 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/obesity-can-damage-the-environment/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/obesity-can-damage-the-environment/</guid>
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<title>A financing bill that offers breathing space and seeks accountability </title>
<description><![CDATA[ There&#8217;s a widespread consensus that financing ageing will be one of the biggest policy challenges for the years to come. This is not different for Belgium or its neighbours. In Belgium with its complex federal structure, however, a couple of extra dimensions have to be taken into account. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 15 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-financing-bill-that-offers-breathing-space-and-seeks-accountability/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-financing-bill-that-offers-breathing-space-and-seeks-accountability/</guid>
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<title>Calimero and the car</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Etienne de Callata&#255; analyses the evoked reasons for Opel Antwerp&#8217;s closing. We should be careful with unique explanations given the multifaceted and diverse economic reality and be even more cautious for a Calimero complex. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 15 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/calimero-and-the-car/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/calimero-and-the-car/</guid>
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<title>Interview with the new Senior Fellows</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Institute attracted 3 new Senior Fellows, all specialists in their field. What made them take this step?Lieven Annemans, Dave Sinardet and Etienne de Callata&#255; explain.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 15 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/interview-with-the-new-senior-fellows/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/interview-with-the-new-senior-fellows/</guid>
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<title>Poverty and Health: proposals and solutions</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Poverty and bad health often go hand in hand. But it does not have to so. Lieven Annemans makes some recommendations to improve the situation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 15 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/poverty-and-health-proposals-and-solutions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/poverty-and-health-proposals-and-solutions/</guid>
</item>
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<title>The European Union needs more economic union</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sees how the Eurocrisis is undermining the European Union. Europe still serves first and foremost its Member States, and not vice-versa. This is bad news for Europe, for the smaller Member States, and for Belgium in particular. The Eurocrisis is an opportunity for more economic union.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 15 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-european-union-needs-more-economic-union/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-european-union-needs-more-economic-union/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Asset-based measurement of poverty</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the EU, we say that people with a disposable income (adjusted for family size) below 60 percent of the median national income are at risk of poverty. But are income flows sufficiently precise and accurate to evaluate households&#8217; economic well-being and poverty rate? Real and financial assets are essential to meet everyday life needs and to face adverse income shocks. This report from the Institute for Research on Poverty studies how wealth can be integrated into the analysis of poverty and defines asset-based measures of poverty, taking into account potential empirical and conceptual problems.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 14 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/asset-based-measurement-of-poverty/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/asset-based-measurement-of-poverty/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Comparison of Belgian Regions&#8217; and Communities&#8217; public expenditures</title>
<description><![CDATA[ To which extend do public expenditures differ between Regions and Communities in Belgium? Do they use it for the same goals? This CEPRE (FUNDP) report presents the structure of their respective public expenditures. By doing so, the authors can draw some conclusions about the implicit priorities behind these budgetary choices. With respect to Flanders, Wallonia would spend relatively more money in economic expansion and professional training while Flanders would invest relatively more in applied and scientific research.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 14 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/comparison-of-belgian-regions-and-communities-public-expenditures/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/comparison-of-belgian-regions-and-communities-public-expenditures/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Labour market policies for seniors</title>
<description><![CDATA[ To reach the Lisbon objective of a 50% employment rate for workers older than 55, in 2007 Flanders developed labour market policies for seniors. This report from the Steunpunt WSE evaluates the performance of these policies and shows the aspects to improve. Between 2001 and 2009, the employment rate for the 55-64 year old workers has increased from 25.3% to 35% in Flanders. The demographic challenge will require those type of improvements all over the country, however.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 14 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-market-policies-for-seniors/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-market-policies-for-seniors/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Internet Economy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Internet has become a part of many people&#8217;s daily activities, like shopping. According to this report from the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, e-commerce is estimated to generate $400 billion annually. No doubt that the economic and societal benefits provided by the commercial Internet are numerous. This report sheds a light on these e-advantages. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 14 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-internet-economy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-internet-economy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The political economy of Intergenerational income mobility</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Children have talent by nature and parents privately invest in their children&#8217;s human capital to make it grow. But for people living in disadvantaged socioeconomic conditions, public education can make the difference and offer them economic opportunities they would not have otherwise. This IZA report investigates the importance of redistributive and progressive educational policies in the improvement of social mobility. It also demonstrates how the interaction between private and collective decisions determines the equilibrium level of social mobility. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 14 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-political-economy-of-intergenerational-income-mobility/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-political-economy-of-intergenerational-income-mobility/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Active labour market policy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Over the last two decades, active labour market policies (ALMP) have developed significantly in many OECD countries and budgetary investments have followed accordingly. This paper from the Sixth Framework Programme (EC) investigates four types of ALMP: incentive reinforcement, employment assistance, occupation and human capital investment. It studies the ones implemented in six Western European countries over the last twenty years and shows how political, institutional and ideational determinants influenced them. Here is another occasion to learn from our neighbours&#8217; experiences.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/active-labour-market-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/active-labour-market-policy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Competition and regulation in Belgium, 1997-2004</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Competition in product markets is weaker in Belgium than on average in the EU and the competition intensity seems to be higher in manufacturing than in services. These are the mains conclusions reported in this Federal Planning Bureau paper. With two indicators of market competition, the authors try to evaluate the changes in market competition in our country &#8211;and in the EU- between 1997 and 2004. They also study to which extend regulation has had an impact on the degree and variation of competition.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/competition-and-regulation-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/competition-and-regulation-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How clean cars and climate policy can create jobs</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Worldwide the automobile sector has suffered from the economic crisis. Many experts say that the sector has to use the crisis as an opportunity to turn to clean cars. This report from the Center for American Progress evaluates, for the US, the economic costs and benefits associated with advanced-technology vehicles. Investing in fuel-saving technologies and providing the automobile market with more efficient cars will create a lot of new jobs. To guaranty the introduction of new technologies in the US and in Europe, however, governments have to implement strong comprehensive energy and climate legislation and incentives for manufacturers.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-clean-cars-and-climate-policy-can-create-jobs/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-clean-cars-and-climate-policy-can-create-jobs/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Income retirement security and gender inequalities</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This report from Annika Sunden, is about one of the most important aspects in the pension debate: the retirement income security. For both men and women, there is a substantial income reduction once they retire. However, older women face a higher risk of poverty than older men. The author confronts some country experiences around pension systems and gender inequalities. She also makes some recommendations aimed at improving pension systems so as to reduce gender inequalities in retirement. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/income-retirement-security-and-gender-inequalities/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/income-retirement-security-and-gender-inequalities/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Bridge or tunnel: don&#8217;t forget the taxpayer</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Often, public investments are not based upon economic arguments but turn out to be a real horse trading. Economists, on the other hand, always plead in favour of weighing social benefits against societal costs (including potential pernicious effects on health and environment). Public authorities oblige everybody to financially support their projects. It is only normal they should manage that money well.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 02 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bridge-or-tunnel-taxpayer/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bridge-or-tunnel-taxpayer/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Bank taxes are no substitute for financial reform.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos warns for a &#8220;tobacco scenario&#8221; for the financial sector, with taxes as an alternative for financial reregulation. Taxing bank profits merely addresses a symptom, while leaving the underlying problem unaddressed.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Apr 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bank-taxes-are-no-substitute-for-financial-reform/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bank-taxes-are-no-substitute-for-financial-reform/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/en/doc/NOTA%2025%202010%20MDV.pdf" length="116655" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>Video: Budgettary recovery in bad times</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 31 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-budgettary-recovery-in-bad-times/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-budgettary-recovery-in-bad-times/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Belgian pension system is not very generous, but not for everybody</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The government has approved the account on pensions delivered by the green book. The debate will continue, the objective being to put together a white book in which will figure concrete proposals to reform Belgium&#8217;s pension system. Jean Hindriks has thoroughly examined the pension problem for several weeks now and gives his first impressions. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-belgian-pension-system-is-not-very-generous-but-not-for-everybody/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-belgian-pension-system-is-not-very-generous-but-not-for-everybody/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Video with Ivan Van de Cloot: Interview De Tijd - tensions in the eurozone</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan Van de Cloot underlines that we cannot reduce the Greek crisis to a confidence problem in one member state only. Let's hope the Euro zone as a whole will be able to draw appropriate lessons.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-with-ivan-van-de-cloot-interview-de-tijd---tensions-in-the-eurozone/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-with-ivan-van-de-cloot-interview-de-tijd---tensions-in-the-eurozone/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Age, wage and productivity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Studies on the effect of age on productivity and wages find contradicting results. Some studies find that if workers grow older there is an increasing gap between productivity and wages, i.e. wages increase with age while productivity does not or does not increase at the same pace. However, other studies find no evidence of such an age related pay-productivity gap. This IZA study performs an analysis of the relationship between age, wage and productivity. If we want to keep older people at work, this is an important issue for our labour market policy, and one that is indeed accompanied by a reasonable dose of controversy.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 23 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/age-wage-and-productivity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/age-wage-and-productivity/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Budget and labor reform are crucial for the pension debate</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos finds the current political proposals on pension reform too informal, too vague and not sufficiently penetrated with the gravity of the budgetary crisis.  The pension problem is foremost a budgetary problem, and working longer is not sufficient without a labour market reform.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 23 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/budget-and-labor-reform-are-crucial-for-the-pension-debate/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/budget-and-labor-reform-are-crucial-for-the-pension-debate/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Migration and the rise of far right</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In recent years, the popularity of new radical right-wing parties with anti-immigrant platforms has increased across Europe. Far from reflecting a short term trend triggered by the current economic downturn, the rise of the new radical right indicates a deep economic and social malaise affecting western European societies. This Policy Network paper warns political parties and the wider public not to dismiss the new radical right as fanatical parties operating on the fringe of politics, but rather to embark on careful examination of their political discourse.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 23 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migration-and-the-rise-of-far-right/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migration-and-the-rise-of-far-right/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Scientific support of our federal healthcare policy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Recently, Belgium&#8217;s Court of Audit submitted a report on the scientific support of our federal healthcare policy to the Parliament. The report examines if and how the federal government has put into place a research system, how it works and is being financed, its capacity, output and the way in which government makes use of all this knowledge. Now that &#8216;evidence based medecine&#8217; is becoming standard, it&#8217;s legitimate to ask for &#8216;evidence based policy making&#8217; too. This, however, has not been the case in Belgium so far.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 23 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/scientific-support-of-our-federal-healthcare-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/scientific-support-of-our-federal-healthcare-policy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Crisis for the economic and financial models</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The recent financial and economic crisis has highlighted the omissions of the models used by the central banks and the commercial financial institutions. This IRES (UCL) article sheds some light on the weaknesses of these models and suggests some lines of thought, based on the recent literature, for a more accurate representation of the financial and macro-monetary world.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/crisis-for-the-economic-and-financial-models/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/crisis-for-the-economic-and-financial-models/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Ideas for improving innovation policy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How can we enact the policies we need to compete in today&#8217;s globalised economy? Undoubtedly, creativity and innovation will play a key role. Europe 2020, Europe&#8217;s new strategy to provide the building blocks for growth that will be sustainable in the future, builds on what has been achieved and the lessons learned from the Lisbon strategy, its predecessor. But more lessons can be learned, and not the least from our Atlantic allies. This ITIF article advances 8 innovative ideas to spur innovation, and therefore growth and protection.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ideas-for-improving-innovation-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ideas-for-improving-innovation-policy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>International benchmarking of healthcare quality</title>
<description><![CDATA[ There is growing interest in the systematic assessment and international benchmarking of quality of care provided in different healthcare systems, and major work is under way to support this process through the development and validation of quality indicators that can be used internationally. This is not an easy thing to do, as cross-national data comparison remains a challenge. This RAND report focuses on the three quality domains, namely effectiveness of care, patient safety and patient experience. The objective is to assess the causes underlying international differences and determining what actions may be appropriate to take to improve health outcomes.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/international-benchmarking-of-healthcare-quality/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/international-benchmarking-of-healthcare-quality/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Rethinking climate change strategy for national governments</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Copenhagen has been seen by many as a setback for global action on climate change. But in truth it could provoke the rethink that has long been needed as national governments hold the key to our long-term prosperity. By fostering public support, this Policy Network paper argues, the opportunity to secure wealth creation and employment from the process of low-carbon transition is waiting to be grasped.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/rethinking-climate-change-strategy-for-national-governments/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/rethinking-climate-change-strategy-for-national-governments/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Impact of terrorism on the Employment and Earnings of European Muslims</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This IZA paper estimates the impact that Britain's July 2005 bombings had on the labor market outcomes of UK residents who are either Muslim by religious affiliation or whose nativity profiles are similar to the terrorists. The authors find a 10 percentage point decrease in the employment of very young Muslim men relative to non-Muslim immigrants accompanied by consistent declines in real earnings and hours worked. We need to minimize these potential impacts, for discrimination and futureless situations are the cradle of terrorism.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-impact-of-terrorism-on-the-employment-and-earnings-of-european-muslims/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-impact-of-terrorism-on-the-employment-and-earnings-of-european-muslims/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Oosterweel junction revisited </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Antwerp&#8217;s traffic jams, and even more so the suggested solutions, continue to mobilise media and public opinion. This LES paper (KUL) assesses the Oosterweel junction, a new tunnel under the river Scheldt, that aims to alleviate the congestion on the existing tunnels and on the Ring of Antwerp. The authors&#8217; model is used to compare alternatives with and without the new tunnel. The alternatives include different combinations of tolls and bans on trucks. The cost-benefit analysis concludes that the first priority is not to build new capacity but to remove the pricing distortions on the existing capacity. The alternatives that include a pricing reform are the only ones that generate a positive net benefit; almost all scenarios that include the new tunnel have a negative net benefit.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-oosterweel-junction-revisited/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-oosterweel-junction-revisited/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Choosing failure or success</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Why do we tackle crucial problems so insufficiently ? It is because they are too tricky or because we do not manage to acknowledge them or to adopt an action plan? Pure economic issues of unemployment, poverty, pension financing, competition en public debt are more complex than ecological issues but we still defer the moment when we will deal with them.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 18 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/choosing-failure-or-success/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/choosing-failure-or-success/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Economic growth is the most important policy priority</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos comments the pitiful socio-economic situation in Belgium. In the next years, each government will have three inevitable priorities: budgetary recovery through saving and taxation, economic recovery with more growth and jobs, and a fundamental social security reform, both in the organization and in the financing. Economic recovery is the most important, but it also requires a mentality shift from politicians and administrations. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economic-growth-is-the-most-important-policy-priority/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economic-growth-is-the-most-important-policy-priority/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The 10 commandments for a succesful Industrial Policy in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Since we only think about it in times of crisis,Belgium fails in terms of industrial policy.
We urgently need to determine the conditions for government support.
The Itinera Institute established the 10 commandments for a succesful industrial policy.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/industrieel-beleid/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/industrieel-beleid/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The 10 commandments for a succesful Industrial Policy in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Since we only think about it in times of crisis,Belgium fails in terms of industrial policy.
We urgently need to determine the conditions for government support.
The Itinera Institute established the 10 commandments for a succesful industrial policy.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-10-commandments-of-industrial-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-10-commandments-of-industrial-policy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>State capitalism is the real enemy of fair free-trade</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A new study from the World Trade Organization reports no significant intensification of trade or investment restriction since September 2009. This is good news for anyone who values global prosperity, and that includes Belgium. But Marc De Vos warns us of a more fundamental threat: the rise of state capitalism right after the crisis. The trend to State-led economic development goes against the principles of free trade, the same principles that gave us more global welfare.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 10 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/state-capitalism-is-the-real-enemy-of-fair-free-trade/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/state-capitalism-is-the-real-enemy-of-fair-free-trade/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/NOTA%2020%20MDV.pdf" length="113907" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>A higher State Pension Age in the UK</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the UK, a higher State Pension Age (SPA) has been accepted by the government as one of the solution to the ageing challenge. It will gradually increase from 65 to 68 years between 2024 and 2046. In Belgium, such a measure is very unpopular among trade unions and politicians. In this report, PwC analyzes this measure in the UK in terms of fiscal benefits, public finances, workers&#8217; opportunities and employers&#8217; attitudes. With the perspective of a SPA increase, PwC gives an agenda for action to the economic agents implied in the process.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 09 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-higher-state-pension-age-in-the-uk/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-higher-state-pension-age-in-the-uk/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>European Cities accommodating diversity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With increasing migration flows, governments increasingly face integration issues, and not the least in our capital. Local governments have a role to play mainly as providers of public goods and services but also as policy-makers and employers. In the context of a European project (DIVE), this paper from the Migration Policy Group provides concrete recommendations to European cities to promote diversity and equality within the context of a local integration strategy. The performance of Amsterdam, Rome, Leeds, Berlin and London is analyzed with respect to defined benchmarks. We can undoubtedly learn from some of their good practices.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 09 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/european-cities-accommodating-diversity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/european-cities-accommodating-diversity/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The high cost of low educational performance</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Experiences from some OECD countries prove that it is worth making some efforts in educational system reform. Through different scenarios on the increase of school performance in terms of PISA points, this OECD report shows how the improvement in educational quality and later in the labour force&#8217;s skills can impact on future well-being. By refusing educational reform programmes, we take the risk of inflicting high economic costs to society, the authors conclude.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 09 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-high-cost-of-low-educational-performance/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-high-cost-of-low-educational-performance/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The healthcare sector: daring to look at 2020</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With two interesting studies in less than two months, 2010 promises to become a fascinating year for Belgian healthcare. The ideas presented in these studies are appealing for two reasons: first because the authors reason in the middle and long term, and second because they dare questioning the current way of working. One thing is sure: the future needs a new vision and new solutions. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 04 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-healthcare-sector-daring-to-look-at-2020/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-healthcare-sector-daring-to-look-at-2020/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Philanthropy, also in times of crisis </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Philanthropy could be considered as an economic activity that creates welfare: a donation of 500 Euros, for example, means that the act of giving is worth more to the donator than the given amount of 500. The receiver&#8217;s welfare will increase too, and therefore we could speak of a philanthropy multiplicator effect. Encouraging philanthropy by fiscal means can thus be seen as creating value added.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 03 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/philanthropy-also-in-times-of-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/philanthropy-also-in-times-of-crisis/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Administrative costs in Belgium </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Between 2006 and 2008, administrative costs have decreased by 23% to reach &#8364;5.92 billions. To what extend can these costs be an obstacle to companies&#8217; development and functioning in Belgium? Did the administrative simplification process have the expected impact? This Federal Plan Bureau report allows us to know how the self-employed and companies perceive all this.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/administrative-costs-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/administrative-costs-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Exiting from crisis intervention policies</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Now that the crisis is progressively disappearing, what to do with the crisis-related intervention measures? Even if we want to restore and guaranty economic recovery, maintaining such measures on the long run is not recommended at all. It would in fact distort private initiative, financial and fiscal policies and risks stirring up inflation. In this IMF paper, the authors make recommendations on exiting from those measures. It exposes the main principles and guidelines to follow when defining new fiscal, monetary and financial policies.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/exiting-from-crisis-intervention-policies/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/exiting-from-crisis-intervention-policies/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Walloon innovation system </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Like other Belgian and European regions, Wallonia knows that innovation remains an important trigger of economic growth. This Federal Plan Bureau publication makes an evaluation of the Walloon innovation system of 2007. The involvement of high schools and universities into research and the ability of the private sector to mobilize resources for research receive good marks. However, investments in innovation is relatively low for services compared to those in the industry. Public effort in R&amp;D and the use of permanent training on the labour market have to be reinforced too. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Mar 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-walloon-innovation-system/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-walloon-innovation-system/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Combating poverty and social exclusion</title>
<description><![CDATA[ 2010 has been designated the European year for combating poverty and social exclusion. We can only hope Member States will make progression in this field. This Eurostat publication presents a wide range of statistics useful for policy purposes. It can help governments to evaluate the effectiveness of their anti-poverty strategy and to readapt it on the basis of best practices abroad. Knowing and measuring are the first step, acting the second.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 25 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/combating-poverty-and-social-exclusion/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/combating-poverty-and-social-exclusion/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Evidence against carbon trading and real solutions for climate change</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How effective is carbon trading as a method of reducing greenhouse gas emissions? Is it more effective than a carbon tax? In the way towards 2020 and its objectives of CO&#178; emissions reduction, many experts do not agree about the best way to mitigate climate change. In this paper from Friends of the Earth, the author explains why carbon trading isn&#8217;t the best option. She rather urges governments to invest in green power and energy efficiency, and to introduce stronger regulations and carbon taxes.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 25 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/evidence-against-carbon-trading-and-real-solutions-for-climate-change/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/evidence-against-carbon-trading-and-real-solutions-for-climate-change/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Retire later or work harder?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The guaranty of future pensions&#8217; payment is strongly related to the participation rate on the labour market. According to this IZA report, we will either have to work harder or work longer if we want to increase this rate. Both options influence employers&#8217; decisions to invest in human capital, but will in the first place depend on a number of workers&#8217; characteristics (job satisfaction, need of money, etc). The authors investigate the British labour market and present this trade-off both theoretically and empirically and its impact on labour input.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 25 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/retire-later-or-work-harder/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/retire-later-or-work-harder/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Clean Technology Research, Development and Innovation in China</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Our ability to deploy effective technologies, on a scale large enough to significantly reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, depends on two key factors: the direction, and the pace, of technological innovation. The pace of technological innovation depends on a range of factors including, critically, the presence of effective domestic policies to spur research and innovation. This working paper of the World Resources Institute examines efforts made by China &#8211; the world&#8217;s largest gross emitter of greenhouse gases &#8211; to create an enabling environment for R&amp;D and innovation in the field of clean technology.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 24 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/clean-technology-research-development-and-innovation-in-china/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/clean-technology-research-development-and-innovation-in-china/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Clear diagnosis, uncertain remedy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The private health economy is on the rise and, paradoxically, may have been encouraged by public authorities. Governments want to spur private insurance in the hope of solving three big problems bedevilling their national systems of health care: inadequate access to care; soaring costs; and a paucity of innovation. They hope thus to improve their citizens&#8217; health without tearing more holes in tattered public finances. According to this article from The Economist, evidence so far suggests that relying on private insurance may help in some respects. But it will not solve all these problems, and may even be making some of them worse.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 24 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/clear-diagnosis-uncertain-remedy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/clear-diagnosis-uncertain-remedy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Crisis in the eurozone and how to deal with it</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With some fearing speculative attacks on the Euro, the Greek crisis has put a lot of pressure on the monetary union. In this CEPS paper, Paul Degrauwe explains how the current financial crisis in the eurozone developed, distinguishing in turn the three main actors that have played a major role: Greece, the financial markets (including the rating agencies) and the eurozone authorities themselves. While acknowledging that a grand plan for more intense political union in the eurozone does not seem possible, professor Degrauwe further outlines smaller, but focused steps that could be taken towards such a future union.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 24 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/crisis-in-the-eurozone-and-how-to-deal-with-it/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/crisis-in-the-eurozone-and-how-to-deal-with-it/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Education quality</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The public opinion has never been so concerned about the quality in schools as it is today, and yet this education quality has never been really evaluated.  Jean Hindriks has decided to rectify this gap by realizing a systematic detailed evaluation of our secondary education in Belgium (within the two communities).  This evaluation covers justice as well as the efficiency of our school system.  This study has been executed via a random sampling of 6336 students in more than 445 different schools (within the two communities). ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 24 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/education-quality/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/education-quality/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Public Service Reform: Capable Communities</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Society has to address a range of complex problems which post-war institutions were not designed to fix: chronic health conditions related to lifestyle, ageing populations, climate change and anti-social behaviour. Citizens themselves, whether as individuals or communities, should therefore participate much more than they are currently in the delivery of public services, this IPPR-PWC paper advocates. The authors set out the case for community empowerment, before examining how this important agenda can move from the margins to the mainstream of the policy agenda.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 24 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/public-service-reform-capable-communities/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/public-service-reform-capable-communities/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Social security as a tool, not as a goal</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos reflects about the necessity of a welfare state reform. We can create a breathing space by realizing that social protection can do without social security.  Social protection has an economic future. Acting for this future also means acting for the future of social security. Social security can improve if we consider it as a tool and not as a goal on itself.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 24 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/social-security-as-a-tool-not-as-a-goal/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/social-security-as-a-tool-not-as-a-goal/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Strategic choices for social policy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The comprehensive budgetary effort that has become inevitable pushes us more than ever to make strategic choices with respect to our social policy. It&#8217;s not only about where savings ought to be made, but also about the way our economy will look like once this economic and budgetary crisis will be over. In this essay for the Centre Herman Deleeck, former Minister Frank Vandenbroucke discusses the policy strategy of the &#8216;new social risks&#8217; and the strategy of the &#8216;social investment state&#8217;: what choices did our government make and what lessons are there to learn? The budgetary efforts to come are also widely examined and FVDB concludes by presenting some of the most important strategic choices for social policy.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 24 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/strategic-choices-for-social-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/strategic-choices-for-social-policy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Temporary vs permanent immigration employment</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Migration is often viewed as an investment decision. Temporary migrants can be expected to invest less in accumulating human capital specific to the host country. Instead, they work more hours in order to accumulate savings and invest in financial capital that can be transferred back to their country of origin upon return. In this IZA paper the authors explore how temporary migrants differ from permanent migrants in their labour supply decisions and behaviour.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 24 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/temporary-vs-permanent-immigration-employment/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/temporary-vs-permanent-immigration-employment/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Obesity is first and foremost a social problem</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Sometimes one hears obese people are responsible for their weight problem, this weight problem for a climate problem, and therefore obese people are responsible for a climate problem. Of course, this syllogism doesn&#8217;t make sense, as obesity is a social problem in the first place, says Brieuc Van Damme. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 19 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/obesity-is-first-and-foremost-a-social-problem/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/obesity-is-first-and-foremost-a-social-problem/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Eurozone credibility put to the test</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The one who simply reduces the current crisis of confidence in the member states solvency to a Greek problem, understood very few things. There are risks associated to the large expansion of the eurozone which are too often dictated by political motives, let&#8217;s hope that the European leaders will notice this now.  As Europe gives a signal not just to watch but to undertake appropriate action, is it important that one indicates the exact bounderies of how far and under which conditions support can be given.  It is also an evidence that at present and in the future a lot of lessons will need to be drawn with regards to the eurozone.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 16 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/eurozone-credibility-put-to-the-test/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/eurozone-credibility-put-to-the-test/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Ageing and the Welfare State: Securing Sustainability</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Over the next four decades, increasing old-age dependency ratios exert an enormous upward pressure on welfare spending in most developed countries. As this is mainly due to existing unfunded public pension schemes, many countries have embarked on far-reaching reforms in this area, strengthening actuarial fairness, modifying indexation rules, adding elements of prefunding and, last but not least, attempting to extend the period of economic activity. Efforts to contain costs may also be relevant with regard to public expenditure on health and long-term care but, thus far, no country has started to really deal with these issues. This CESIFO paper discusses all these reform options in the light of securing a sustainable welfare state.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 15 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-and-the-welfare-state-securing-sustainability/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-and-the-welfare-state-securing-sustainability/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Financing home nursing in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ An ageing population will also increase the demand for home nursing. Home nursing expenses represent 4% of the public health insurance budget, and with an average growth rate of 7%, the yearly increase is about 1% higher than that of the general healthcare expenses. According to the authors of the centre of expertise, its financing should be reformed, which necessarily implies rethinking the role of the different healthcare functions. To do so, more coordination at the different policy levels will be required. Today&#8217;s mixed financing could be carried on, if optimized. The authors also advocate an actualization of the nomenclature, the integration of a quality component and a more accurate measuring of care dependency.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 15 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/financing-home-nursing-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/financing-home-nursing-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Our fight against poverty needs a dynamic vision and clear objectives</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium can and needs to do better in its fight against poverty. Therefore, we have to make a distinction between permanent and temporary poverty, and define a quantitative goal of poverty reduction.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 15 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/our-fight-against-poverty-needs-a-dynamic-vision-and-clear-objectives/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/our-fight-against-poverty-needs-a-dynamic-vision-and-clear-objectives/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Performance related pay in employment services</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Activation policies often reward job seekers finding a job. In this study of the The Danish National Centre for Social Research, the authors advocate rewarding employees in the employment administration too. Performance related Pay (PRP), as this is called, seems to promote employment chances of social clients. Especially it seems that PRP schemes with collective monetary payoffs have a positive effect.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 15 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/performance-related-pay-in-employment-services/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/performance-related-pay-in-employment-services/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>School autonomy : to do what with?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Education quality is a condition for having sustainable growth.  To upgrade the French-speaking education system, we have to upgrade the position of the teachers. If we want the schools to be more performant, the power of the director has to increase in the context of a higher and supervised responsibility.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 12 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/school-autonomy--to-do-what-with/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/school-autonomy--to-do-what-with/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The inherited school success</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Education in Belgium is one of the most unequal in the world. School success heavily depends on pupil&#8217;s social origin. The &#8220;d&#233;cret inscriptions&#8221; in the French Community and the GOK in the Flemish Community are at the center of the public debate but there is no word about the fact that pupils from low income families are more likely than others to be put into different teaching channels.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 12 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-inherited-school-success/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-inherited-school-success/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The single employment status is much more than a redundancy story</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A large number of labour experts argue for a new dismissal law, that combines income protection and reemployment. The single employment status for blue collar and white collar workers needs to do more than harmonizing: it needs to modernize. That is in the interest of social justice as well as the ill Belgian labour market.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 11 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-single-employment-status-is-much-more-than-a-redundancy-story/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-single-employment-status-is-much-more-than-a-redundancy-story/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Consuming more or consuming less</title>
<description><![CDATA[ During the twentieth century, the global population increased by 6 billions (four times more) and the industrial production increased by a factor 40. Our energy consumption went up by a factor 16 and CO&#178; emissions by a factor 10. In this context, it is crucial to wonder if our current consumption pattern will endanger the living standards of future generations to come. The conclusion seems to be that it is not so much our consumption level that will endanger our well-being in the long run, but rather the composition of what we consume (e.g. polluting goods versus less polluting goods)]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 08 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/consuming-or-consuming-less/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/consuming-or-consuming-less/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>21st century skills and competences in OECD countries</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What are the 21st century skills and competences in OECD countries? In this OECD report, the authors investigate the question and make some recommendations to prepare workers to knowledge-intensive economies. Most of these skills and competences are related to knowledge management and are supported by ICT (information and communication technologies). Governments have to properly adapt their educational systems so as to be sure young people will be able to integrate such skills and competences, the authors say.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/21st-century-skills-and-competences-in-oecd-countries/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/21st-century-skills-and-competences-in-oecd-countries/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Basic principles for an ideal pension system</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Will the National Conference for Pension provide the conclusions we hardly are expecting? Will it suggest the reforms our pension system really needs? After a brief presentation of our current pension system, Voka, Flanders&#8217; Chamber of Commerce and Industry, exposes, in this report, the basic principles essentials for the viability of a system aimed at guarantying future seniors&#8217; welfare. The combination of repartition and capitalization, the increase of the replacement ratio and a pension calculus on the basis of the career length belongs to these principles.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/basic-principles-for-an-ideal-pension-system/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/basic-principles-for-an-ideal-pension-system/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Clean energy research and development</title>
<description><![CDATA[ It is not a secret anymore: by maintaining our energy demand and consumption, energy-related emissions of CO&#178; risk to double in a few years and the security of energy supply will not be guaranteed anymore. This IEA report urges us to take concrete actions. By presenting 10 categories of low-carbon technologies and practices, it gives figures about our current R&amp;D investments in this field and advises us to make such spending grow. We really need and can do better!]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/clean-energy-research-and-development/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/clean-energy-research-and-development/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Labour market and investment in human capital in Europe</title>
<description><![CDATA[ High levels of taxation and generous welfare state arrangements tend to decrease labour force participation, hours worked and thereby the returns on human capital investments. Low skilled and older workers are the first concerned by this phenomenon. What can we do to improve their participation rate in the labour market? This IZA report suggests to reduce labour market distortions. But it mainly recommends to reformulate activation and training policies in order to increase the utilization and the maintenance of human capital during the working life.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-market-and-investment-in-human-capital-in-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-market-and-investment-in-human-capital-in-europe/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Poverty among immigrant and native children in rich countries</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In rich countries, immigrant children are more likely to be poor than native children. But why are these poverty rates so different between countries? In this report from the Institute for Research on Poverty, the authors tend to bring an answer to this question. In their cross-country comparison, they point out the essential role social transfers are playing against poverty. Immigrant poverty is a barrier to integration but the use of these transfers does not have to discourage immigrant integration. A good combination of labour market policies and social benefits can then, according to the authors, give better results in the fight against poverty.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/poverty-among-immigrant-and-native-children-in-rich-countries/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/poverty-among-immigrant-and-native-children-in-rich-countries/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>When will Belgium let unwillingness and incapacity behind her?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos makes some New Year reflections about the state of Belgium. In his view, we had a lost decade with unwillingness and incapacity. First, change will come step by step. The federal elections pulse will then really be necessary to put an end to incapacity.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/when-will-belgium-let-unwillingness-and-incapacity-behind-her/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/when-will-belgium-let-unwillingness-and-incapacity-behind-her/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>All-inclusive case based hospital financing</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Which hospital financing system can better reach the healthcare system&#8217;s objectives of performance, equity and quality? This KCE report studies an all-in case based hospital financing system and its feasibility in Belgium where the system is said partial and fragmentary. After a presentation of the structure of the Belgian hospital sector and the characteristics of its financing system, this report uses some models to analyze the consequences of such a reform on the hospital revenue structure, the relationship between hospital management and providers of healthcare, and the quality and accessibility to healthcare.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 03 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/all-inclusive-case-based-hospital-financing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/all-inclusive-case-based-hospital-financing/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Earnings mobility and distribution of lifetime earnings in the EU</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Earnings mobility is an essential concept in the fight against poverty. This IZA report studies lifetime earnings mobility and its impact on the distribution of lifetime earnings in 14 EU countries. Social security and labour market policies can influence earning mobility and allow people to improve their position in the income distribution over time. With the highest mobility in lifetime earnings and the highest mobility in terms of equalizer of long term inequality, Denmark is, with no surprise, the country from which Belgium can inspire.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 03 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/earnings-mobility-and-distribution-of-lifetime-earnings-in-the-eu/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/earnings-mobility-and-distribution-of-lifetime-earnings-in-the-eu/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How to reform the Belgian tax system to enhance economic growth?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to this OECD report, a reform of the Belgian tax system could help our economy go out of the crisis and make it grow faster. The author suggests reducing labour taxes in order to boost labour demand and supply, and raising less distortive tax sources like consumption and owner-occupied housing taxes. As we need to encourage companies to maintain and develop their business in our country, the corporate income tax system has to be properly modernised.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 03 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-reform-the-belgian-tax-system-to-enhance-economic-growth/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-reform-the-belgian-tax-system-to-enhance-economic-growth/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How to restore financial stability?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ It will take some time before economic activity and public finances return to their pre-crisis levels. At the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, many government representatives, businessmen, civil society leaders and academics debated how to rethink, redesign and rebuild the global economy. Some uncertainty remains about the reform of the financial system. At the end of the day, financial stability has to be restored but not by regulation only. This publication from the Center for European Reform studies the initial macroeconomic causes of the crisis and gives some guidelines to avoid them in the future and to make the financial system more stable.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 03 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-restore-financial-stability/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-restore-financial-stability/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>2010: After the Meltdown</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p align="justify">The Itinera Institute is pleased to invite you to its <strong>2010 New Year&rsquo;s reception</strong> on <strong>January 27</strong> in the <strong>National Bank</strong>, where Marc De Vos will present his new book <u>&ldquo;After the Meltdown: the future of capitalism and globalization in the Age of the Twin Crises&rdquo;</u></p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 27 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/2010-after-the-meltdown/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/2010-after-the-meltdown/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Opel Antwerp marks the unbearable comeback of the economic nationalism</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos points out how Opel Antwerp&#8217;s destiny is both an economic and politic story. Politics has a big influence on multinationals&#8217; restructuring, but Belgium had to give up in front of big countries like the US and Germany. Europe needs to put an end to the politization phenomenon and to economic nationalism as soon as possible.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 25 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/opel-antwerp-marks-the-unbearable-comeback-of-the-economic-nationalism/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/opel-antwerp-marks-the-unbearable-comeback-of-the-economic-nationalism/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Great Paradox of future capitalism</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos warns about the long run consequences of the anti-crisis policy on the economy and the economic growth. The real economy, more than the financial economy, risks to be drawn again in the afterpain of the Great Recession. The crisis is more important than the crisis self.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 22 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-great-paradox-of-future-capitalism/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-great-paradox-of-future-capitalism/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/NOTA%205%20MDV.pdf" length="111166" type="application/pdf" />
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<item>
<title>Another job scheme is not the best way to tackle unemployment</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos considers the new job scheme as a step in the good direction, but warns us about its perverse effects. The related budget should have been better spent via individual career guidance.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 21 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/another-job-scheme-is-not-the-best-way-to-tackle-unemployment/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/another-job-scheme-is-not-the-best-way-to-tackle-unemployment/</guid>
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<title>Promoting competition in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Prices for many goods and services in Belgium are higher than in other countries, reflecting generally weak competitive pressures. The government has recently introduced several reforms to strengthen the competition policy framework. Nevertheless, to reap the full benefits of competitive markets, past reforms should be complemented with a number of further measures. This OECD report advances some of the steps to secure the necessary basis for bringing productivity growth in line with best performance.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 19 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/promoting-competition-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/promoting-competition-in-belgium/</guid>
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<item>
<title>The economic benefits of comprehensive immigration reform</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Comprehensive immigration reform that legalizes currently unauthorized immigrants and creates flexible legal limits (that rise and fall with labour demand) on future immigration in the context of full labour rights would help American workers and the U.S. economy. Unlike the current enforcement-only strategy, comprehensive reform would raise the &#8220;wage floor&#8221; for the entire U.S. economy&#8212;to the benefit of both immigrant and native-born workers this Centre for American Progress publication argues. An idea definitely worth scrutinizing in Europe!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 19 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-economic-benefits-of-comprehensive-immigration-reform/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-economic-benefits-of-comprehensive-immigration-reform/</guid>
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<title>The US Health Insurance Reform Debate</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Following a synopsis of the main problems that confront U.S. health care and insurance, this AEI report outlines the health care reform bills in the U.S. House and Senate, including the key provisions for expanding and regulating health insurance, and projections of the proposals&#8217; costs, funding, and impact on the number of people with insurance. The report concludes by contrasting the reform bills with market-oriented proposals and with brief perspective on future developments. A must-read for those of you interested in the US healthcare debate!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 19 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-us-health-insurance-reform-debate/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-us-health-insurance-reform-debate/</guid>
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<title>All hands on deck for a responsible budgetary policy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Institute already urged in September 2009 that the government had to adopt more ambitious budgetary objectives. The exhortation from the High Council of Finance to do so is a real opportunity for everyone who cares about the fight for the guaranty of the essence of our social model.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 18 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/all-hands-on-deck-for-a-responsible-budgetary-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/all-hands-on-deck-for-a-responsible-budgetary-policy/</guid>
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<title>Education quality: what can we do?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Schools do not need more money but another organization. More efficient working schools and at the same time less inequalities, It is without any doubt workable!]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 18 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/education-quality-what-can-we-do/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/education-quality-what-can-we-do/</guid>
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<title>Innovating Indicators of the EU</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With reflection on the EU 2020 in full swing, the Lisbon Council weighs into the debate with an analysis about the political economy of innovation indicators, as well as concrete recommendations on targets for the EU&#8217;s new economic blueprint. This report is an original reflection on how to measure and evaluate societal progress and make the policy process more inclusive and meaningful to a broader number of people.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 18 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/innovating-indicators-of-the-eu/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/innovating-indicators-of-the-eu/</guid>
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<title>Public and private pensions: Lessons from the crisis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The population of Europe is ageing and, as a result, pension systems are exposed to major difficulties. This requires measures to increase employment rates, to prolong working lives, promote qualified migration, and to curb, to some extent, income replacement rates. Private pension systems are, just like the public ones, dependent on adequate economic growth rates, as well as being equally sensitive to demographic change; what is more, unlike public systems, they are highly risk-susceptible in relation to financial markets. Therefore, the much lower-risk approach is to secure old-age pensions via public systems, this ETUI article argues.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 18 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/public-and-private-pensions-lessons-from-the-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/public-and-private-pensions-lessons-from-the-crisis/</guid>
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<title>Social security systems: Responding to the crisis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Social security systems have been negatively affected by the current financial and economic crisis. Financial portfolios have been undermined by slumping markets and negative investment performance. Increasing unemployment has reduced contribution revenues while expenditure on benefits has increased. On the basis of recent evidence, this ISSA publication argues a need for the better design and coordination of social security systems and for broad-ranging national and international collaboration to respond more effectively to the social and economic challenges posed in times of crisis, and beyond.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 18 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/social-security-systems-responding-to-the-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/social-security-systems-responding-to-the-crisis/</guid>
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<title>Developing and using European integration indicators</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With the increase of immigration flows, European countries have to seriously consider the related integration issue. This paper from the Migration Policy Group suggests developing and using more appropriate European integration indicators that would measure integration in such fields as employment, education and training, and other social aspects (healthcare, pensions, etc). These indicators would push us to formulate targets, better monitor performances of integration policies and allow us to learn from best practices more easily. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 11 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/developing-and-using-european-integration-indicators/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/developing-and-using-european-integration-indicators/</guid>
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<title>EU Energy/Climate package and energy supply security in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With the EU Energy/Climate package adopted in December 2008, the EU Member States are encouraged to continue their efforts to both reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase the sources of renewable energy. That way we could become less dependent from fossil fuels from abroad by 2020 while better guaranteeing their energy supply. In this report, the Federal Planning Bureau measures, through simulations, the budgetary, economic and environmental benefits that Belgium could get by following the EU package targets.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 11 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/eu-energyclimate-package-and-energy-supply-security-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/eu-energyclimate-package-and-energy-supply-security-in-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Impact of the financial crisis and the bail-outs on the public debt and public finances</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How did the financial crisis bring the public debt at a rate not reached since 1993? How were bail-outs to the financial sector financed? This report from the Belgian Court of Audit answers these questions and reviews the strategies related to the management of the public debt and the guarantees offered to financial institutions. Given all the uncertainty surrounding these guarantees and the insecurity of reimbursement of capital injections and public credits, Belgian public finances remain at risk.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 11 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/impact-of-the-financial-crisis-and-the-bail-outs-on-the-public-debt-and-public-finances/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/impact-of-the-financial-crisis-and-the-bail-outs-on-the-public-debt-and-public-finances/</guid>
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<title>The free market needs strong rules</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The financial crisis reminds us once again at the wisdom that the free market, just like a football game needs rules to be able to function in an efficient and competitive way. We come out of a period where the sophism which means that new financial instruments can reduce the risk, was at its best. The lessons of this financial catastrofe will only be learnt, if we go back to the old insight that in order to reduce the risk, the financial sector best has to keep itself to certain limits. This will only happen if we impose these limits from outside just like Adam Smith suggested more than two hundred years ago. We do not expect that the players of a football game define themselves the rules on a football field, do we?]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 06 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-free-market-needs-strong-rules/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-free-market-needs-strong-rules/</guid>
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<title>An attendance bonus for teachers?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Absenteeism from teachers is controversial and meaningful. It proves a deep malaise in the sector which disrupts the teaching organization. What can we do about this?]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/an-assiduity-bonus-for-teachers-/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/an-assiduity-bonus-for-teachers-/</guid>
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<title>Fight against poverty, 2008-2009</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Access to healthcare, housing and justice is not always guaranteed for poor people. This report from the Service for the fight against poverty, insecurity and social exclusion provides a valuable contribution to the political debate and policy considerations. It describes the circumstances in which poor people live, and makes recommendations aimed at improving their living conditions. Structural reforms are more than necessary but we cannot lose focus on the reimbursement of healthcare costs, water and energy supply and the payment of a rental guarantee and lawyer fees either.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 16 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fight-against-poverty/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fight-against-poverty/</guid>
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<title>Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Worldwide, pension systems are organized in very different ways. Compulsory and/or voluntary, public and/or private, personal and/or workplace-based arrangements, defined benefit and/or defined contribution: cross-country comparisons of pension systems are not an easy job. In this report, the Melbourne Centre for Financial Studies presents an index, the Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index, that compares the pension systems in eleven countries across America, Europe and Pacific  Asia. The important notions of adequacy, sustainability and integrity are seriously considered in this index. That is a new approach that could help us to detect good practices abroad.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 16 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/melbourne-mercer-global-pension-index/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/melbourne-mercer-global-pension-index/</guid>
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<title>Video: Sick Funds: new roles in the long run?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 16 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-sick-funds-new-roles-in-the-long-run/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-sick-funds-new-roles-in-the-long-run/</guid>
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<title>Energy Transition: fast track to a greener system?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Can we radically change the global energy system? What tools do we have available for this purpose? Which results will we achieve if we mobilise forces worldwide in order to meet the transition goals? What lessons can be learned from the most complete technological studies? Does the current policy in the western world comply with these lessons?
]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/energy-transition-fast-track-to-a-greener-system/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/energy-transition-fast-track-to-a-greener-system/</guid>
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<title>Green protectionism in the EU</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In this paper, ECIPE investigates the EU&#8217;s biofuels policy. The researcher finds that biofuels policy has become an industrial policy using various measures to shelter domestic producers from foreign competition. Protectionism increases the cost of moving away from fossil fuels &#8211; but the EU is about to usher its policy farther in that direction with its Renewable Energy Directive. If it is implemented in the way that has been proposed, the EU is likely to run afoul of its obligations in the World Trade Organisation, and offset some of its efforts to reduce its CO2 emissions&#8230; .]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/green-protectionism-in-the-eu/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/green-protectionism-in-the-eu/</guid>
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<title>How expensive is the welfare state?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This report first presents information on trends and composition of social expenditure across the OECD. After accounting for the impact of taxation and private benefits, social expenditure amounts to over 30% of GDP in Belgium. According to this OECD report, that is amongst the highest percentages in the world. Since 1990, growth in real social spending has outpaced real GDP growth in most OECD countries which could put unsustainable pressure on our much appreciated welfare model. Another wake-up call for structural reforms?]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-expensive-is-the-welfare-state/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-expensive-is-the-welfare-state/</guid>
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<title>Luncheon Lecture: Energy Transition: Fast track towards a greener system?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p>On the 15th of December the Itinera Institute launches its latest book <strong>&quot;Energietransitie : sneller naar een groener systeem?&quot;</strong> -<strong> &quot;Transition &eacute;nerg&eacute;tique: plus vite vers un syst&egrave;me plus vert?&quot;</strong>.</p><p>In this publication author Johan Albrecht analyses the transition challenge and makes concrete policy proposals.</p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/luncheon-lecture-energy-transition-faster-towards-a-greener-system/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/luncheon-lecture-energy-transition-faster-towards-a-greener-system/</guid>
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<title>Memento:Energy Transition: fast track to a greener system?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Can we radically change the global energy system? What tools do we have available for this purpose? Which results will we achieve if we mobilise forces worldwide in order to meet the transition goals? What lessons can be learned from the most complete technological studies? Does the current policy in the western world comply with these lessons?

 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/memento/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/memento/</guid>
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<title>Pay for Quality in healthcare: an evaluation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Pay for Quality (P4Q) is the mechanism by which the remuneration of a healthcare service directly depends on the achieved results in terms of structure, processes and/or outcome indicators. Interest for P4Q is growing, in Belgium and abroad. What are the effects and side effects of P4Q programs? What are the necessary conditions to apply international P4Q models or to add P4Q components to already existing Belgian initiatives? This report of the Centre of Excellence makes a thorough evaluation of Pay for Quality programs.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pay-for-quality-in-healthcare-an-evaluation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pay-for-quality-in-healthcare-an-evaluation/</guid>
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<title>Presentation :Energy Transition: Fast track to a greener system? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Can we radically change the global energy system? What tools do we have available for this purpose? Which results will we achieve if we mobilise forces worldwide in order to meet the transition goals? What lessons can be learned from the most complete technological studies? Does the current policy in the western world comply with these lessons?]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-energy-transition-fast-track-to-a-greener-system/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-energy-transition-fast-track-to-a-greener-system/</guid>
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<title>How to avoid Europe paying the price</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The model for which the economic historian Nial Ferguson invented the term Chimerica still holds: China is financing America&#8217;s exuberant way of living.   If the necessary adjustments are made through an important dollar depreciation, Europe will pay the price. Policy makers should therefore realize old doctrines will not be able to help them any longer. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 11 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-avoid-europe-paying-the-price/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-avoid-europe-paying-the-price/</guid>
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<title>Decentralising integration policies</title>
<description><![CDATA[ As cities and regions across Europe struggle to manage the integration challenges posed by immigration, a growing number of people are looking to decentralisation for answers. This Policy Network paper argues that increasing the financial and decision-making power of local authorities is a necessary precondition for formulating and implementing successful integration policies, but it is not a panacea. The paper provides a framework for thinking about decentralisation and its implications at different levels of governance taking into account the varied ideological and institutional settings which prevail across Europe.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 08 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/decentralising-integration-policies/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/decentralising-integration-policies/</guid>
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<title>Do better schools lead to more growth?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In many empirical growth studies education is often identified as one of the most effective investments to foster significant growth on the long term. In fact, this is no different for this IZA report. And, from a policy perspective, the shares of basic literates and high performers have independent significant effects on growth, and the estimates suggest that the high-performer effect is larger in poorer areas or countries. So don&#8217;t be a fool, and invest in schools!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 08 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/do-better-schools-lead-to-more-growth/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/do-better-schools-lead-to-more-growth/</guid>
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<title>Energy Transition: fast track to a greener system?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Can we radically change the global energy system? What tools do we have available for this purpose? Which results will we achieve if we mobilise forces worldwide in order to meet the transition goals? What lessons can be learned from the most complete technological studies? Does the current policy in the western world comply with these lessons?

 ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 08 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/energy-transition-faster-to-a-green-system/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/energy-transition-faster-to-a-green-system/</guid>
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<title>Essential Elements for the essential Copenhagen Agreement</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Twenty thousand people, including about 40 heads of state, are in Copenhagen to decide how the world should respond to escalating climate change over the next half century. Copenhagen should serve as a foundation for and springboard to a new legally binding global climate agreement. Success at the Copenhagen summit is essential for our children&#8217;s children&#8217;s future. This World Resources Institute paper, identifies key elements for a successful and possible outcome in Copenhagen. These include a clear set of follow-on negotiations to complete a legally binding agreement.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 08 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/essential-elements-for-the-essential-copenhagen-agreement/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/essential-elements-for-the-essential-copenhagen-agreement/</guid>
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<title>Greenhouse gas emission trends and projections in Europe</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Between 1990 and 2007, Belgium has decreased its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 8.3%. This trend is encouraging but progress still needs to be made to reach the Kyoto targets. This report from the European Environment Agency presents an assessment of the past (1990-2007) and projected (2008-2012 and 2020) GHG emissions for European countries. It recommends continuing the EU emission trading schemes (EU ETS), and the promotion of renewable energy sources and policies targeting energy performance of buildings. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 07 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/greenhouse-gas-emission-trends-and-projections-in-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/greenhouse-gas-emission-trends-and-projections-in-europe/</guid>
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<title>Presentation: School that offers chances</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The malaise in French speaking schools is growing. Performance must go up, and the social and cultural inequalities must go down. This is essential, but also possible. And it's more than just a case of money.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 07 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-lecole-de-la-chance/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-lecole-de-la-chance/</guid>
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<title>Tax shifting: from labour to energy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In comparison with Scandinavian countries, Belgium taxes energy relatively less than labour. But what would happen if we implemented a tax shift aimed at increasing taxes on energy and decreasing employers&#8217; or employees&#8217; labour taxes proportionally? In this report, the Federal Planning Bureau makes some simulations to answer the question. Even if the effect on the GDP is expected to be neutral, such a measure generates what economists call a double dividend: employment increases on the one hand and energy consumption and CO2 emissions decrease on the other hand. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 07 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tax-shifting-from-labour-to-energy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tax-shifting-from-labour-to-energy/</guid>
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<title>The single employment status for both blue collar and white collar workers needs to be better and more modern</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The discussion about a single employment status between both blue collar and white collar workers can not be limited to a discussion about the redundancy period. We need a better dismissal regulation that promotes employability. That is the only way to manage ageing. Here is a project for a more modern dismissal regulation in line with foreign experience. When are we going to also adopt in Belgium a vision in favour of a better labour market?]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 07 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-single-employment-status-for-both-blue-collar-and-white-collar-workers-needs-to-be-better-and-more-modern/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-single-employment-status-for-both-blue-collar-and-white-collar-workers-needs-to-be-better-and-more-modern/</guid>
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<title>Luncheon Lecture: Sick funds: new roles in the long run?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p align="justify">What are the new challenges for sick funds for the 30 years to come? What are their strengths and weaknesses? How do we translate this into opportunities and concrete projects, and how do we initiate change? </p><p align="justify">Fran&ccedil;ois Daue explores a couple of ideas on possible new roles for the sick funds, to ensure a sustainable, accessible and affordable health system. </p><p align="justify">The presentation will be followed by a round table discussion on three critical questions: which of the challenges are the most interesting, which projects are already set in place or scheduled, and which are the keys to success and the problems to be anticipated. </p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 03 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/luncheon-lecture-sick-funds-new-roles-in-the-long-run/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/luncheon-lecture-sick-funds-new-roles-in-the-long-run/</guid>
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<title>Sick Funds: new roles in the long run?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Fran&#231;ois Daue explores a couple of ideas on possible new roles for the sick funds, to ensure a sustainable, accessible and affordable health system. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 03 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-are-the-new-challenges-for-sick-funds-for-the-30-years-to-come-what-are-their-strengths-and-weaknesses-how-do-we-translate-this-into-opportunities-and-concrete-projects-and-how-do-we-initiate-change/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-are-the-new-challenges-for-sick-funds-for-the-30-years-to-come-what-are-their-strengths-and-weaknesses-how-do-we-translate-this-into-opportunities-and-concrete-projects-and-how-do-we-initiate-change/</guid>
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<title>Technologies for managing dependency </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The risk of being physically and psychologically dependant increases when people become older. With an ageing population, our societies will need to have the means to properly assist our less autonomous elders. This study from the Centre d&#8217;analyse strat&#233;gique (France) suggests developing appropriate technologies for elders and weighs their pros and cons. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 03 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/technologies-for-managing-dependency/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/technologies-for-managing-dependency/</guid>
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<title>Presentation: Sick funds: new roles in the long run?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What are the new challenges for sick funds for the 30 years to come? What are their strengths and weaknesses? How do we translate this into opportunities and concrete projects, and how do we initiate change? 
Fran&#231;ois Daue explores a couple of ideas on possible new roles for the sick funds, to ensure a sustainable, accessible and affordable health system. 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 02 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationsick-funds-new-roles-in-the-long-run/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentationsick-funds-new-roles-in-the-long-run/</guid>
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<title>Analysis of the Belgian budget 2010-2011</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Because of the economic crisis, budgetary negotiations weren&#8217;t exactly a stroll in the park for our ministers. They had to take into account the budgetary impact of the economic crisis, e.g an important reduction of tax revenues and the increase of expenditures in unemployment benefits. In this report, the Belgian Court of Audit makes comments and observations about the last federal budget. We noticed, among other things, many new measures having been introduced, and a poorly fed Ageing Fund.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/analysis-of-the-belgian-budget-2010-2011/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/analysis-of-the-belgian-budget-2010-2011/</guid>
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<title>Children of immigrants on the labour markets of EU and OECD countries</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In about half of all OECD countries, children of immigrants account for ten or more percent of young adults (20-29) in the labour market. This OECD report evaluates the labour market outcomes (educational attainment, employment and unemployment rates) of the children of immigrants on the basis of their origin and background. The gaps between children of immigrants and children of natives are particularly large in Belgium and in the Netherlands. We should really learn from experiences in other OECD countries.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/children-of-immigrants-on-the-labour-markets-of-eu-and-oecd-countries/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/children-of-immigrants-on-the-labour-markets-of-eu-and-oecd-countries/</guid>
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<title>Employment in Europe 2009</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Since the beginning of the crisis, employment in the EU has decreased by over 4 million jobs. This European Commission report analyzes the recent developments and the dynamics of European labour markets. Are we going to manage the exit of the crisis? This report is confident about it. The move towards a low-carbon economy will indeed allow us to compensate for future job losses caused by the economic crisis. There is potential there and we could start by developing training policies for green technologies for example.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/employment-in-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/employment-in-europe/</guid>
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<title>The Copenhagen Diagnosis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Every single year counts in the fight against climate change. Between 1990 and 2008, global carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels increased by nearly 40%. And if we keep on delaying actions, it is very likely we&#8217;ll face exceeding 2&#176;C warming after 2030. This is one of the conclusions from this Climate Change Research Centre (CCRC) report. Three years after the first Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report, the CCRC gives an update on climate change, just before the Copenhagen summit in December 2009. How can we say we are poorly informed to take serious and effective measures now?]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-copenhagen-diagnosis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-copenhagen-diagnosis/</guid>
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<title>Activity sectors in Wallonia 20 years later</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In 20 years time, Wallonia has progressively evolved from an industrial to a service society. She has developed big assets in logistics, food industry and building. Energy and sustainable development are considered as flourishing sectors in the region. In this report, the Forem gives us an overview of the historical evolution and future challenges in activity sectors in Wallonia.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/activity-sectors-in-wallonie-years-later/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/activity-sectors-in-wallonie-years-later/</guid>
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<title>Make very poor people more autonomous</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Poverty is a complex phenomenon which both individuals and societies are responsible for. In this study, the author suggests that making very poor people more autonomous is an essential strategy in the fight against poverty. The idea is to give people the tools and means to strengthen their ability to survive and face daily socio-economics difficulties. Therefore, we have to guarantee basic material support, appropriate benefits and credits, access to social services and policies of economic activation. Social nets and a political participation are also important.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/make-very-poor-people-more-autonomous/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/make-very-poor-people-more-autonomous/</guid>
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<title>Pension schemes and pension projections 2008-2060</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How much will the pensions cost in the future? For how long will our pension system be sustainable? How will growth evolve with an ageing population? In this report, the European Commission has updated the long-term economic and budgetary projections made by the 2009 Ageing Report. For every Member State of the EU-27, it gives a description of the pension systems, discusses the reforms recently achieved, and presents pension expenditure projections. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pension-schemes-and-pension-projections/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pension-schemes-and-pension-projections/</guid>
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<title>Progress in the light of the Lisbon objectives in education and training</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In our knowledge-based economies, we are constantly trying to stimulate human capital through policy programs at national and European levels. In this report, the European Commission evaluates educational performance across European countries with respect to the Lisbon objectives. And apparently, Europe is getting there. Lifelong learning and student mobility are becoming a reality for more and more people. But progress still needs to be made in Belgium. The performance gap between pupils is among the largest in the EU and the average performance in mathematics is declining.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/progress-towards-the-lisbon-objectives-in-education-and-training/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/progress-towards-the-lisbon-objectives-in-education-and-training/</guid>
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<title>Sick Funds: new roles in the long run?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ François Daue explores a couple of ideas on possible new roles for the sick funds, to ensure a sustainable, accessible and affordable health system. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/what-are-the-new-challenges-for-sick-funds-for-the-30-years-to-come-what-are-their-strengths-and-weaknesses-how-do-we-translate-this-into-opportunities-and-concrete-projects-and-how-do-we-initiate-change/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/what-are-the-new-challenges-for-sick-funds-for-the-30-years-to-come-what-are-their-strengths-and-weaknesses-how-do-we-translate-this-into-opportunities-and-concrete-projects-and-how-do-we-initiate-change/</guid>
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<title>Modernizing the public service during the crisis!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The public service versus the demographic impact, the war of talent and the digital revolution: which actions to undertake?]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/modernizing-the-public-service-during-the-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/modernizing-the-public-service-during-the-crisis/</guid>
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<title>2010, the immigration decennium? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The more migration data is made available, the more reality is ignored. Time to set things straight; to begin with future migration projections. According to Jan Hertogen, from NPData, real migration balance between 2007 and 2020 is 10,1% higher than official estimations. Compared to 1980-1989, migration is five times more important in 2010-2019. Now guidance for support, self organisation, integration and language skills of Belgian immigrants should increase by a factor 5 too, the sociologist says.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 25 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/2010-the-immigration-decennium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/2010-the-immigration-decennium/</guid>
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<title>Activating labour market policy: lessons from abroad</title>
<description><![CDATA[ An aging population and a growing number of (long term) unemployed will have social security expenses go trough the roof. An activation policy which seeks to replace obstacles to the labour market by incentives, tries to formulate an answer to this imbalance. An activating labour market policy is a set of measures whose objective is to fight unemployment, to encourage the outflow towards a job and to improve the connexion between supply and demand on the labour market. In this article from the Steunpunt WSE the authors discuss several interesting experiences from abroad.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 25 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/activating-labour-market-policy-lessons-from-abroad/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/activating-labour-market-policy-lessons-from-abroad/</guid>
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<title>Organisation of palliative care in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A palliative patient is a person that is in an advanced or terminal phase of a serious, progressive and life-threatening disease. But a patient&#8217;s status is currently being determined on the basis of his or her remaining life expectancy, while researchers from the Federal Knowledge centre think that the optimal criterion should be a person&#8217;s needs, because many patients would rather be looked after and pass away at home. Also, the training of healthcare professionals is essential according to the report, and the focus should be on communication skills and a multidisciplinary approach for high quality and dignified care to be achieved.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 25 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/organisation-of-palliative-care-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/organisation-of-palliative-care-in-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Obesity, at what price?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the United States, one out of three adults is obese (BMI&gt;30) and another third of the adult population is overweight (BMI&gt;25). In Belgium, almost half of the adult population is either overweight or obese, compared to one out of five children. The healthcare costs for obesity are rising spectacularly. Obesity represents 10% of the American healthcare expenses or 1,6% of GDP. Budgetary obesity is more important than ageing, and until 2022 that will not change. Obesity is a difficult issue for policy makers. Given that obesity is mainly the consequence of technological developments; a policy that focuses on the food component only is doomed to fail. Experiments with local communities show that programs that intensively promote a healthy lifestyle (healthy food, a lot of physical exercise) can yield encouraging results. The cost of these campaigns could be financed by typical obesity taxes, such as a soft drink tax.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 23 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/obesity-at-what-price/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/obesity-at-what-price/</guid>
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<title>Obesity, at what price?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the United States, one out of three adults is obese (BMI&gt;30) and another third of the adult population is overweight (BMI&gt;25). In Belgium, almost half of the adult population is either overweight or obese, compared to one out of five children. The healthcare costs for obesity are rising spectacularly. Obesity represents 10% of the American healthcare expenses or 1,6% of GDP. Budgetary obesity is more important than ageing, and until 2022 that will not change. Obesity is a difficult issue for policy makers. Given that obesity is mainly the consequence of technological developments; a policy that focuses on the food component only is doomed to fail. Experiments with local communities show that programs that intensively promote a healthy lifestyle (healthy food, a lot of physical exercise) can yield encouraging results. The cost of these campaigns could be financed by typical obesity taxes, such as a soft drink tax.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 23 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/obesity-at-what-price/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/obesity-at-what-price/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Press%20release%20obesitas%20fr.pdf" length="96949" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>Are health problems systemic? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Industrialised countries face similar challenges for improving the performance of their health system. Nevertheless the nature and intensity of the reforms required are largely determined by each country&#8217;s basic social security model. This IRDES paper looks at the main differences in performance of five countries and reviews their recent reform experience, focusing on three questions: Are there systematic differences in performance of Beveridge and Bismarck-type systems? What are the key parameters of health care system which underlie these differences? Have recent reforms been effective?]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/are-health-problems-systemic/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/are-health-problems-systemic/</guid>
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<title>Improving Resolution Options for Systemically Relevant Financial Institutions</title>
<description><![CDATA[ There are critical holes in the existing regulatory framework for handling large complex financial institutions that become impaired. This uncertainty makes it difficult for regulators to know the best way to restructure a financial institution. This Squam Lake Working Group paper endorses legislation that would give authorities the necessary powers to effect an orderly resolution of large complex financial institutions. As part of this authority, every such institution should be required to create its own rapid resolution plans, which would be subject to periodic regulatory scrutiny. These &#8220;living wills&#8221; would help authorities address the difficulties that might arise in a resolution.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/improving-resolution-options-for-systemically-relevant-financial-institutions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/improving-resolution-options-for-systemically-relevant-financial-institutions/</guid>
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<title>Institutions and structural unemployment in times of crisis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Unemployment in the OECD area is projected to rise by over 25 million from 2007 to 2010, by far the largest and the most rapid increase in the post-war period. But some countries&#8217; labour market have been hit harder than others during the Great Recession. According to this OECD working paper, institutions (such as Employment Protection Legislation, average replacement ratio and product market regulation) influence both the extent of the initial shock and the adjustment pattern in the aftermath of a downturn. Especially stringent institutional settings seem to magnify a crisis&#8217; effect on structural unemployment, the researchers say. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/institutions-and-structural-unemployment-in-times-of-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/institutions-and-structural-unemployment-in-times-of-crisis/</guid>
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<title>Livestock and climate change</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A widely cited 2006 report by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, Livestock's Long Shadow, estimates that 18 percent of annual worldwide greenhouse gas emissions are attributable to livestock. But recent analysis by the World Watch institute finds that livestock and their byproducts actually account for at least 32.6 billion tons of carbon dioxide per year, or 51 percent of annual worldwide GHG emissions. What if the key actors in climate change are cows, pigs, and chickens?]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/livestock-and-climate-change/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/livestock-and-climate-change/</guid>
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<title>Taking care of our disabled pupils</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Disabled pupils receive a lot of attention in terms of governmental policy. The costs of their education and complementary provisions, like compensations for home aid or expenses for youth care, are high and always increasing. This is due to the fact that schools and parents of disabled pupils don&#8217;t have any reason not to choose for the more expensive provisions. To what extent these high and ever increasing expenses generate real benefits for these kids, their families and therefore society remains however unknown, says this report from the Dutch planning bureau.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/taking-care-of-our-disabled-pupils/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/taking-care-of-our-disabled-pupils/</guid>
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<title>Towards a more effective anti-poverty policy in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With more than 100 000 permanent and temporary unemployed extra in 2009 an effective labour market policy should be flanked by an effective anti-poverty policy. According to OASeS researchers such an anti-poverty policy should be built on strong empirical fundamentals. Action plans should be monitored and evaluated yearly, all of that based on objective figures of course. An arsenal of priority indicators that will enable such an objective monitoring and evaluation are largely being developed in the report. But even if we were to follow these, and the other, policy recommendations dutifully, it&#8217;s far from certain that Belgium would meet its own millennium objectives by 2017.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-more-effective-anti-poverty-policy-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-more-effective-anti-poverty-policy-in-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Let ideas flow  to counter conformist thinking</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the wake of the financial crisis, many mainstream economic taboos are being questioned. The efficient market hypothesis is one of the ideas that has to cope with the most pressure. How could the theory that financial markets are efficient be so dominantly accepted among economists? Experimentation tells us that people only dare to question the majority&#8217;s opinion or the status quo when diverging views are being defended in the public debate. If not, there is a high risk of painful truths remaining untold. In other words: for a democracy to be effective, ideas need to flow. Concretely, breaking with the efficient market hypothesis means central banks will have to get their hands dirty in order to burst remaining bubbles. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 16 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/let-ideas-flow--to-counter-conformist-thinking/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/let-ideas-flow--to-counter-conformist-thinking/</guid>
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<title>Optimistic but worried about recent evolutions in healthcare</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The last week of October was full of interesting healthcare news: the publication of an interesting study by the National Institute for Health Insurance, alarming signals from the Plan bureau and the latest events in the healthcare soap, made in USA. Fran&#231;ois Daue discusses. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/optimistic-but-worried-about-recent-evolutions-in-healthcare/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/optimistic-but-worried-about-recent-evolutions-in-healthcare/</guid>
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<title>Ageing and well-being</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The population ageing debate must go beyond the usual focus on pensions, health and care. The more general well-being of our elders has to be taken in consideration too. This report from the Institute for Public Policy Research (UK) investigates four areas (relationships, work, training and infrastructure) through which older people could still actively participate as long as possible in our society. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-and-well-being/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-and-well-being/</guid>
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<title>Does the welfare state make older workers unemployable?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ European labour markets are more regulated than Anglo-saxon ones. But how are &#8216;continental&#8217; older workers affected by labour market rigidities? Are higher wages for the elderly the main cause for relatively more dismissals among older workers compared to their younger peers? Should they therefore benefit from even more protection than they already do? This IZA discussion paper makes a comparison between a rigid and a flexible labour market (France vs the US) and discusses the pros and cons of both systems for older workers. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-the-welfare-state-make-older-workers-unemployable/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-the-welfare-state-make-older-workers-unemployable/</guid>
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<title>R&amp;D investments and economic cycles</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Are we going to reach the R&amp;D objective of the Lisbon Strategy by 2010? How does the crisis influence R&amp;D investments? That is the subject of this note from the French Center of strategic analysis. The authors also examine the procyclicality of R&amp;D investments in times of recession in OECD countries. With an R&amp;D intensity of roughly 1.5%, Belgium belongs to the group of countries whose firms&#8217; R&amp;D procyclicality with respect to business cycles should be limited.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/rd-investments-and-economic-cycles/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/rd-investments-and-economic-cycles/</guid>
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<title>Citizenship policies in the age of diversity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Citizenship is a crucial concept for integrating immigrants. European countries are giving more and more importance to diversity management through this principle. This publication explains the notion of citizenship in Europe and suggests some ways to promote it.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 02 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/citizenship-policies-in-the-age-of-diversity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/citizenship-policies-in-the-age-of-diversity/</guid>
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<title>The index of sustainable economic welfare for Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Since the signature of the Istanbul Declaration (June 2007), international and supranational organizations are steadily encouraging initiatives to measure societal progress, going beyond conventional economic indicators such as GDP per capita. In this report from the Hogeschool Gent, the author presents one of the alternative measures of economic welfare: the index of sustainable economic welfare (ISEW). When studying the ISEW evolution for Belgium, he discovers contrasting trends between the ISEW and the levels of per capita GDP. He also finds that increases in production and consumption have not always led to increases in economic welfare, especially after the year 1980.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 02 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-index-of-sustainable-economic-welfare-for-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-index-of-sustainable-economic-welfare-for-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Environment policy review</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Our fight against climate change is far from ending. Even if progress has already been made over the last years &#8211;Belgium is among the EU Member States which have continuously reduced greenhouse gas emissions during the period 2004-2006, much needs to be done to reach our environmental commitments. This European Commission report gives an exhaustive overview of the efforts and the policy actions already taken all around Europe. It is good to know where we stand today, before making commitments for tomorrow (at the Copenhagen summit for example).]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 29 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/environment-policy-review/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/environment-policy-review/</guid>
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<title>The welfare effects of social mobility</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Are our well-being and individual life satisfaction higher in a society with important social mobility? How can our perception of fairness and income inequality influence our subjective well-being (SWB)? In this OECD paper, the authors answer these questions by analyzing for several OECD countries the SWB effects of intergenerational earnings mobility and equality in education at the societal level. This study reveals how perceptions and reality can actually interact and influence SWB.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 29 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-welfare-effects-of-social-mobility/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-welfare-effects-of-social-mobility/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Fiscal climate advantages in Belgium ; only for high incomes</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Improvisation is central in the Belgium climate policy. Popular measures like subsidies for efficient investments and CO2 bonuses for economical cars are coupled with big advantages, mainly for high income people. A non-transparent tax reduction for these people represents an important part of the climate policy. Can the federal authorities allow such climate advantages in times of budgetary tightness?]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fiscal-climate-advantages-in-belgium--only-for-high-incomes/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fiscal-climate-advantages-in-belgium--only-for-high-incomes/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How to break network monopolies in the energy sector? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The agreement on the three oldest atomic power stations between the nuclear electricity sector and the government risks shutting down the electricity market for a long time. If we want to give competition a chance in this key sector we need a completely new strategy. For that to happen, our government has to be convinced that balanced competition is crucial of our energy policy though. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-break-network-monopolies-in-the-energy-sector/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-break-network-monopolies-in-the-energy-sector/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Forum Luncheon Lecture:Poverty Policy: Back to the drawing board</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p align="justify">Despite the favourable social-economical, demographical en policy parameters, we haven&rsquo;t booked any progress in the fight against poverty during the last 20 years. The result of the welfare state based on activation policy and an attempt to nullify the so-called &ldquo;new social risks&rdquo; was less successful than envisaged. At the same time, the level of protection of the &ldquo;old social risks&rdquo; couldn&rsquo;t keep up with the overall increase in prosperity. The inequalities are growing larger, as well as the part of the social security funds that are attributed to higher social groups.</p><p align="justify">&nbsp;Bea Cantillon, Universiteit Antwerpen and CSB, explains why that is, and how we can turn it around</p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 27 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/poverty/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/poverty/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Presentation: Poverty Policy : Back to the drawing board</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Despite the favourable social-economical, demographical en 
policy parameters, we haven&#8217;t booked any progress in the fight 
against poverty during the last 20 years. The result of the 
welfare state based on activation policy and an attempt to 
nullify the so-called &#8220;new social risks&#8221; was less successful 
than envisaged. At the same time, the level of protection of 
the &#8220;old social risks&#8221; couldn&#8217;t keep up with the overall 
increase in prosperity. The inequalities are growing larger, 
as well as the part of the social security funds that are 
attributed to higher social groups.

Bea Cantillon, Universiteit Antwerpen and CSB, explains why 
that is, and how we can turn it around.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 27 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-poverty-policy-back-to-the-drawing-board/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-poverty-policy-back-to-the-drawing-board/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Presentation: Poverty policy; reaction of Magda De Meyer</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Despite the favourable social-economical, demographical en policy parameters, we haven&#8217;t booked any progress in the fight against poverty during the last 20 years. The result of the welfare state based on activation policy and an attempt to nullify the so-called &#8220;new social risks&#8221; was less successful 
than envisaged. At the same time, the level of protection of the &#8220;old social risks&#8221; couldn&#8217;t keep up with the overall increase in prosperity. The inequalities are growing larger, as well as the part of the social security funds that are attributed to higher social groups.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 27 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-poverty-policy-reaction-of-magda-de-meyer/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation-poverty-policy-reaction-of-magda-de-meyer/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>A guaranteed minimum income for Europe&#8217;s elderly?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Harmonisation of social security systems is back on the agenda of European policy makers. However, the introduction of a harmonised scheme poses severe challenges. In this article, the &#8216;Centrum voor Sociaal Beleid&#8217; from the University of Antwerp explores some options and difficulties associated with the implementation of a harmonised minimum income protection scheme for the elderly. Their findings confirm that it is one thing to be in favour of a harmonised scheme of minimum income protection, but another to design a realistic and politically feasible proposal.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 26 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-guaranteed-minimum-income-for-europes-elderly/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-guaranteed-minimum-income-for-europes-elderly/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Policy for orphan diseases and orphan drugs</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Because they are so rare, orphan diseases are often neglected by the industry and the scientific, medical and political world. Nonetheless, successful programs have been built up to stimulate the development of the so called &#8216;orphan drugs&#8217;. Their aim is often to compensate the industry for the high risk and the potentially lower return on investment due to the small amount of patients. In this KCE study the authors compare the Belgian orphan drugs repayment system with other countries, estimate its budgetary impact and formulate policy recommendations for improvement.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 26 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/policy-for-orphan-diseases-and-orphan-drugs/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/policy-for-orphan-diseases-and-orphan-drugs/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Tax Credits to Prevent Layoffs and Stimulate Employment</title>
<description><![CDATA[ While there is much talk about the economy potentially being in recovery, it must be noted that we still have an extraordinarily high unemployment rate. This will continue for years to come unless we act decisively to confront the issue. In this CEPR analysis the authors suggest a job sharing tax credit as an effective temporary measure. The basic point is simple: job sharing would use tax money to pay firms to shorten the typical workweek or work year, while keeping pay constant. An idea worth scrutinizing for the troubled Belgian labour market.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 26 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tax-credits-to-prevent-layoffs-and-stimulate-employment/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tax-credits-to-prevent-layoffs-and-stimulate-employment/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Executive Summary: What can Flemish schools teach French speaking schools? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ If the Flemish school system performs better than the French speaking one it&#8217;s because its principals and teachers enjoy more autonomy. Both systems, however, belong to the most unequal in Europe. An explanation from Jean Hindriks, Marijn Verschelde, Glenn Rayp and Koen Schoors. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/executive-summary-what-can-flemish-schools-teach-french-speaking-schools/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/executive-summary-what-can-flemish-schools-teach-french-speaking-schools/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The paradox of the investment state: Why did poverty not decline?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Despite the favourable social-economical, demographical en policy parameters, we haven&#8217;t booked any progress in the fight against poverty during the last 20 years. The result of the welfare state based on activation policy and an attempt to nullify the so-called &#8220;new social risks&#8221; was less successful than envisaged. At the same time, the level of protection of the &#8220;old social risks&#8221; couldn&#8217;t keep up with the overall increase in prosperity. The inequalities are growing larger, as well as the part of the social security funds that are attributed to higher social groups.

Bea Cantillon, Universiteit Antwerpen and CSB, explains why that is, and how we can turn it around.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-paradox-of-the-investment-state-why-did-poverty-not-decline/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-paradox-of-the-investment-state-why-did-poverty-not-decline/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Health IT: learn from your neighbours</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Greater use of information technology (IT) in health care can help achieve many health care reform goals. Health IT can improve the effectiveness and efficiency of health care by reducing costs, improving the quality of care, and increasing access to health care services and information. Health IT also empowers individuals to better manage their own health care and enables them to communicate more easily with their health care providers. Finally, health IT increasingly serves as the foundation for medical research. However, progress in the adoption of health IT varies significantly between nations. The purpose of this ITIF report is to identify which countries are leading in the deployment of health IT and to draw lessons that might be useful for other countries.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/health-it-learn-from-your-neighbours/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/health-it-learn-from-your-neighbours/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The impact of the financial and economic crisis on Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The impact of the worldwide financial and economic crisis on the economy, labour market, public finances and households is important; and Belgium makes no exception to that. Ever since, policymakers all over the world focus on how to restore confidence in the financial markets and institutions, budgetary stability, and economic growth. Moreover, the crisis intensifies structural challenges (such as ageing or sustainable public finances) that the Belgian and the other European economies have been facing for several years now. This policy synthesis from the Socio-Economic Council for Flanders summarizes the impact of the big crisis on our country.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-impact-of-the-financial-and-economic-crisis-on-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-impact-of-the-financial-and-economic-crisis-on-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Flexicurity : a proposal based on economic principles</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Do workers receive fair compensation when losing their job? Do employers who dismiss workers contribute sufficiently for the costs transferred to society? In this publication from &#8220;Regards &#233;conomiques&#8221; (UCL), the authors review the economic principles of dismissal and suggest a new employment protection legislation and unemployment insurance. In their proposal, laid off workers are properly compensated for psychological costs and encouraged to get back to work with the help of labour policies financed indirectly by the dismissing employers.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 15 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/flexicurity-a-proposal-based-on-economic-principles/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/flexicurity-a-proposal-based-on-economic-principles/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Human development report 2009</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to the United Nations Development Program, Belgium is, as the year before, the 17th most developed country in the world. This year&#8217;s issue focuses on the effects of migration on the general well-being of the host population. Today, immigration is the only way Belgium has to significantly increase its population, although important challenges like education and integration are often associated with immigration too. While advancing a series of recommendations, the UNDP has the objective to help us improving human mobility and by doing so we could even win a few places in the human development ranking.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 15 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/human-development-report-2009/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/human-development-report-2009/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The state of the union is unsufficient!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Van Rompuy government did the absolute minimum where the budget is concerned.This is not enough. The government. misses long term vision and political courage to achieve structural reform. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-state-of-the-union-is-unsufficient/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-state-of-the-union-is-unsufficient/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The state of the union is unsufficient!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Van Rompuy government did the absolute minimum where the budget is concerned.This is not enough. The government. misses long term vision and political courage to achieve structural reform.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/de-regering-van-rompuy-raakt-niet-verder-dan-brandweerbeleid/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/de-regering-van-rompuy-raakt-niet-verder-dan-brandweerbeleid/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Lessons of the Financial Crisis for the Design of National Pension Systems</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Pension funds all over the world had a hard time the past 12 months. In the Netherlands, some people even feared the compulsory and complementary occupational pension benefits would not (entirely) be paid out. Based on the recent financial crisis and historical record, this CESifo working paper draws important lessons and makes substantial recommendations about the design of national pension systems.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/lessons-of-the-financial-crisis-for-the-design-of-national-pension-systems/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/lessons-of-the-financial-crisis-for-the-design-of-national-pension-systems/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The &#8216;Oosterweelverbinding&#8217; and the missing alternative</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The planned Oosterweelverbinding has, as every massive infrastructure project, caused a lot of commotion. This KULeuven working paper doesn&#8217;t plead in favour of one of the two choices that completely dominate the debate today. In stead, the authors say the focus on both options narrows the debate down. Have all alternatives to improve Antwerp&#8217;s mobility been scrutinized? Is there any way to improve the existing infrastructure? If so, is a bridge or a tunnel still necessary? In other words, do the existing projects make sense or are there better alternatives? A study that could really shake up the debate a week before the plebiscite.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-oosterweelverbinding-and-the-missing-alternative/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-oosterweelverbinding-and-the-missing-alternative/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Driving a digital recovery in times of crisis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the past, one typical response to recessions would have be to increase investments in physical infrastructure, such as roads, bridges and sewer systems. However, in the new global economy, information technology (IT) is the major driver of not just economic growth, but also of improved quality of life. In this report, the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) reviews the benefits and opportunities of including IT investments in a fiscal stimulus package. A way for Belgium to maintain the necessary 1,5% annual productivity growth used in the forecasts of our (optimistic?) Commission on Ageing?]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 05 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/driving-a-digital-recovery-in-times-of-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/driving-a-digital-recovery-in-times-of-crisis/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The WTO and Climate Change: Challenges and Options</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Trade and environment intersect in many ways. Aside from the broad debate as to whether economic growth and trade adversely affect the environment, there are linkages between existing rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and rules established in various multilateral environmental agreements. Controlling greenhouse gas emissions promises to be a top priority for both national and international agendas, and special attention must be given to the relationship between the WTO and the emerging international regime on climate change. This Peterson Institute working paper examines the nexus of the WTO and climate change and discusses challenges and options.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 05 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-wto-and-climate-change-challenges-and-options/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-wto-and-climate-change-challenges-and-options/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>What can Flemish schools teach French speaking schools? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ If the Flemish school system performs better than the French speaking one it&#8217;s because its principals and teachers enjoy more autonomy. Both systems, however, belong to the most unequal in Europe. An explanation from Jean Hindriks, Marijn Verschelde, Glenn Rayp and Koen Schoors.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 02 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-can-flemish-schools-teach-french-speaking-schools/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-can-flemish-schools-teach-french-speaking-schools/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Comparison of pension system yields</title>
<description><![CDATA[ There is no doubt about it: we have to reform our pension system if we want to guaranty its adequacy and financial sustainability. But in which direction do we have to make it evolve? To what extend does capitalization (2d and 3d pillar) has to be promoted with respect to repartition (1st pillar)? In this HIVA publication, the authors make a comparative yield analysis of our 3 pillars &#8211; through time and space. This study provides relevant theoretical and empirical items for the pension reform debate.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/comparison-of-pension-systems-yields/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/comparison-of-pension-systems-yields/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Creating an effective teaching and learning environment</title>
<description><![CDATA[ We live in modern knowledge-based economy and it&#8217;s no longer a secret: we have to respond to a growing demand for high-level skills. This OECD&#8217;s Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) provides a comparative study of the teaching and learning methods in secondary schools in OECD countries. Our traditional models of schooling have to be adapted if we want to be better prepared to identify and develop the talents of all students.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/creating-an-effective-teaching-and-learning-environment/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/creating-an-effective-teaching-and-learning-environment/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Doing Business in 2010</title>
<description><![CDATA[ For 2009-20010, Belgium is 18th in the Global Competitiveness ranking issued by the World Economic Forum: a progression of one place compared to last year! Although such information is useful for companies that have to select a place to invest, it is not enough. This annual &#8220;Doing Business&#8221; report from the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation that ranks economies based on 10 indicators of business regulation (which measures the ease of doing business) should therefore be seen as complementary. In this ranking Belgium is 22nd and lost two places compared to last year. In general, labour regulation, high tax rates and government bureaucracy appear to be the most problematic. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/doing-business-in-2010/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/doing-business-in-2010/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Economic outlook for the Euro area in 2009 and 2010</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Although technically speaking the Euro area is pulling out of recession, the overall economic picture is everything but bright. According to this report from the European Forecasting Network, GDP growth will be negative in the Euro area in 2009 (-0,5%) and is only expected to recover slightly in 2010 to 0,8%. For our economies to grow at more ambitious rates, two conditions are crucial, the researchers say: first, government intervention into financial markets has to be effective for some time. Second, the fall in house prices has to subside visibly.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economic-outlook-for-the-euro-area-in-2009-and-2010/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economic-outlook-for-the-euro-area-in-2009-and-2010/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Motivation for training in Flanders investigated</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A modern labour market cannot pass by training. This is why the Lisbon strategy aims at a training participation rate of the working population of 12,5%. With a mere 8%, Flanders is far from reaching that European objective. In this report from the Steunpunt WSE, the researchers analyze what motivates employees to take part in training programs, and what motivates employers to invest in them. This insight could increase the training participation rate in our region in order for our labour market to be more adequately equipped to face the challenges of the 21st century.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/motivation-for-training-in-flanders-investigated/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/motivation-for-training-in-flanders-investigated/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Short-term impact of pension reforms on older workers&#8217; participation rates in the EU</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the last century, life expectancy has significantly increased in developed countries and many think that an increase of the legal age of retirement is therefore a justified measure for pension reform. In this publication of ECOFIN, the authors study the short-term impact of such a measure on male and female participation rates in Europe. They also discuss the importance of informing workers about pension arrangements.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/short-term-impact-of-pension-reforms/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/short-term-impact-of-pension-reforms/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The crisis: an opportunity for our healthcare? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ In view of the difficult budgetary negotiations the debate about the healthcare expenditure growth rate is everywhere. For some, a more modest rate stands for the beginning of the end of a solidary social security; for others the status quo will condemn our welfare state to bankruptcy. Difficult to say who will be right. What we know for sure, however, is that this extraordinary budgetary crisis is an extraordinary opportunity to discuss, without taboos, about a sustainable future for our healthcare. And the controversial growth rate will certainly be part of the debate. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-crisis-an-opportunity-of-our-healthcare/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-crisis-an-opportunity-of-our-healthcare/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The economic benefits of collaborative climate action</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen is for this December. If we want proper measures to be adopted, it is about time we try to convince the more skeptical ones to act. Cutting greenhouse gas emissions is urgent but many fear the costs of tackling climate change to be too high. In this report, the Climate Group constructs a model and explains how the carbon price can be reduced, the global GDP increased and the benefits for employment improved with a global climate action. Individual efforts are good but a collective one is even better!]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-economic-benefits-of-collaborative-climate-action/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-economic-benefits-of-collaborative-climate-action/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Video: Should the government promote solar pannels?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 25 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-should-the-government-promote-solar-pannels/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-should-the-government-promote-solar-pannels/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Budetary priorities: 2009: let's get real!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In order to give the next generation a fair chance, it's time to get real.The Itinera Institute sends a clear message:let's do it right!]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 23 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/budetary-priorities/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/budetary-priorities/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Budgetary priorities 2009: Let's get real!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In order to give the next generation a fair chance, it's time to get real.The Itinera Institute sends a clear message:let's do it right!]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 23 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/budgetary-policies/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/budgetary-policies/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The long run needs to be reconciled with the short run</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the long run, we are all dead. This witticism from Keynes is known by almost everybody. Schumpeter, only interested in the long run, seems to be the antipode of Keynes. The question is to realize that the long run is more than a succession of short runs by surpassing it with a strategic vision.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-long-run-needs-to-be-reconciled-with-the-short-run/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-long-run-needs-to-be-reconciled-with-the-short-run/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Can student tutoring initiatives help underprivileged children?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Kids from immigrant and/or socially deprived background do not have the same opportunities at school as their autochthon peers. To compensate for this inequality, student tutoring (undergraduate and graduate students helping out immigrant and/or socially deprived children with school) is advanced as one interesting possibility. But what are the existing initiatives? Does student tutoring really offer an added value? If so, under what circumstances? How can we improve student tutoring? This publication from the King Baudoin Foundation offers subtle answers to these, and other questions.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 18 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-student-tutoring-initiatives-help-underprivileged-children/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-student-tutoring-initiatives-help-underprivileged-children/</guid>
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<title>Containing poverty in times of stimulus packages</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Many were skeptical of the Keynesian inspired stimulus packages governments enacted in the aftermath of the financial crisis. The most important, and controversial, stimulus package was definitely the American Recovery and Re-Investment Act (ARRA). Today, while our economies are prudently recovering, we&#8217;re starting to see and measure their benefits. According to this publication from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, the ARRA had the important secondary effect of keeping 6 million Americans out of poverty in 2009. The authors analyze how &#8211; thus advancing strategies for combating poverty.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 18 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/containing-poverty-in-times-of-stimulus-packages/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/containing-poverty-in-times-of-stimulus-packages/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Economic effects of illegal immigrants' regularization in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Cost and benefits resulting from illegal immigrants&#8217; regularization policies are of the same type but do not have the same magnitude as legal immigration policies. Illegal immigrants already live in our country and their regularization generally gives rise to family gathering or network effects. Which impact can regularization then have on our labour market and public finances? Is this impact lower or higher than the one caused by legal immigration? In this publication from the UCL economic review &#8220;Regards &#233;conomiques&#8221;, the authors help us to understand reality better and perhaps to reconsider possible misjudgments on the subject.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 18 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economic-effects-of-illegal-immigrants-regularization-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economic-effects-of-illegal-immigrants-regularization-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Gender differences in individual income and financial dependence</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Whatever their status, women have a higher rate of financial dependence than men. That is what we can learn from this DULBEA publication which studies gender inequality and poverty. For nine European countries, the authors investigate the individual vulnerability to poverty by distinguishing individual income from household income and by taking into account some personal characteristics. Improving poverty measurement seems also important to these authors and they therefore suggest four new indicators.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 18 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gender-differences-in-individual-income-and-financial-dependence/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gender-differences-in-individual-income-and-financial-dependence/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Future of International Migration</title>
<description><![CDATA[ It is very likely Western economies will have to attract foreign labour to deal with an ageing workforce. This OECD publication explores the social, economic and environmental forces that may combine to attract migrants of various types and backgrounds to OECD countries, as well as those that may persuade migrants to emigrate or to stay at home. This volume endeavours to cast light on a range of key questions.  Which factors will be major determinants of global migration flows?  Which OECD countries will look particularly attractive for migrants? Belgium better be prepared if it doesn&#8217;t want to lose the international war for talent!]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 18 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-of-international-migration/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-of-international-migration/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>10 actions to modernize our public services</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ten concrete actions to modernize our public services and succeed in the demographic revival among civil servants.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 16 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/10-actions-to-modernize-our-public-services/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/10-actions-to-modernize-our-public-services/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Addressing healthcare spending growth</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Reducing the growth of healthcare spending is the ambition of the Obama administration. On top of the longed extended coverage and an equivalent quality of care one can say the President is very ambitious indeed. As identifying specific, feasible steps that can achieve these goals have proven to be difficult, one could wonder whether President Obama has not been too ambitious. This report from Brookings gives a hand and advances a couple of effective steps to address long-term healthcare spending growth. And although the American system is very different from ours, many of the proposed reforms should (and hopefully will) inspire Belgium&#8217;s policy-makers too.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 16 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/addressing-healthcare-spending-growth/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/addressing-healthcare-spending-growth/</guid>
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<title>Budgetary recovery in bad times</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Even before the crisis, we knew that the next generations would have to pay for the financing of our pensions and health care. But on top of this big challenge, we are facing a deep crisis today. Many call for a so-called &#8220;deficit-spending&#8221;. Because it seems unacceptable to charge the next generation for this also, we propose a number of alternative tracks.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 16 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/budgetary-recovery-in-bad-times/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/budgetary-recovery-in-bad-times/</guid>
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<title>Taxation trends in the European Union</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How high are taxes in Europe? Are tax levels increasing or decreasing? How is the tax burden shared between labour, capital and consumption? How does Belgium compare with the other Member States? This Eurostat report analyses these and other questions. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 16 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/taxation-trends-in-the-european-union/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/taxation-trends-in-the-european-union/</guid>
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<title>A first attempt to measure the quality of public finances in the EU</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The quality of public finances (QPF) has always been a subject of concern. Indeed, which country would not want to improve it knowing that it can help delivering public services efficiently and effectively and creating conditions conductive to economic growth? In this paper, the European Commission has developed a multi-dimensional concept evaluating the strengths and weaknesses in twelve areas of public finances linked to economic growth. This is thus an interesting way for Belgium to evaluate its QPF over the years, to compare itself with other European countries and, why not, to learn something from them.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-first-attempt-to-measure-the-quality-of-public-finances-in-the-eu/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-first-attempt-to-measure-the-quality-of-public-finances-in-the-eu/</guid>
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<title>China&#8217;s clean revolution</title>
<description><![CDATA[ China is now almost certainly the largest national emitter of carbon dioxide (CO2) &#8211; although its per capita emissions are still a fraction of the USA&#8217;s and EU&#8217;s, and below the global average. Less widely acknowledged is the leading role that China is already playing in producing the technologies needed to solve the climate change challenge, think of China as the world&#8217;s largest producer and consumer of solar water heaters for example. But more can be done. This report by The Climate Group analyses the progress and potential in China&#8217;s major low carbon industries like low carbon transport, energy efficiency in industry, renewable energy and urban design and sustainable development. China might surprise the world during the UN Summit in Copenhagen this December&#8230; .]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/china-clean-revolution/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/china-clean-revolution/</guid>
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<title>How satisfied are the Flemish with their healthcare provisions? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Traditionally, Belgian healthcare&#8217;s strengths are its quality, accessibility and availability. But how do the Flemish perceive their healthcare provisions themselves? And what factors, on the individual level (education, place of residence, age,&#8230;) as well as on the supply-side level (financing, choice, quality,&#8230;), influence that perception? This report from the research department of the Flemish government analysed it and compared the Flemish Community with the rest of the EU member states. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-satisfied-are-the-flemish-with-their-healthcare-provisions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-satisfied-are-the-flemish-with-their-healthcare-provisions/</guid>
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<item>
<title>School-to-work transitions in the United-States and in Europe</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How can temporary work influence the performance of youth on the labour market? What are the pathways to chose from to minimize the risk of unemployment? How can the government and companies help them in this sense? In this OECD report, the authors make an analysis of school-to-work transitions in Europe and the United-States. For both continents, they investigate the time needed to find a first job after completing education, the smoothness of the transition and the extent to which such an easy transition may determine future labor market success. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/school-to-work-transitions-in-the-united-states-and-in-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/school-to-work-transitions-in-the-united-states-and-in-europe/</guid>
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<title>A VAT reduction in the horeca sector: at which price?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The cost of a VAT reduction in the horeca sector could be higher than expected and the creation of new jobs disappointing. Our budgetary situation is critical and we can not take such a decision thoughtlessly. Let us have a look at what the French experience can teach us first.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-vat-reduction-in-the-horeca-sector-at-which-price/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-vat-reduction-in-the-horeca-sector-at-which-price/</guid>
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<title>A crisis tax for banks?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Banks have to contribute to the budgetary deficit that was partly due to the financial crisis. If we find a correct way to make the banks pay for the risk they impose on society, then our financial system could benefit from it.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 08 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-crisis-tax-for-banks/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-crisis-tax-for-banks/</guid>
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<title>Don&#8217;t let the gatekeepers of our healthcare system escape!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The profession of general practitioner (GP) doesn&#8217;t appeal to students anymore and we&#8217;re about to face a shortage &#8211; a serious problem. Yet, making the profession of GP more attractive is good for both our GPs and our social security budget, as the gatekeepers of our healthcare system can prevent us from paying for more expensive, but unnecessary, treatments. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 26 Aug 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/dont-let-the-gatekeepers-of-our-healthcare-system-escape/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/dont-let-the-gatekeepers-of-our-healthcare-system-escape/</guid>
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<title>Assessment and innovation in education</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Innovation is a key driver of economic and social progress in and needs undoubtedly to be sustained by education. Indeed, education enables people to develop their creativity, knowledge, skills and talents that are so much needed for innovation. This OECD report discusses three ways to improve educational practices and assessment processes to cultivate these key competences. Let&#8217;s go ahead towards innovative learning and teaching strategies to stimulate innovation!]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 17 Aug 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/assessment-and-innovation-in-education/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/assessment-and-innovation-in-education/</guid>
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<title>Immigrant, Muslim, Female: Triple Paralysis?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Unemployment figures of Muslim women indicate not many of them are working. That does not necessarily mean Muslim women do not have employment aspirations. In fact, the key finding of this Quilliam Foundation report is that 57% of the Muslim women surveyed actually want to work. However, it still leaves 39% who do not want to find work, a significant number for whom this report tries to establish what is holding them back.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 17 Aug 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/immigrant-muslim-female-triple-paralysis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/immigrant-muslim-female-triple-paralysis/</guid>
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<title>Learning to be healthier</title>
<description><![CDATA[ There are a number of potential mechanisms, both direct and indirect, through which involvement in education and training may improve health outcomes. Participation in learning activities may improve health outcomes by improving employment prospects, for example. Learning may also have benefits in terms of improving attitudes to and competencies for engaging in positive health behaviours and making best use of health services. This Institute for Employment Studies report considers the evidence in relation to these, and other, potential mechanisms.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 17 Aug 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/learning-to-be-healthier/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/learning-to-be-healthier/</guid>
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<title>Pollution : emissions caused by transports</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In 2007, road transport, train transport and inland navigation emitted 27% more greenhouse gas than in 1990 and were responsible, back then, for 20% of the total greenhouse gas emission in Belgium. In this report, the Federal Planning Bureau makes an inventory of greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution caused by transports. With a specific model, it also provides its own emission perspectives till 2030 and compares them to previsions already made by others. These figures should be interpreted as a wake-up call.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 17 Aug 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pollution--emissions-caused-by-transports/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pollution--emissions-caused-by-transports/</guid>
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<title>Reforming the pensions and insurance industries in light of the crisis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The financial crisis has generated large losses in the pension and insurance industries. Being in less distress than the banking sector, they can be improved nonetheless. This paper of the IMF explains the different characteristics of those sectors and their vulnerabilities to different shocks. The authors determine their risk sharing properties and the transmission channels to the rest of the financial sector and the real economy. From these points they derive relevant policy implications that take into account the differences between the sectors, and that strengthen supervision of the sectors and the channels of contagion.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 17 Aug 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reforming-the-pensions-and-insurance-industries-in-light-of-the-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reforming-the-pensions-and-insurance-industries-in-light-of-the-crisis/</guid>
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<title>The challenges for the Belgian voucher payment system for services </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Vouchers have increasingly become a common mode of payment for personal services in Belgium, with a 53% increase in use during the period 2006-2007. They take part in policy to finance the demand for services and bring undeclared labor in the official labor market. But are vouchers an effective means for those goals? This article from the European Trade Union Institute investigates the drivers for the development of personal services and evaluates the payment method with vouchers. The author compares the Belgian and French systems and determines the challenges that lie ahead for both systems concerning the cost, and the quality of employment.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 17 Aug 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-challenges-for-the-belgian-voucher-payment-system-for-services/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-challenges-for-the-belgian-voucher-payment-system-for-services/</guid>
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<title>Video column: More emphasis on a better financing model in Belgium!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The financing model of federal Belgium is untenable. At the one hand more regional autonomy in corporate tax is desirable. At the other hand there is a need for more empowerment in the regional expense of federal grants. This is possible through a system of bonus/malus based on objective performance indicators.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 13 Aug 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/videocolumn-more-emphasis-on-a-better-financing-model-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/videocolumn-more-emphasis-on-a-better-financing-model-in-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Is obesity becoming a threat for the American economic hegemony?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The obesity epidemic is spreading out. The United-States has already spent 1.6% of their GDP to the healthcare bill related to the consequences of obesity. If this evolution becomes more intense, obesity could influence American geopolitical relationships in the long run.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 12 Aug 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/is-obesity-becoming-a-threat-for-the-american-economic-hegemony/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/is-obesity-becoming-a-threat-for-the-american-economic-hegemony/</guid>
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<title>The financial crisis requires more international politics</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos shares the collective rage with respect to the outrageous bonuses in investment banks. But he points out the political responsibility. In times of crisis, political choices reinforced the position of big investment banks. Not only is the casino still open, on top of that, the same players are still at the gaming tables with more opportunities to play than before and more chances to win. Without any international consensus over new rules of the game, we may slide off to &#8220;business as usual&#8221;.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 10 Aug 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-financial-crisis-requires-more-international-politics/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-financial-crisis-requires-more-international-politics/</guid>
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<title>Video column: A more performant educational system striving for excellence and equal opportunities! </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Our educational system has to perform better in the development of our only natural raw material being human capital. More autonomy for schools and universities is therefore an important leverage. A lot of justified attention is going to equal opportunities in education. However, equal chances do not mean equal results. On all levels in education there must come more space for excellence. The potential of the highly gifted and of girls stays too often wasted.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 06 Aug 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/videocolumn-a-more-performant-educational-system-striving-for-excellence-and-equal-opportunities/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/videocolumn-a-more-performant-educational-system-striving-for-excellence-and-equal-opportunities/</guid>
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<title>To promote financial stability wisely</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the United States, they have to decide who will become the new governor of the Federal Reserve.  Instead of focusing on the mental state of an individual and his attitude towards inflation, it would be better to build in structural mechanisms.  So for example is stated in the contract of the central banker of New-Zealand, that he can be dismissed from the moment the control on inflation is lost. The issue of inflation-linked bonds by the public authorities could also be an efficient instrument. These are state bonds with interest payments depending on the inflation rate evolution.  This demonstrates that public authorities are not going to choose the &#171; nuclear &#187; option to diminish their debt position by creating inflation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 05 Aug 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/to-promote-financial-stability-wisely/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/to-promote-financial-stability-wisely/</guid>
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<title>Video Column: Administration should encourage entrepreneurship, not dampen it</title>
<description><![CDATA[ For several years now there have been attempts to measure de administrative burden for entrepreneurs. The results are very disappointing and so far there is little or no proof that these charges are going down.
This is a pity, especially because measures to alleviate administrative burden won't cost government a cent.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 30 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-column-administration-should-encourage-entrepreneurship-not-dampen-it/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-column-administration-should-encourage-entrepreneurship-not-dampen-it/</guid>
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<title>Belgian healthcare needs an American revolution</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos explains how American and Belgian healthcare have the same characteristics and challenges in common. Belgium can learn from the reform debate in the US. We are in a denial state about the necessity for another healthcare. Here also, healthcare effectiveness, efficiency and quality have to be a central concern.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 27 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgian-healthcare-needs-an-american-revolution/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgian-healthcare-needs-an-american-revolution/</guid>
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<title>Ageing can benefit to all ages</title>
<description><![CDATA[ More of us are living longer than before. Ageing should, therefore, also be seen as one the biggest success stories of our Age. We cannot but recognise, however, that changes will fundamentally reshape our families and communities so our society must adapt to make the most of this new reality. Improving the quality of current older people&#8217;s lives will become a government priority as older people will gain weight in the electorate. In this report, the British Government sets out its long-term vision for everybody to enjoy the opportunities of an ageing society. Maybe, this will inspire Belgium&#8217;s politicians. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 24 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-can-benefit-to-all-ages/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-can-benefit-to-all-ages/</guid>
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<title>Intergenerational social mobility in OECD countries</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The notion of intergenerational mobility can not be excluded from the poverty debate. If we want to fight poverty, we have to raise the probability that a child born in a poor family will not live, once he/she will have reached adulthood, in the same socio-economic conditions as his/her parents. This OECD report, which gives comparative estimates of social mobility in 14 OECD countries, constitutes a real added-value for Belgium: by providing relevant figures and studying the potential impact of some public policies, this report can help our country to better construct its anti-poverty strategy.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 24 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/intergenerational-social-mobility-in-oecd-countries/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/intergenerational-social-mobility-in-oecd-countries/</guid>
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<title>Key data on education in Europe 2009</title>
<description><![CDATA[ There is always something Belgium can learn from its European neighbours, and why not in the field of education. This report from Eurydice provides a comparative evaluation of the organisation and functioning of education systems in Europe for 2009. Although the participation rate and the number of years spent in schools and universities are increasing, the number of teachers is not. Even more surprisingly so as a majority will retire in the next few years. A serious concern, especially for a knowledge based economy in which education and training needs to be promoted.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 24 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/key-data-on-education-in-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/key-data-on-education-in-europe/</guid>
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<title>The situation of our public finances</title>
<description><![CDATA[ More than ever the financial situation of our kingdom is in the spotlight. At the beginning of the decennium everything seemed fine, with balanced budgets and even the Silver fund. Today, we know better. We&#8217;re not talking about budget surpluses anymore, but about containing budget deficits. Yet, everybody knows what&#8217;s coming to us, and there&#8217;s no such thing as a magic spell to change it. In this article, Koen Algoed from the think-tank VIVES draws the situation of our public finances, and discusses a couple of efficient and fair measures to readjust the situation. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 24 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-situation-of-our-public-finances/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-situation-of-our-public-finances/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Belgium&#8217;s environmental industry: 1995-2005</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This working paper from the Federal Plan Bureau studies the evolution of the size, composition and economic performance of the environmental industry between 1995 and 2005 in Belgium. The sector is part of the green economy and is mainly centred on activities increasing natural resource efficiency. Those who expect a lot from the job potential of the green economy can partly be reassured: in the environmental industry alone, the number of jobs increased by 40% in the last ten years.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 17 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgiums-environmental-industry-1995-2005/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgiums-environmental-industry-1995-2005/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The government&#8217;s role in the financial crisis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The financial crisis has necessitated intervention from the governments and questions the stability of the financial sector. This OECD report concentrates on reforms in the financial sector and the principles for the exit strategy of the emergency measures of the government. Guidelines for reforms are proposed which aim at bringing a balance between risk and the search for return in banking. The reasons why the exit strategy must be coordinated with the reforms in the financial sector are also explained. Interesting guidelines therefore for steering the Belgian policy.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 17 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-governments-role-in-the-financial-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-governments-role-in-the-financial-crisis/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Why We Must Ration Health Care</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How much would you be willing to pay to live longer? Probably a lot. Now, how much would you want your insurer to pay for a drug or treatment that adds a year to someone&#8217;s life? Probably much less. Implicitly, we&#8217;re applying monetary considerations to saving lives, but is it immoral to do so? According to the controversial Australian philosopher Peter Singer, it is not, as health care is a scarce resource, and all scarce resources are rationed in one way or another. This is a must-read article!]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 17 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-we-must-ration-health-care/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-we-must-ration-health-care/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Workers and poverty risk in Flanders</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Being employed does not always preserve from the risk of poverty. Who are the poor workers in Flanders and what are their living conditions? This publication from the Centrum voor Sociaal Beleid answers these questions and investigates possible policies that could solve the problem of the working poor. If we want to do so without worsening the unemployment trap, we cannot ignore increasing the minimum wage, the authors argue.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 17 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/workers-and-poverty-risk-in-flanders/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/workers-and-poverty-risk-in-flanders/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Young people on stage</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In order to take advantage from the crisis, Jean Hindriks suggests a Sweden knowledge lift. Active workers could go back to study, while receiving benefits, to let their job to younger workers, the first victims of the crisis. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 17 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/young-people-on-stage/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/young-people-on-stage/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Budget deficits</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Among al the regional agreements, the Flemish one sadly stands alone when it comes to numerically clarifying the way politicians are going to manage public money. Imposing the improvement of the annual productivity of all public services and having public servants deciding by themselves how to reach these objectives definitely is a practice to recommend. And it goes without saying that this method has already been successfully tested abroad. The Itinera axes for modern and better public authorities are already a first step towards a culture of evaluation, which enables public performance to be improved by objectively evaluating the impact, the quality and the efficiency of public actions and to inform citizens about quality and results. Results, more than necessities, should determine budget allocations. .]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 16 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/budget-deficits/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/budget-deficits/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Global imbalances and the financial crisis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Among the origins of the financial crisis, the global imbalances &#8211; cheap money from countries like India and China being channelled to the US &#8211; are often mentioned. These surpluses in savings could not but lead to investment excesses. Because most of the investment destinations were quickly supersaturated (think about the commodity bubbles), subprimes became an ideal solution. If the banking system had been sufficiently robust, that is without excessive leverages, the global imbalances might have led to a recession, but not to a systemic crisis. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 14 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/global-imbalances-and-the-financial-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/global-imbalances-and-the-financial-crisis/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How open is the Belgian economy?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium occupies a mediocre 21st spot in an international ranking of the most open economies. There seem to be many obstacles left for firms willing to invest in Belgium, especially for foreign firms, the latest World Economic Forum report says. The most open economies are often Nordic countries. The reason we perform rather poorly to European standards is due to a less accessible market &#8211; blame the not very favourable investment climate and the archaic functioning of our customs.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 14 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-open-is-the-belgian-economy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-open-is-the-belgian-economy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Labour migration in times of recession</title>
<description><![CDATA[ An economic recession makes a country less attractive to migrate to. Given the widespread nature of the current downturn there are fewer honey pots to attract mobile people from one country to another. Also, many people seize the opportunity of a recession to return home. This paper from the Policy Network investigates what the net immigration effects will be for Europe and the UK considering today&#8217;s gloomy economic outlook. The problem&#8217;s complexity makes forward planning to respond to population movement very difficult. This is unfortunate, the authors conclude, as immigrant labour can play a significant role in an economy&#8217;s revival.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 14 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-migration-in-times-of-recession/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-migration-in-times-of-recession/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Reform of the labor market policy in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What does the ideal labor market policy look like? This paper of the CESifo proposes a reform of the labor market in Belgium, based on economic principles. The authors sum up the pitfalls of the current system and argue for the implementation of a new layoff tax. The guidelines that are provided for a new reform indicate that the current policy lies far from the ideal.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 14 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reform-of-the-labor-market-policy-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reform-of-the-labor-market-policy-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The effect of age on productivity investigated</title>
<description><![CDATA[ As employees become older they become more experienced, yet their health and strength declines as well. The general presumption is that aging implies a decline in productivity, but does that hold true? In this paper of the Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) data is examined from running contests, output of publications and firms. The author finds differences in the effect of aging on mental and physical productivity which might differ with your expectations.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 14 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-effect-of-age-on-productivity-investigated/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-effect-of-age-on-productivity-investigated/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Budgetary perspectives of Wallonia: 2009-2019</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In full negotiations for Wallonia&#8217;s political program to come, the CERPE (FUNDP) publishes a new report on Wallonia&#8217;s budgetary perspectives for 2009-2019. It revises the 2009 initial budget set by the Plan Bureau, by using the revised inflation and growth expectations. Thanks to these new figures we&#8217;re able to evaluate the weight of regional revenues and expenditures in the total regional budget. Given the gloomy economical circumstances, to which extend will politicians be able to realize their electoral promises?]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 08 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/budgetary-perspectives-of-wallonia/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/budgetary-perspectives-of-wallonia/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Does Flanders need additional stimulus measures?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ On-the-job training is seen as an important driving force for a knowledge-based economy with a dynamic labor market. Should the government stimulate investments in on-the-job training? And is there need for new stimulus measures in Flanders? This report of the &#8216;Steunpunt Werk en Sociale Economie&#8217; explains the motives for government intervention and the different implementation possibilities. The author provides pros and cons for new stimulus measures in Flanders and draws conclusions which can direct the debate on government policy.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 08 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-flanders-need-additional-stimulus-measures/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-flanders-need-additional-stimulus-measures/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How to avoid a pension crisis with a new system design</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Pension reforms seem unavoidable if we want to guaranty a relatively equivalent purchasing power to the next generations of pensioners. In this IZA publication, the authors suggest to reconsider the pension system design in itself by combining a Bismarckian scheme with an unconventional one linked to individual investments in one&#8217;s children education. They also give strong arguments and evidence defending the idea that, with such a system, fertility, education, labour productivity and work incentives can, all at the same time, only be stimulated positively.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 08 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-avoid-a-pension-crisis-with-a-new-system-design/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-avoid-a-pension-crisis-with-a-new-system-design/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Lessons from migration after the EU enlargement</title>
<description><![CDATA[ After the EU enlargement in 2004, many feared large migration flows from new to the old member states. The potential increase in competition on the labour market and for welfare benefits seemed particularly dreadful. That is why Belgium and other old EU member states decided to restrict access to labour markets, before lifting these restrictions gradually. In this publication from IZA, the authors study the evolution of East European workers&#8217; migration, its causes and effects in the new member states. The interested reader will also find some considerations about the crisis&#8217; impact on these migration flows.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 08 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/lessons-from-migration-after-the-eu-enlargement/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/lessons-from-migration-after-the-eu-enlargement/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Education and obesity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ An epidemic of obesity has been developing in virtually all OECD countries over the last 30 years. Research suggests that such epidemic has affected certain social groups more than others. In particular, education appears to be associated with a lower likelihood of obesity. This OECD working paper finds linear relationship between the number of years spent in full-time education and the probability of obesity. Moreover, the researchers were able to ascertain that the direction of causality appears to run mostly from education to obesity. Will education and information proven to be the solution for one of our most important health challenges? ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/education-and-obesity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/education-and-obesity/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Electronic prescriptions, in Belgium soon</title>
<description><![CDATA[ There&#8217;s some good news from the healthcare sector: a pilot project for electronic prescriptions is on its way. Electronic prescriptions offer more security to the patient, improve the quality of care and push down costs. Fran&#231;ois Daue and Brieuc Van Damme hope this project will be as successful as in Sweden where net benefits are estimated to reach 97 million euros annually. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/electronic-prescriptions-in-belgium-soon/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/electronic-prescriptions-in-belgium-soon/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Evaluation of the federal climate policy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In order to fulfill its climate policy targets, Belgium should reduce carbon emissions by 7.5% in the period 2008-2012. The federal government aims to achieve this through emission reduction and the purchase of emission certificates, respectively at 4.8 and 2.44 million tons on average per year. The Court of Audit concludes in this report that a decent federal climate plan is missing and that there is insufficient coordination between the appointed governments. In their recommendations they demand that the federal climate plan has to be elaborated with distinct descriptions of the measures, well informed targets and cost predictions of emission reduction. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/evaluation-of-the-federal-climate-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/evaluation-of-the-federal-climate-policy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The European patent system and why it doesn&#8217;t work</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Research has shown the importance of intellectual property rights and institutions to trigger innovation, and thus growth. The way patent requests are being processed on a national and international level is a part of that institutional framework, and is today facing two major challenges: 1) the work of the European Patent Office is currently being undermined by the high degree of patent fragmentation in Europe; and 2) backlogs at patent offices worldwide create more uncertainty on the markets. In this Bruegel report, recommendations are advanced to solve the European internal fragmentation challenge and the global backlog challenge. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-european-patent-system-and-why-it-doesnt-work/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-european-patent-system-and-why-it-doesnt-work/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The headscarf debate illustrates the multicultural dream failure</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos signals that the discussion over the headscarf prohibition in Antwerp passes over the essence, that is to say, the fact that Muslim women testify an isolated conservatism and social choices must be made. We need a conscious and leading culture to create unity within diversity.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 03 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-headscarf-debate-illustrates-the-multicultural-dream-failure/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-headscarf-debate-illustrates-the-multicultural-dream-failure/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Who controls public contracts?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to a survey from Transparency International Belgium, a majority of the candidates for the last regional elections consider that subsidies and public contracts in Belgium are still being attributed with a lack of transparency. 30.4% of the Brussels candidates, 35.5% of the Walloon candidates and 59.9% of the Flemish candidates have doubts about the public contracts procedure and its ability to guarantee transparency and equal treatment among competitors.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 02 Jul 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/who-controls-public-contracts/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/who-controls-public-contracts/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Poverty and social mobility: what do we have to know to act better?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With a poverty rate of 15.2% in 2007, Belgium should consider its fight against poverty and social inequality more seriously than it does now. According to Johan Albrecht and Isabelle Martin, it needs to evaluate more regularly and more rigorously the effects of its anti-poverty policies in order to have a better idea of their real efficiency. Belgium also needs to pay more attention to improving intergenerational mobility by properly using social levers such as education and employment policies.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 29 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/poverty-and-social-mobility-what-do-we-have-to-know-to-act-better/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/poverty-and-social-mobility-what-do-we-have-to-know-to-act-better/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Activation policies in some European countries</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Activation policies are an efficient tool to fight unemployment, to motivate people to keep on working and to improve  the matching between supply and demand on the labour market. This publication from the Higher Institute for Employment discusses activation policies adopted by our European neighbors (France, Germany, Nederland, Denmark, and the United-Kingdom). Thanks to a better view of what works abroad, and what doesn&#8217;t, Belgium can reevaluate its own activation instruments in terms of training, assistance to unemployed people, private sector subsidies, job creation, etc.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/activation-policies-in-some-european-countries/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/activation-policies-in-some-european-countries/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Brain drain from the sending countries&#8217; perspective</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Undoubtedly, industrialized countries can gain a lot from skilled migration &#8211; especially in today&#8217;s ageing context. But does that mean that &#8216;sending countries&#8217; lose from skilled emigration? This IZA paper assesses the global effects of brain drain on developing countries. The author&#8217;s findings suggest that the short-run impact of brain drain on resident human capital is extremely crucial, as it does not only determine the number of skilled workers available to domestic production, but is also affects the sending economy&#8217;s capacity to innovate or to adopt modern technologies. Shouldn&#8217;t we therefore consider training our low-skilled workforce first?]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/brain-drain-from-the-sending-countries-perspective/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/brain-drain-from-the-sending-countries-perspective/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Deficit spending can not push away political reforms</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sends out a warning about the Flemish budgetary laxity. Flanders can not exorcise the crisis with regional deficits. The new government has to prioritize competitiveness, innovation, education, entrepreneurship and exports.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/deficit-spending-can-not-push-away-political-reforms/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/deficit-spending-can-not-push-away-political-reforms/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Minimum living standard budget for a Flemish family</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Is the minimum legal revenue high enough? Can a family live decently with an income equivalent to the poverty threshold? The Centre for Social Politics answers these questions by constructing a minimum income standard allowing different family types to fulfill their basic needs and live autonomously. It also analyses the relative importance in the standard budget of the main expenditure categories and highlights future challenges.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/minimum-living-standard-budget-for-a-flemish-family/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/minimum-living-standard-budget-for-a-flemish-family/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Multi-level regulatory governance</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The quality of regulation is essential to improve economic and social welfare. The improvement of the economic actors&#8217; certitude and the elimination of unnecessary costs and burdens on businesses and citizens are properly at stake. However, a high quality regulation at a certain level of government can be compromised if national and sub-national regulatory governance systems adopt poor regulatory practices and do not cooperate. In this publication from the OECD, the authors analyze the functioning of multi-level regulatory governance in some OECD countries and give some recommendations to improve it.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/multi-level-regulatory-governance/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/multi-level-regulatory-governance/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Retirement homes in the 21st century</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With ageing retirement homes are back in the spotlights. In Belgium, 42% of people older than 85 live in a retirement home, compared to 21% for those older than 80 and 8% for those older than 65. This means that a majority of our seniors still lives at home where some of them receive help and care from social and medical services. In this publication from the King Baudouin Foundation, the authors describe the infrastructures and initiatives that already exist in the different Belgian regions. Based on a survey, the report presents some of the most innovative initiatives mentioned by the sector&#8217;s professionals.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/retirement-homes-in-the-21st-century/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/retirement-homes-in-the-21st-century/</guid>
</item>
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<title>The paradox of the investment state: why didn&#8217;t poverty decrease?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ During the last decades, the general level of welfare in rich western countries kept on growing while poverty did not diminish proportionally as much. In this report, Bea Cantillon explains the raison of this phenomenon by presenting the paradoxes of the investment state. Reducing social benefits, for example, decreases the number of unemployment traps but makes social inclusion of inactive people also more difficult. Professor Cantillon describes the recent evolution of our welfare state, and exposes the main aspects of the fight against poverty and social inequalities (education, social benefits, etc.).]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-paradox-of-the-investment-state-why-did-not-poverty-decrease/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-paradox-of-the-investment-state-why-did-not-poverty-decrease/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Wage inequalities in perspective</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Top wages and wage differences have become a prominent news item. With the threat of a collective impoverishment caused by the crisis, intolerance towards high earners is significantly increasing. But how important are wage differences in Belgium and how important are they compared to our neighbouring countries? In this policy brief, Kris Boschmans, Geert Janssens en Wies Pairoux from the think-tank VKW Metena reflect on the desirability of healthy wage differences. They show that the fuss around top wages completely misses the far more important debate of the wage base determination process in our country.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wage-inequalities-in-perspective/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wage-inequalities-in-perspective/</guid>
</item>
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<title>What a Texas town can teach us about healthcare costs</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Healthcare expenditures vary a lot between countries, and even between regions within countries. The US for example spends per capita almost three times as much as Finland. Yet health outcomes between most industrialized countries are roughly the same. In his search for an explanation, Doctor Gawande from the New Yorker travels to McAllen, Texas, one of the most expensive healthcare markets on earth. Written like a real whodunit, the article discusses different plausible explanations for these differences in expenditures and ends with some important recommendations in order to keep them under control. A must-read for all healthcare professionals!]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-a-texas-town-can-teach-us-about-healthcare-costs/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-a-texas-town-can-teach-us-about-healthcare-costs/</guid>
</item>
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<title>What policies for the Flemish car industry?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Because the car industry is a very cyclical business it was hit very hard by the financial and economic crisis. Everywhere in the world politicians did everything in their power to protect &#8216;their&#8217; brands and &#8216;their&#8217; factories. Through extra credit lines, car scrapping schemes, government guaranties etc. it is indeed possible to temporarily save jobs in the short term in the car industry (which only represents 2% of total employment in Belgium). Jo Van Biesebroeck (KULeuven) wonders whether there aren&#8217;t better ways to spend taxpayers&#8217; money. The author is puzzled by the motives to throw money in the auto industry and suggests measures for a better long run industrial policy.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-policies-for-the-flemish-car-industry/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-policies-for-the-flemish-car-industry/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>7 myths about green jobs</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In Belgium and abroad, green jobs are totally in, politically then. Not only will they improve the environment, but also foster innovation and thus economic growth. But what is a green job? Are they really going to trigger productive employment? And what about their cost and redistributive income effects? In this SSRN paper, the authors surveyed the green jobs literature and analyzed its assumptions. By exposing 7 myths about economics, forecasting and technology, the authors found that an unconsidered green jobs policy could lead to restructuring and possibly impoverishing our societies.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 25 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/7-myths-about-green-jobs/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/7-myths-about-green-jobs/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How healthy are Belgian companies?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Every year, Graydon takes pulse of our companies&#8217; health. To do so, the researchers use a number of &#8216;economic blinkers&#8217;, or parameters that indicate problematic situations within a company. They found that on the national level and despite the crisis, the relative amount of (very) sick companies declined during 2008 and the first 3 months of 2009. In other words, the companies that were already very sick are to blame for the spectacular amount of bankruptcies that we witnessed the last couple of months.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 25 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-healthy-are-belgian-companies/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-healthy-are-belgian-companies/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Information vs. Choice, or the Belgian healthcare paradox</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The patient&#8217;s role in our healthcare system is evolving to a more active one. The purpose is to have the patient chose its providers more consciously. This dynamic force is believed to benefit the system as a whole as long as high quality information is easily accessible to patients. Fran&#231;ois Daue and Brieuc Van Damme are disappointed that this isn&#8217;t the case in Belgium&#8230; .]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 25 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/information-vs-choice/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/information-vs-choice/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Discriminatory banking supervision</title>
<description><![CDATA[ We&#8217;re expected to believe that regulation will not fail next time. Yet, there&#8217;s no shame in questioning your own beliefs and being sufficiently sceptical. Financial reforms as seen by official bodies today have to be implemented in the short term. If not, those that advocate going back to a separation of deposit and investment banks will eventually be proven to be right. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 24 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/discriminatory-banking-supervision/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/discriminatory-banking-supervision/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Transition policy is the marching order for labour market policy in times of crisis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sends out a warning that the crisis policy on the labour market is focussing too much on keeping existing jobs. The attention should be focussed on the weaker groups on the labour market. Transition policy is the way forward, and can seize the existing opportunities, despite the crisis. We have to make a collective effort for actual activity in order to avoid a lost generation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/transition-policy-is-the-marching-order-for-labour-market-policy-in-times-of-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/transition-policy-is-the-marching-order-for-labour-market-policy-in-times-of-crisis/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>No sustainable social security without a better economy and a better labour market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos has objections about the ambition for a Flemish social security. He points out that Flanders can not get a sustainable social security without a larger economic basis and a better labour market. Flanders needs to be a laboratory for a new and better social security.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 19 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-sustainable-social-security-without-a-better-economy-and-a-better-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-sustainable-social-security-without-a-better-economy-and-a-better-labour-market/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Towards a better federal financing</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Some say that more autonomy given to the regions could positively impact the quality and efficiency of public services. This could lead to an improved responsibility that would prevent the regions from overspending. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 19 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-better-federal-financing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-better-federal-financing/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Complexity and control: how do they work in public-private partnerships (PPPs)?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Public-private partnerships (PPPs) are an interesting tool to increase investments and thereby supporting economic growth. PPPs are more than a concept; they are a reality in Belgium. That&#8217;s why, the Flemish government currently sponsors a five-year research project to study PPPs practices and their performance at the Regional and local level. Central are the questions to what extend governments can manage and control PPPs, and the way on which multi-actor, technical and political complexities can influence on this public control? In the growing literature around PPPs, this paper from the Public Management Institute (KULeuven) tends, through case studies, to answer these questions and to determine how the performance of PPPs can be affected.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 11 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/complexity-and-control-how-do-they-work-in-public-private-partnerships/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/complexity-and-control-how-do-they-work-in-public-private-partnerships/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Educational inequality and socioeconomic background</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Many European countries face an important educational gap between natives and migrants. According to the most recent PISA studies, the problem is particularly important in Belgium. But what factors are to blame for this inequality of chances at school? The results of this IZA study suggest that the educational gap between natives and migrants is mainly due to the &#8216;endowment effect&#8217; provided by the socioeconomic background of parents and cultural capital at home. It goes almost without saying that family really is important for the pedagogic project of a child. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 11 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/educational-inequality-and-socioeconomic-background/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/educational-inequality-and-socioeconomic-background/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Employment-productivity trade-off and labour composition</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Labour market reforms may have the objective to increase employment rates, especially  those of low productivity workers. Overall labour force productivity could however deteriorate with such kind of reforms. The authors of this OECD report study the trade-offs between labour productivity and labour force utilization for different socioeconomic groups. How can we increase employment without becoming less competitive than the US and the rest of Europe? Education appears to be a non negligible remedy to reconcile employment and labour productivity growth.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 11 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/employment-productivity-trade-off-and-labour-composition/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/employment-productivity-trade-off-and-labour-composition/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Firm level effects of increasing the Legal Retirement Age</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Most pay-as-you-go pension systems, like the Belgian one, have increased or plan to increase their legal retirement age (LRA) to address the financial consequences of ageing. Although the success
of these policies is ultimately determined at the labour market, little is known about the effects of higher LRAs at the firm level. This IZA study finds that the wages and hours worked of the older workers are virtually unchanged, although firms employing older workers tend to reduce their hirings, especially of younger workers.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 11 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/firm-level-effects-of-increasing-the-legal-retirement-age/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/firm-level-effects-of-increasing-the-legal-retirement-age/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Socially diverse schools: the miracle will not happen</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Alarming finding: Belgium is the champion of segregation in the school system, leaving only Hungary behind. The impact is more or less the same in both communities. The notorious 'd&#233;cret mixit&#233;', symbol of the political willingness to do something about this in French speaking Belgium, has made a lot of parents angry, and was ultimately withdrawn. Jean Hindriks and Brieuc Van Damme got some inspiration from the cities of New-York and Boston to suggest some measures that will lead to a consensus between all stakeholders in a quick and easy WAY.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 10 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/socially-diverse-schools-the-miracle-will-not-happen/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/socially-diverse-schools-the-miracle-will-not-happen/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Day After: what are the regional policy priorities for 2009-2014</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The regional elections of 2009 should be a turning point. Due to the economic crisis, the budgetary crisis and the institutional crisis, Belgian&#8217;s regions are faced with new responsibilities.
Now that the votes are counted, the multitude of electoral promises can make way for the reality of negotiations. The Itinera Institute determined 7 regional policy priorities and formulated concrete proposals.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 10 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-day-after-what-are-the-regional-policy-priorities-for-2009-2014/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-day-after-what-are-the-regional-policy-priorities-for-2009-2014/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The day after: what are the regional policy priorities for 2009-2014? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 10 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-day-after/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-day-after/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The day after: what are the regional policy priorities for 2009-2014?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The regional elections of 2009 should be a turning point. Due to the economic crisis, the budgetary crisis and the institutional crisis, Belgian’s regions are faced with new responsibilities.
Now that the votes are counted, the multitude of electoral promises can make way for the reality of negotiations. The Itinera Institute determined 7 regional policy priorities and formulated concrete proposals.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 10 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-day-after-what-are-the-regional-policy-priorities-for-2009-2014/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-day-after-what-are-the-regional-policy-priorities-for-2009-2014/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Waiting for the inflation storm? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Federal Reserve has shown itself determined to overcome the crisis. Meanwhile, some fear too much fire extinguishing water has been used which will inevitably lead to an inflation burst. This does not necessarily need to happen, although price stability cannot be expected either. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 10 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/waiting-for-the-inflation-storm/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/waiting-for-the-inflation-storm/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Presentation: the day after: what are the regional policy priorities 2009-2014?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The regional elections of 2009 should be a turning point. Due to the economic crisis, the budgetary crisis and the institutional crisis, Belgian&#8217;s regions are faced with new responsibilities.
Now that the votes are counted, the multitude of electoral promises can make way for the reality of negotiations. The Itinera Institute determined 7 regional policy priorities and formulated concrete proposals.

]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 08 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ppt/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ppt/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Executive summary :the day after: what are the regional policy priorities for 2009-2014?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The regional elections of 2009 should be a turning point. Due to the economic crisis, the budgetary crisis and the institutional crisis, Belgian&#8217;s regions are faced with new responsibilities.
Now that the votes are counted, the multitude of electoral promises can make way for the reality of negotiations. The Itinera Institute determined 7 regional policy priorities and formulated concrete proposals.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 04 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/executive-summary-the-day-after-what-are-the-regional-policy-priorities-for-2009-2014/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/executive-summary-the-day-after-what-are-the-regional-policy-priorities-for-2009-2014/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>GM and Opel undermine the real economy fundamentals</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos points out heavy perverse effects from GM&#8217;s nationalization and Opel&#8217;s government support: politization of the auto industry, unfair competition and a slide towards more economic nationalism. The rescued companies&#8217; future is still very uncertain. The rare tax revenues are not well used. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 04 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gm-and-opel-undermine-the-real-economy-fundamentals/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gm-and-opel-undermine-the-real-economy-fundamentals/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The real stake of the elections is the Belgian democracy impotence</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos expresses his frustration about the elections battle. He observes the elections as being in a virtual reality, with a Roman-style decadence of self-deception and delusion. For the real challenge we lack realism, workable solutions and audacity for true political solutions. Can the elections bring some consolation?]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 29 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-real-stake-of-the-elections-is-the-belgian-democracy-impotence/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-real-stake-of-the-elections-is-the-belgian-democracy-impotence/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Europe&#8217;s demographic future and age-related consequences</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How does our demographic future look like and how will that influence age-related expenditures? How deep in trouble is Belgium compared to the 26 other EU member states? The projections presented here by the European Commission are helpful in highlighting the immediate and future policy challenges for governments posed by demographic trends.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 28 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/europe-demographic-future-and-age-related-consequences/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/europe-demographic-future-and-age-related-consequences/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Integrating immigrant children into European schools</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Parental involvement in the education of their children is essential to children&#8217;s success at school. Unfortunately, many immigrant parents encounter difficulties of a linguistic or cultural nature to do so. This publication from Eurydice studies three methods of promoting communication between schools in Europe and immigrant families: publication of written information on the school system in the language of origin of immigrant families, the use of interpreters in various school-related situations, and the appointment of persons to be specifically responsible for connecting immigrant pupils and their families with the school.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 28 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/integrating-immigrant-children-into-european-schools/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/integrating-immigrant-children-into-european-schools/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Managing the health effects of climate change</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Fossil fuels have contributed to huge improvements in global health and development over the past 100 years. Paradoxically, because their consumption is to a large extend responsible for climate change, they now represent the biggest global health threat of the 21st century through changing patterns of disease, water and food insecurity, vulnerable shelter and human settlements, etc., says this Lancet Commissions report. An integrated and multidisciplinary approach to reduce the adverse health effects of climate change requires policies must be adopted to reduce carbon emissions and to increase carbon biosequestration; action should be taken on the events linking climate change to disease; and appropriate public health systems should be put into place to deal with adverse outcomes.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 28 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/managing-the-health-effects-of-climate-change/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/managing-the-health-effects-of-climate-change/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Socio-economic figures about Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This publication from the FPS Economy should be considered as Belgium&#8217;s latest socio-economic profile. Even if all the consequences of the crisis are not yet reflected in these figures, the report gives us an interesting overview of the most important aspects of our economy before 2009. The Belgians will not be surprised to note that we enjoyed more free time now than we did last year, young people still have difficulties in finding a job, Belgium has a high productivity level with respect to the majority of its European neighbors, demographic density keeps going up, etc.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 28 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/socio-economic-figures-about-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/socio-economic-figures-about-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The way to manage secondary school enrolment</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Alarming finding: Belgium is the champion of segregation in the school system, leaving only Hungary behind. The impact is more or less the same in both communities. The notorious 'd&#233;cret mixit&#233;', symbol of the political willingness to do something about this in French speaking Belgium, has made a lot of parents angry, and was ultimately withdrawn. Fran&#231;ois Maniquet (UCL) presents two procedures to manage the enrolment of pupils in their first year of secondary education that take into consideration the parents&#8217; preferences as well as the governmental desire to have more social diversity in schools.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 28 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-way-to-manage-secondary-school-enrolment/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-way-to-manage-secondary-school-enrolment/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>An assessment of the European terrestrial carbon balance</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The threat of a future climate change urges us to reduce green gas emissions by developing new environmental friendly technologies and using biomass fuels. But, we do not pay enough attention to our own natural weapons against carbon gas: our soils, oceans and forests. In this publication, CarbonEurope IP quantifies the terrestrial carbon balance of Europe by measuring carbon inflows and outflows in different natural areas. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/an-assessment-of-the-european-terrestrial-carbon-balance/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/an-assessment-of-the-european-terrestrial-carbon-balance/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Do women gain or lose from becoming mothers?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ There may be different explanations for the wage disadvantage women are suffering from (which accounts for 11% on average in Belgium). In this publication from DULBEA, the author wants to study the relationship between motherhood and the gender wage gap. Also including other explanatory variables such as personal characteristics, human capital indicators and job and firm characteristics in the model, the author shows us that wage discrimination is more sex- than maternity-related. Nevertheless, since being a father tends to have a positive impact on men&#8217;s wages, parenthood seems to worsen the gender wage gap in most countries. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/do-women-gain-or-lose-from-becoming-mothers/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/do-women-gain-or-lose-from-becoming-mothers/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Efficiency of public spending in support of R&amp;D activities</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Do European countries have to reinforce or retarget their innovation policy to meet the national goals of the Lisbon agenda? To answer this question, we first need to know how efficient our public R&amp;D policies are. In this publication from the European Commission, the authors use a methodological framework to assess the efficiency of the main public R&amp;D instruments (direct subsidies, tax incentives, R&amp;D performed in the public sector) implemented to support R&amp;D activities in the private sector. At the same time, they compare the efficiency scores among OECD countries over the last decades. Belgium ranks very average, which should inspire us through benchmarks and best practices to improve our R&amp;D public spending policies.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/efficiency-of-public-spending-in-support-of-rd-activities/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/efficiency-of-public-spending-in-support-of-rd-activities/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Measuring quality of healthcare</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Only what can be measured can be improved. This is no different for the quality of healthcare. Information on healthcare quality (is this provider or that physician capable of efficiently treating this pathology?), and therefore its communication, is almost inexistent. This is why the Institut Montaigne formulates 7 concrete propositions to efficiently measure the quality of care and to communicate the results of these evaluations to the public. The aim is, of course, to introduce a virtuous dynamic which will ensure equal access and efficiency. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/measuring-quality-of-healthcare/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/measuring-quality-of-healthcare/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Service cheques: a different evaluation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Established since 2004, the service cheques system has been, among other things, associated with job creation (87 152 jobs created according to a 2007 estimation from the Belgian Court of Audit). In this edition of &#8220;Regards Economiques&#8221;, however, economists from the University of Louvain investigate job and service organization quality for the different types of providers. They also question the financial viability of such a system depending on a double state intervention (VAT exemption and tax reduction for the users). And, what would the impact of service cheques&#8217; price increase be?]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/service-cheques-a-different-evaluation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/service-cheques-a-different-evaluation/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Intellectual Property Index for the Information Technology Sector</title>
<description><![CDATA[ One of the most fundamental problems in public discussion of European intellectual property (IP) policies is the shortage of information about the specific composition of an IP environment, relevant to Europe&#8217;s high tech industries (in general), and the information technology (IT) sector in particular. In order to narrow this gap, in 2006 the Stockholm Network developed an innovative statistical index aimed at measuring the strength of intellectual property rights (IPRs) in the IT sector in different countries. And what appears? The EU is seriously lagging behind compared to its immediate competitors like the U.S. and Japan. Not a good argument when attracting private investors in R&amp;D, that&#8217;s for sure. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-intellectual-property-index-for-the-information-technology-sector/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-intellectual-property-index-for-the-information-technology-sector/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Where do emigrants from a rich welfare state go to, and why? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ A large literature has analyzed how income distribution and redistribution are related to immigration to various rich countries. In this paper, Panu Poutvaara et al. (IZA) take a look at the other side of the coin and analyze emigration from the richest and most redistributive European welfare states. It is found that people from rich welfare states with higher skills and of higher earning capacity should be more likely to go to countries with wider income distribution, like the Anglo-Saxon countries, than countries with relatively flat earnings distribution, like the Scandinavian countries. A lesson to attract high-skilled workers? ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/where-do-emigrants-from-a-rich-welfare-state-go-to/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/where-do-emigrants-from-a-rich-welfare-state-go-to/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Wind Power Increase in 2008</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Global wind capacity increased an estimated 27,051 megawatts in 2008. As a result, the growth rate exceeded the annual average of the past decade, the Worldwatch Institute says. Wind now generates more than 1.5 percent of the world's electricity, up from 0.1 percent in 1997. Europe is the front runner, still accounting for 55 percent of the global total wind capacity, although growth rates are slowing down. Germany is even expected to generate 30% of its electricity demand thanks to wind energy by 2030. And although Belgium doesn&#8217;t have the same capacity, our eastern neighbours are setting a good example of how to diminish energy dependency while respecting the environment. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wind-power-increase/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wind-power-increase/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>To win the fight against poverty, we must change the welfare state fundamentals</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos comments on the social state of Flanders. He points out that the progress realized during the last decade in crucial fields is in decline. He emphasizes that the fight against poverty can only be won by dedicating ourselves to upward mobility. We must tax and pay benefits in a different way.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 18 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/to-win-the-fight-against-poverty-we-must-change-the-welfare-state-fundamentals/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/to-win-the-fight-against-poverty-we-must-change-the-welfare-state-fundamentals/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Holland-Belgium: 1-0? Managed Competition in Health Care</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p align="left">The cost of health care will soon become unaffordable, this much is sure.</p><p align="left">We need to take action rather sooner than later. What can we learn form our neighbours? </p><p align="left">Wynand van de Ven, Professor of Health Insurance, Erasmus University Rotterdam elaborates and sketches the challenges ahead in the Netherlands.</p><p align="left">&nbsp;</p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 08 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/managed-competition-in-health-care/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/managed-competition-in-health-care/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Managed Competion in Health Care</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 08 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/competition/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/competition/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Forum: Managed competition in Health Care</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Since 2006 all Dutch citizens have to buy standardized individual health insurance coverage from a private insurer. Consumers have an annual choice among insurers, and insurers can selectively contract or integrate with health care providers. Subsidies make health insurance affordable for everyone. A Risk Equalization Fund compensates insurers for enrollees with predictably high medical expenses. Competing insurers are supposed to be(come) the prudent buyers of care on behalf of their insured. Although the reform of the health insurance market was a major achievement, the complementary reform of the provision market has only just begun, and is likely to be at least as complicated. The development of  the insurers&#8217; role as prudent purchasers of care is still work-in-progress. The challenge is now to successfully reform the market for the provision of health care.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 07 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/forum-managed-competition-in-health-care/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/forum-managed-competition-in-health-care/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/forum%20HA%202008%20Universal%20mandatory%20HI%20in%20the%20Netherlands%20%20draft%2024jan08.pdf" length="171297" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>Presentation:Managed Competion in Health Care: still work in progress</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Since 2006 all Dutch citizens have to buy standardized individual health insurance coverage from a private insurer. Consumers have an annual choice among insurers, and insurers can selectively contract or integrate with health care providers. Subsidies make health insurance affordable for everyone. A Risk Equalization Fund compensates insurers for enrollees with predictably high medical expenses. Competing insurers are supposed to be(come) the prudent buyers of care on behalf of their insured. Although the reform of the health insurance market was a major achievement, the complementary reform of the provision market has only just begun, and is likely to be at least as complicated. The development of  the insurers&#8217; role as prudent purchasers of care is still work-in-progress. The challenge is now to successfully reform the market for the provision of health care.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 07 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/managed-competion-in-health-care-still-work-in-progress/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/managed-competion-in-health-care-still-work-in-progress/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Microsoft%20PowerPoint%20-%20PPT%20website.pdf" length="117204" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>The social lift is broken</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In this report, the King Baudouin Foundation analyzes the differences in school performances between autochthon and immigrant pupils. It appears that there are important social inequalities in the French and Flemish Communities and a positive correlation between the parents&#8217; socio-economic status and their children&#8217;s results. Even though the family&#8217;s socio-economic situation can largely explain the differences in performance between the Belgian and immigrant pupils, education should be a way to improve social mobility through generations and reduce social inequalities. Therefore, the report pleads, among other things, in favor of desegregation policies in the educational system.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 07 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-social-lift-is-broken/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-social-lift-is-broken/</guid>
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<title>European Quality of Life Survey</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This survey from Eurofound gives European citizens the opportunity to express themselves on different socio-economic topics such as income and living standards, work-life balance, quality of society, healthcare and housing. This allows us to evaluate the quality of life throughout Europe better and to think about relevant policy measures in meeting people&#8217;s needs. We can also find inspiration here from what is going better abroad, particularly in the Nordic countries.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 05 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/european-quality-of-life-survey/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/european-quality-of-life-survey/</guid>
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<title>International lessons from structural change and public service performance? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ What lessons can we draw from international experiences of structural change in the public sector and their effect on public services performance? Well, according to this article from the Public Management Institute (KULeuven) not many: systematic evaluations of structural change programmes tend to be either absent or inconclusive. One thing is sure though: structural change can never be just structural change. The reasons for the restructuring have to be explained. The change has to be planned, preferably with a high degree of participation from those who are to be its &#8216;victims&#8217;. The staff has to be re-trained. The process needs to be monitored over time. And so on. Is that the reason why some of the key elements of our Copernicus reform have faded over time? ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 05 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/international-lessons-from-structural-change-and-public-service-performance/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/international-lessons-from-structural-change-and-public-service-performance/</guid>
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<title>Labour in Belgium ; without any reform, there is no reason to celebrate (not even on May 1)</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Also Belgium celebrates Labor Day on May 1.  However, during the rest of the year work is being far from celebrated in our complex welfare state.  A heavy tax system, a rough regulation, and all kind of inactivity traps discourage the supply of labor.  With the crisis, the invoice related to our heavily upset labor market goes up, but fundamental reforms are still out of the question. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 05 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-in-belgium-without-any-reform-there-is-no-reason-to-celebrate-not-even-on-may-1/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-in-belgium-without-any-reform-there-is-no-reason-to-celebrate-not-even-on-may-1/</guid>
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<title>The effects of the population structure on employment and productivity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Employment rates and productivity levels vary across population groups. This OECD report analyzes the differences in employment and productivity in several European countries and in the United States. Countries with a large share of young people at working age or low educational attainment can be expected to have lower aggregate employment rates and be less productive than countries where the shares of the prime-age population and the higher-educated are important. These findings should push us to think more seriously about the importance of upgrading skills and developing more efficient technologies. Our long run employment and productivity performances are really at stake.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 05 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-effects-of-the-population-structure-on-employment-and-productivity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-effects-of-the-population-structure-on-employment-and-productivity/</guid>
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<title>Towards sustainable and adequate pensions</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium and the EU are on the way to sustainable pensions but are not quite there yet. This CEPS study illustrates in a striking and novel way that the spending patterns of today&#8217;s retired cohorts are not possible for the current youngest working-age cohorts. While making recommendations to improve the overall performance of pension schemes, the authors highlight that policy-makers should also continue to monitor the effect of reforms on the adequacy of coverage of particular population groups.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 05 May 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-sustainable-and-adequate-pensions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-sustainable-and-adequate-pensions/</guid>
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<title>The necessity of reforming the banking system</title>
<description><![CDATA[ At this moment comparable conclusions to those of our extraordinary parliamentary commission are being drawn all around the world. It would really be counterproductive to lead a strategy of divide and rule. Beyond party lines and political horizons, we cannot but reach the conclusion that banks are special entities with the potential to create a lot of risk for the overall economic stability. If banks have to be rescued in difficult times, they also have to respect certain limits; nobody, whatever the political conviction, can deny this.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 29 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-necessity-to-reform-the-banking-system/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-necessity-to-reform-the-banking-system/</guid>
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<title>Wy there are so few woman in science</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The number of female IT specialists, scientists and engineers remains low. The Itinera Institute offers a platform to Carl Van Keirsbilck, who studied the causes, and formulates clear recommendations towards government and education. 

]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 28 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/wy-there-are-so-few-woman-in-science/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/wy-there-are-so-few-woman-in-science/</guid>
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<title>Empowering Belgian patients</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Where in Europe are the patient&#8217;s rights best respected and where is patient information best developed? According to this report from the Health Consumer Powerhouse, Belgian patients are, with a sad 13th place, far from the most empowered in Europe. In patient empowerment, not only money matters &#8211; instead the issue is about will and the perception of whom the healthcare system really aims to serve. In the aging Europe there is a growing need to involve patients and consumers in the healthcare processes, to balance demand to resources.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 27 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/empowering-belgian-patients/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/empowering-belgian-patients/</guid>
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<title>Female scientists, IT specialists and engineers, why so few? Executive Summary</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The number of female IT specialists, scientists and engineers remains low.

The Itinera Institute offers a platform to Carl Van Keirsbilck, who studied the causes, and formulates clear recommendations towards government and education.

 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 27 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/female/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/female/</guid>
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<title>Labour flows in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the last decade, job stability was relatively high in Belgium and there was no deterioration on the Belgian labour market in terms of job mobility. But is this still going to be the case in the following years? This report from the National Bank of Belgium presents an accurate analyze of job flows from 1998 to 2006 in our country. The authors show us to what extend job flows vary with firm, worker and labour market characteristics. Good to know when defining policies aimed at slowing down job destruction and stimulating job creation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 27 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-flows-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-flows-in-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Migration: annual report 2008</title>
<description><![CDATA[ More and more foreigners are leaving their home country to reach Europe. But some of them construct a new live in our country without knowing whether and how long they will be allowed to stay in Belgium. When are we going to adopt an efficient regulation policy for migrants in Belgium? This report from the Centre for Equal Opportunities and Opposition to Racism analyzes the nature, the size and the challenges related to migration in Belgium. The Center also formulates recommendations on different aspects of migration and insists on the necessity to adopt a permanent regularization process instead of punctual measures. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 27 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migration-annual-report-2008/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migration-annual-report-2008/</guid>
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<title>Public employment in an international perspective</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How many people are employed in the Belgian public sector? How much does this cost to our government? Does Belgium manage its public sector differently than other OECD countries do? In this report, the Plan Bureau gives us a concrete answer to all these questions, with interesting figures. It allows us to have a better idea of what the public sector represents in terms of jobs and costs in Belgium and other OECD countries. Even if the public employment rate in Belgium is higher than average compared to similar countries, this is not the case for the ratio between gross remuneration per civil servant and gross remuneration per worker in general. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 27 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/public-employment-in-an-international-perspective/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/public-employment-in-an-international-perspective/</guid>
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<title>Reforming the International Financial System</title>
<description><![CDATA[ It is important to try to make the financial system less susceptible to crises in the future. In this article from the Peterson Institute a three-point program is advanced: a reversal of the past policy of encouraging bank mergers and its replacement by a vigorous antitrust policy directed at the banking sector; a determination to make monetary policy anticyclical; and reform of the regulatory system. It goes without saying all the key international actors will have to go for this or a similar plan if future financial and economic catastrophes are to be limited in consequences, duration and occurrence. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 27 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reforming-the-international-financial-system/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reforming-the-international-financial-system/</guid>
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<title>The Bologna process in higher education in Europe</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The workers&#8217; level of qualification is a real comparative advantage for our European countries. This advantage, however, can only be preserved by continuously supporting our education systems. The Bologna process represents an important step on the road of knowledge development; but did we go as far as we thought? Are there more students in high schools and universities now; are students more mobile and better prepared to enter the labour market? This report from Eurostat investigates different aspects of higher education in Europe since the Bologna process: financial access, public investments in tertiary institutions, staff and student mobility, students employability, etc.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 27 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-bologna-process-in-higher-education-in-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-bologna-process-in-higher-education-in-europe/</guid>
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<title>Towards gender neutral wages</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The wage gap between women and men computed on the basis of monthly wages for fulltime employees amounts to 12% in Belgium. Although this is a considerable difference, a clear decrease in the wage gap is noticeable, and compared to other European countries the wage gap is relatively limited in Belgium, this report from the Institute for Equality of Women and Men says. Further, other important labour market differences and inequalities are highlighted, the most important explanatory factors developed and some policy recommendations given in order to evolve towards more gender neutral work conditions. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 27 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-gender-neutral-wages/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-gender-neutral-wages/</guid>
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<title>Unmet healthcare needs in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How do citizens perceive their health and the access to health care in their country? This question is the scope of this Eurostat article in which European citizens were asked whether they felt they had had unmet medical needs in examination or treatment. Although Belgium is the country with the lowest perceived unmet needs, the most important reason for this is that the respondents could not afford it or thought it was too expensive. The accessibility of our healthcare system has always been one of strengths. Let&#8217;s reform our healthcare system now to make sure this strengths doesn&#8217;t erode over time.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 27 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unmet-healthcare-needs-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unmet-healthcare-needs-in-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Young innovative companies: EU vs US</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Are we going to be as innovative as the US? With the Lisbon Strategy, we know that Europe wants to stimulate R&amp;D and innovation in all its member states. However, young innovative companies in Europe are still facing barriers to innovation. In this publication, Bruegel investigates the situation and the context in which young innovative companies are evolving. It also makes some recommendations aimed at guiding our public authorities to support innovation in our countries. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 27 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/young-innovative-companies-eu-vs-us/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/young-innovative-companies-eu-vs-us/</guid>
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<title>Universal human rights require Western action</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos is concerned with president Obama&#8217;s diplomatic rhetoric towards the Muslim world. The situation in strategic countries such as Turkey, Pakistan and Afghanistan is worrisome. Much more than ringing words, we are in need of real action that deals with the harsh realities, notably as regards human rights.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 23 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/universal-human-rights-require-western-action/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/universal-human-rights-require-western-action/</guid>
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<title>How atypical is the current crisis: looking back to 1929</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The great crash of 1929 is very similar to the problems of today. Speculation was financed with capital from Europe and other regions; a global crash became unavoidable. The stockmarket culture was so dominant that even funds for poor people were considered around 1929.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 22 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/1929-galbraith-and-raskob/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/1929-galbraith-and-raskob/</guid>
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<title>Diversity in school</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Alarming finding: Belgium is the champion of segregation in the school system, leaving only Hungary behind. The impact is more or less the same in both communities. The notorious 'd&#233;cret mixit&#233;', symbol of the political willingness to do something about this in French speaking Belgium, has made a lot of parents angry, and was ultimately withdrawn. Jean Hindriks and Brieuc Van Damme got some inspiration from the cities of New-York and Boston to suggest some measures that will lead to a consensus between all stakeholders in a quick and easy way. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 21 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/diversity-in-school/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/diversity-in-school/</guid>
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<title>Diversity in schools: YES WE CAN!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Alarming finding: Belgium is the champion of segregation in the school system, leaving only Hungary behind. The impact is more or less the same in both communities. The notorious 'd&#233;cret mixit&#233;', symbol of the political willingness to do something about this in French speaking Belgium, has made a lot of parents angry, and was ultimately withdrawn. Jean Hindriks and Brieuc Van Damme got some inspiration from the cities of New-York and Boston to suggest some measures that will lead  to a consensus between all stakeholders in a quick and easy WAY. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 21 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/diversity-in-schools-yes-we-can/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/diversity-in-schools-yes-we-can/</guid>
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<title>Increase the motivation of the civil servant through clear objectives</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Supporting the satisfaction and motivation of our civil servants supposes their work is given clear objectives which they can commit themselves to. Civil servants need to have a clear idea of what is expected from them and understand that their work is meaningful. The leap forward of the apparatus of government is the desire to work for a cause.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 20 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-motivation-of-the-civil-servant/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-motivation-of-the-civil-servant/</guid>
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<title>Put a non budgetary cap on healthcare expenses</title>
<description><![CDATA[ We should put a cap on healthcare expenses. The debate on healthcare reforms should be much wider than on setting the optimal expense level. A growing healthcare sector will create tremendous economic opportunities, Brieuc Van Damme and Ivan Van de Cloot argue. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 20 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/put-a-non-budgetary-cap-on-healthcare-expenses/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/put-a-non-budgetary-cap-on-healthcare-expenses/</guid>
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<title>Budgetary obsession is destined to fail in this century of the health economy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos recognizes that the growth rates of public expenditures for healthcare are untenable. But he also stresses that no budgetary policy will be able to cover the needs of this century of the health economy with public means alone. We have to address the organisation of healthcare itself.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 17 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/budgetary-obsession-is-destined-to-fail-in-this-century-of-the-health-economy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/budgetary-obsession-is-destined-to-fail-in-this-century-of-the-health-economy/</guid>
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<title>The role of real estate redistribution in the crisis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The benefits from increasing property prices are unequally spread. Several important American policymakers opted for a utopian real estate redistribution by imposing high sub-prime quota on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. They corrupted market forces and are partly responsible for the financial crisis.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 16 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/real-estate-redistribution-and-the-financial-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/real-estate-redistribution-and-the-financial-crisis/</guid>
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<title>The future is unpredictable, and economists are no oracles</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Households, companies and banks took quite a beating by the wealth loss everybody suffers from. The balance sheet pay off will require time.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 10 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/uncertainty-and-future/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/uncertainty-and-future/</guid>
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<title>Bismarckian Welfare State</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Compared to Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian socio-economic models, our Bismarckian-type welfare regime is in fact not as bad as we might have thought. This report from IZA shows that countries with such welfare systems can be as successful in terms of employment and poverty reduction. The authors analyze employment rate evolution between 1997 and 2007 as a measure for judging the sustainability of the Bismarckian welfare state and the success of social and economic policy reforms. In some countries like Belgium however, we should put extra effort into the employment rate of older workers.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 03 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bismarckian-welfare-state/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bismarckian-welfare-state/</guid>
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<title>Migration and the global crisis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to the International Organization for Migration there are mainly two good reasons not to reduce migration in destination countries during this global crisis. First, human mobility, as underscored in IOM&#8217;s 2008 World Migration Report, makes economies more dynamic and more efficient. The second reason is that the influxes of returning migrants may result in economic and social instability in poorer countries, which could increase irregular migration and trafficking in human beings. Now more than ever we need a well-considered migration policy. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 03 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migration-and-the-global-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migration-and-the-global-crisis/</guid>
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<title>Rebuilding the financial system to stimulate the economy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ During the G20 summit in London on the 2nd of April 2009, some determining decisions could have been made to reverse the vicious cycle &#8216;financial distrust &#8211; economic paralysis&#8217; and to change the rules that led to today&#8217;s catastrophe. We should go back in other words to the normal situation where the financial system is an imperfect but useful tool for the economy, and not the other way around. To do so, the French think-tank Institut Montaigne in this paper advances 4 concrete, powerful but necessary lines of thought.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 03 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/rebuilding-the-financial-system-to-stimulate-the-economy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/rebuilding-the-financial-system-to-stimulate-the-economy/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Transport at crossroads</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Freight transport, the number of passengers travelling by road and air, car ownership and greenhouse gas emissions from the transport sector have all followed a growing trend between 1995 and 2006 in all member states of the European Environment Agency. Globalization and the growing worldwide mobility of people are inevitably impacting on our environment. Transport demand management is a real challenge. In this report, EEA gives ideas towards a methodology that could cost-effectively deliver an environmentally sustainable transport system within a reasonable time horizon.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 03 Apr 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/transport-at-crossroads/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/transport-at-crossroads/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The G20 and the Great Crisis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ For those who intuitively think that a macro-economic policy can annihilate the excesses of previous years: you&#8217;re probably right to a certain extend. But we&#8217;ll have to face, whether we like it or not, a period of higher unemployment and lower economic performance. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 31 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-g20-and-the-great-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-g20-and-the-great-crisis/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Ageing and long term care needs in the OECD</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Spending on long-term care as a share of GDP rises with the share of the population that is over 80 years old, which is expected to triple from 4 per cent to 11-12 per cent between 2005 and 2050. According to the OECD, this and other factors will add pressures not only on the long-term nursing care expenditures (in Belgium among the highest of the OECD) but also on the workforce of this highly labour-intensive sector. The working paper advances different solutions to manage a growing demand for long term care workers.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-and-long-term-care-needs-in-the-oecd/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-and-long-term-care-needs-in-the-oecd/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Making cars 50% more fuel efficient by 2050 </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Making cars 50% more fuel efficient by 2050 worldwide is the objective that four international organizations (ITIF, IEA, UNEP and FIA Foundation) have jointly decided in early 2009. In this report, they explain that we have to combine support for the car manufacturing industry &#8211; in trouble because of the crisis &#8211; with measures to achieve governmental environmental and energy policy goals. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/making-cars-50-more-fuel-efficient-by-2050/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/making-cars-50-more-fuel-efficient-by-2050/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Managing highly-skilled labour migration</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Soon, demographic change and the retirement of many skilled workers will push us to call for a highly qualified foreign workforce. The problem is that we have to match demand and supply. Highly-skilled foreign workers do not necessarily receive a job offer from our country and even if it were the case, nothing indicates they would go for it. That&#8217;s why we need active recruitment policies for highly-skilled migrants. This OECD report investigates some of these policies: employer-driven migration systems, immigrant-driven migration, special migration schemes for highly skilled workers and free movement of workers.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/managing-highly-skilled-labour-migration/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/managing-highly-skilled-labour-migration/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Stubborn youth unemployment in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What kind of situations, problems and challenges are young, long time unemployed facing in Belgium? This report of the King Baudouin Foundation draws an comprehensive sketch of this very vulnerable group. Concrete recommendations for a successful activation policy for the young are also made &#8211; this proofs the need for custom-made measures. Now, Belgium needs a legislative framework that transforms activation into a true pillar. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/stubborn-youth-unemployment-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/stubborn-youth-unemployment-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>What the Dutch can teach us</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos underscores that the Netherlands, notwithstanding a much better starting position than Belgium, have understood the necessity of a drastic crisis plan. He calls for a sound dose of Dutch common sense in Belgium. Profound reforms are required to restore a viable combination of wealth creation and social security.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-the-dutch-can-teach-us/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-the-dutch-can-teach-us/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Only systemic reforms can make social security sustainable</title>
<description><![CDATA[ For Marc De Vos, it is &#8220;game over&#8221; with the preparation of ageing in Belgium. Our social security is not sustainable. The budgetary situation needs fixing, but only policy reform can save us. We urgently need a broad societal consensus on a new socioeconomic model. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/only-systemic-reforms-can-make-social-security-sustainable/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/only-systemic-reforms-can-make-social-security-sustainable/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Paradigms of future health care organization in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium&#8217;s budgetary policy is again crumbling across the board. Marc De Vos and Brieuc Van Damme point out that healthcare policy has been dominated by budgetary concerns for years. Yet, the budget keeps on skyrocketing while the key challenge is increasingly to provide healthcare that is both affordable and accessible, while being of high quality. The authors indicate some directions with potential: increasing investments in ICT, improving coordination and integration between the stakeholders, and a real debate on a multi-pillar structure. Healthcare risks becoming unsustainable without pragmatic but fundamental reform.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/paradigms-of-future-health-care-organization-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/paradigms-of-future-health-care-organization-in-belgium/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/MEMO08_Breaking%20the%20deadlock_MDV+BVD.pdf" length="410346" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>Paradigms of future health care organization in Belgium: presentation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium&#8217;s budgetary policy is again crumbling across the board. Marc De Vos and Brieuc Van Damme point out that healthcare policy has been dominated by budgetary concerns for years. Yet, the budget keeps on skyrocketing while the key challenge is increasingly to provide healthcare that is both affordable and accessible, while being of high quality. The authors indicate some directions with potential: increasing investments in ICT, improving coordination and integration between the stakeholders, and a real debate on a multi-pillar structure. Healthcare risks becoming unsustainable without pragmatic but fundamental reform.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/paradigms-of-future-health-care-organization-in-belgium-presentation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/paradigms-of-future-health-care-organization-in-belgium-presentation/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Presentation_Breaking%20the%20budgetary%20deadlock_MDV+BVD.pdf" length="1494342" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>Consumption as civil duty?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Despite the frequent calls for more consumption, we should not forget that savings and investments are the real sources of welfare. The economic crisis shows that overconsumption is not sustainable at all and needs to be corrected.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 25 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/consumption-as-civil-duty/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/consumption-as-civil-duty/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Older people also contribute to economic growth</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the United States, 30% of the new companies is founded by people older than 55 years. Employees aged over 70 are not rare exceptions in several countries. Older people contribute to economic growth and create opportunities for younger people. Unfortunately, the economic potential of older people is hardly recognized in Belgium.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 25 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/older-people-also-contribute-to-economic-growth/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/older-people-also-contribute-to-economic-growth/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Ageing after the Great Crisis: presentation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos describes the impact of ageing. He explains how the current crisis sounds the death-knell for the crippled Belgian preparation for ageing. But Belgium remains capable of bearing ageing, if only we succeed in a growth strategy.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 23 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-after-the-great-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-after-the-great-crisis/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Plea for a new dismissal law</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos stresses that the harmonisation of dismissal law for blue collar and white collar workers has to serve two priorities: equal rights and labour market circulation. We need to combine income security with tailor made reemployment. Individual career accounts with continuous funding can be a useful tool to achieve that goal.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 23 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/plea-for-a-new-dismissal-law/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/plea-for-a-new-dismissal-law/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Belgium and the crisis from the IMF&#8217;s point of view</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The depth of the recession evaluated by many institutions like the IMF will be dramatic, everybody agrees. But it is useless to wallow in self-pity; better is to understand what happens and to react as soon as possible. After some comments on the impact of the crisis in Belgium and on the actions taken by the government, the IMF also gives recommendations aimed at tackling the crisis in this report. Even if it is in favor of long run fiscal sustainability, the IMF considers that the composition of our fiscal stimulus package can be improved.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-and-the-crisis-from-the-imfs-point-of-view/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-and-the-crisis-from-the-imfs-point-of-view/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>European Strategy for Social Protection and Social Inclusion: where are we?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ 2009 will certainly not be associated with a large decrease in poverty rates in Europe. In this report from the European commission, it appears that in Belgium, the average GDP growth rate in 2004/2005 could allow 1% of poor people going out of poverty. From a more general point of view, this report evaluates the evolution of the social situation and the poverty level in European countries before the crisis. 
For sure, governments have to continue their efforts on different policy levels if they want to guaranty social inclusion. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/european-strategy-for-social-protection-and-social-inclusion-where-are-we/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/european-strategy-for-social-protection-and-social-inclusion-where-are-we/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Forum Luncheon Lecture : Healthcare, Lifestyle and Individual Responsibility</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p align="left"><strong>&ldquo;Healthcare, Lifestyle and individual responsibility&rdquo;<br/></strong></p><p align="justify">In the <strong>Forum</strong> series, the Itinera institute diverges from its usual scope of policy propositions.<br/>In this series, the Institute acts as a platform, a laboratory for cross-fertilisation of ideas, that will hopefully lead to practicable policy propositions.<br/>We offer a platform to <strong>Ignaas Devisch</strong>, professor Ethics, Philosophy and medical philosophy at UGent and University College Artevelde Hogeschool.<br/></p><p align="justify">He discusses the role of individual responsibility for lifestyle in healthcare<br/>Should it become a criterion for obtaining Healthcare services, and what would be the consequences? How can a patient become an active, informed partner in health? Should a government penalize patients for an unhealthy lifestyle?<br/>Devisch illustrates with the case of obesity, a disease (of civilization) that threatens society as a whole.</p><p align="justify">Discussant <strong>Yvonne Denier</strong>,Zorgnet Vlaanderen, reacts.</p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/forum-lunch-lezing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/forum-lunch-lezing/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Health Care, lifestyle and individual responsibility</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In many countries a healthy lifestyle is expected to become a criterion in obtaining healthcare services. As we understand lifestyle as a merely individual matter, what could be the consequences for health care if individual responsibility would be a key principle in allocating health care services? We will illustrate the ethical and philosophical relevance of this question with the case of obesity.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/health-care-lifestyle-and-individual-responsibility/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/health-care-lifestyle-and-individual-responsibility/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Microsoft%20Word%20-%20Memo%20Health%20care%20lifes%20and%20ind%20resp(1).pdf" length="310691" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>Health care, lifestyle and individual responsibility: presentation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In many countries a healthy lifestyle is expected to become a criterion in obtaining healthcare services. As we understand lifestyle as a merely individual matter, what could be the consequences for health care if individual responsibility would be a key principle in allocating health care services?Ignaas Devisch illustrates the ethical and philosophical relevance of this question with the case of obesity.Yvonne Denier reflects.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/health-care-lifestyle-and-individual-responsibility-presentation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/health-care-lifestyle-and-individual-responsibility-presentation/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Microsoft%20PowerPoint%20-%20final%20PPT%20devisch.pdf" length="1795204" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>Radicalisation amongst Muslims in Belgium?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to this report by Koutroubas, Vloeberghs and Yanasmayan, the majority of Muslim Belgians seem to have embraced the spirit of compromise and moderation prevalent in the country&#8217;s political scene. Despite the presence of several radical movements within its borders, Belgium in fact was largely spared the very serious violence and conflict that were recently experienced by some of the neighbouring countries. Can we say that everything is ok then? No, it is not. Youngsters of immigrant origin, who feel excluded from both their parents&#8217; culture and their autochthon compatriots&#8217; world, constitute a huge potential source of tension and an easy prey for radical groups. There are many of them in Belgium, but fortunately they are not yet lost to our society.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/radicalisation-amongst-muslims-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/radicalisation-amongst-muslims-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Revaluating the profession of general practitioner </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Brieuc Van Damme suggests measures to revalue the profession of general practitioner while strengthening our system for the healthcare challenges ahead. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/thank-you-doctor/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/thank-you-doctor/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Stabilization effects of social spending</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What is the ability of social spending to smooth output shocks and to provide economic stabilization? The results of this OECD working paper show that overall social spending is able to smooth about 16% of a shock to GDP. More specifically, social spending devoted to ageing and unemployment appears to have the most important effects. Moreover &#8211; and this is good news for Belgium given today&#8217;s negative output shock &#8211; the stabilization effects of social spending are significantly larger in those countries where the size of social spending is high.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/stabilization-effects-of-social-spending/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/stabilization-effects-of-social-spending/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Video Column: Health care, lifestyle and individual responsibility</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/devisch/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/devisch/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Video Column: double dividend</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Jean Hindriks explains how we can profit twice from budgetary measures.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 19 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-colum-double-dividend/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-colum-double-dividend/</guid>
</item>
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<title>A different type of competition for public services</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Since the crisis, the European Commission&#8217;s competition policy has been swimming upstream. In this context the question of the postal service sector&#8217;s approaching liberalisation lies upon its ability to maintain its universal service vocation, given the profitability pressure of a competitive market. The question is pertinent and invites us to think about different forms of competition that would be in favour of, and not against, universal community service.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-different-type-of-competition-for-public-services/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-different-type-of-competition-for-public-services/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Does size matter for growth?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Now that people are massively losing their jobs, people might wonder whether their job is safer with a small or a larger employer. This Yale University working paper provides new evidence that large firms are more sensitive than small ones to business cycle conditions like recessions or expansions. Larger employers shed proportionally more jobs in recessions and create more of their new jobs late in expansions. Eventually, these effects cancel themselves out. This confirms that innovation, not size, is important for growth and job creation.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-size-matter-for-growth/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-size-matter-for-growth/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Early childhood education and care in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Investing in early childhood development and education has the highest return in terms of social adaptation of children. This study from Eurydice investigates measures implemented in European countries that target early childhood and suggests roads for improvement. Despite relatively good results with respect to other European countries, Belgium still has some weaknesses in this field: a low employment rate of pre-primary children&#8217;s mothers, a lack of places in child-care centers and some insertion difficulties for children from socio-economically and culturally underprivileged social classes. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/early-childhood-education-and-care-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/early-childhood-education-and-care-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Reforming pensions in Europe now!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With ageing, pension expenditures will be going through the roof and threaten public finances&#8217; stability. The notion of &#8220;pension reforms&#8221; is heard all around Europe. This CESifo paper studies efforts made in this field by European countries and the way some factors like the quality of institutions, public debt, trade unions,&#8230; will have an influence on these efforts. We should make use of today&#8217;s momentum - the crisis and expectations about exploding pension expenditures - to accelerate reforms.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reforming-pensions-in-europe-now/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reforming-pensions-in-europe-now/</guid>
</item>
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<title>The macroeconomic impact of fiscal policy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How should governments tackle the recession? Fiscal policy modifications through fiscal incentives, tax cuts etc. is often one of the options put forward first. This ECB working paper investigates the macroeconomic effects of fiscal policy. It is found that government spending shock, in general, only have a small effect on GDP and lead to important &#8220;crowding-out&#8221; effects &#8211; or reductions in private consumption and investment that occur because of an increase in government spending. Fiscal policy is thus far from being a panacea and shouldn&#8217;t stop us from reforming in other important economic areas. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-macroeconomic-impact-of-fiscal-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-macroeconomic-impact-of-fiscal-policy/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Use care for the elderly as an economic opportunity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos points out that care for the elderly constitutes a fantastic economic opportunity. He underscores that government has the task to offer a framework that allows seniors to choose and finance their twilight years. The recent proposals on rest homes risk undermining a burgeoning market and will raise the cost of ageing.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/use-care-for-the-elderly-as-an-economic-opportunity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/use-care-for-the-elderly-as-an-economic-opportunity/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Video Column : Temporary unemployment for employees</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Should the the system of temporary unemployment be extended to employees? Marc De Vos lists the pros and cons, and argues for a temporary - temporary unemployment.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 17 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-column-temporary-unemployment-for-employees/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-column-temporary-unemployment-for-employees/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Video Column: extra government money for retirement homes?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Open VLD put forward the idea of investing government money in retirement homes.
sp.a on the other hand would like to maximize the cost of retirement homes. Marc De Vos explains why he thinks this is not a very good idea.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 17 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-column-extra-government-money-for-retirement-homes/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-column-extra-government-money-for-retirement-homes/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Video Column: how to tackle the deficit</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan Van de Cloot lists the measures the government should take to tackle the deficit]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 10 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/deficit/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/deficit/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Understanding bubbles to avoid them</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What is so unique about today&#8217;s financial crisis is that so many people saw it coming. And these whistle blowers were not marginal thinkers. Could they have used their insights to their personal advantage?  This somehow cynical question needs an extensive answer. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 06 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/understanding-bubbles-to-avoid-them/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/understanding-bubbles-to-avoid-them/</guid>
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<title>An obstinate vision for a safer banking system</title>
<description><![CDATA[ We have recently received an avalanche of reports which all give recommendations to prevent the repetition of this financial crisis. In this paper, we add a number of remarks which according to us deserve to be included in the debate. The focus is notably on possible reforms in the Belgian context.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 05 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/an-obstinate-vision-for-a-safer-banking-system/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/an-obstinate-vision-for-a-safer-banking-system/</guid>
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<title>Challenges and opportunities of climate change and energy security</title>
<description><![CDATA[ It is clear we are at the beginning of an entirely new energy system: a massive shift towards a carbon-free electricity system, huge pressure to reduce energy consumption and transport on the basis of renewable electricity. This article from the European University Institute argues we can use this shift to increase the EU&#8217;s competitiveness. Given a new EU-wide energy policy, we can, indeed, turn the challenges of climate change and energy security into an opportunity. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 05 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/challenges-and-opportunities-of-climate-change-and-energy-security/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/challenges-and-opportunities-of-climate-change-and-energy-security/</guid>
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<title>Extending &#171; climate rebates &#187; to include middle-income consumers</title>
<description><![CDATA[ If they really want to promote renewable energies, governments have to give incentives to households to use one of these alternative energy sources. But at the same time, they also have to make sure these households will not suffer from a too high purchasing power loss. This report from the Center on Budget and Policy priorities investigates the government&#8217;s measures to promote renewable energies &#8211; with  focus on &#8220;climate rebates&#8221; &#8211; and suggests extending them to middle-income households. Committed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions itself, Belgium could get its inspiration from solutions adopted abroad.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 05 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/extending--climate-rebates--to-include-middle-income-consumers/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/extending--climate-rebates--to-include-middle-income-consumers/</guid>
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<title>Flexibility on the Belgian labor market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In a period of crisis, the issue of work flexibility is often put on the table. But has Belgium been able to develop a labor market that is flexible enough? In this DULBEA report, the authors study the different types of work arrangements in Belgium since 1990. According to their data, work flexibility could still be improved which would soften transition out of the crisis and stimulate workers in having longer careers. Two birds, one stone. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 05 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/flexibility-on-the-belgian-labor-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/flexibility-on-the-belgian-labor-market/</guid>
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<title>Healthy ageing</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With the ageing our population over coming decades, maintaining health in old age will become increasingly important. Successful policies in this area can increase the potential labour force an the supply of non market services to others. They can also delay the need of longer-term care for elderly. This OECD working paper groups policies into four different types and within each, it describes the range of individual types of programmes that can be brought to bear or to enhance health of the elderly.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 05 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/healthy-ageing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/healthy-ageing/</guid>
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<title>Nosocomial infections in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Nosocomial infections are problematic. These infections lengthen hospital stays, require extra diagnosis and therapies en increase mortality. The Federal Centre for Expertise computed that these cost some 400 million Euros annually. And nosocomial infections are estimated to account for 2600 deaths a year, or seven a day, the report continues. In other words, anno 2009 hospitals are three times more deadly than cars. A little cynic don&#8217;t you think? ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 05 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/nosocomial-infections-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/nosocomial-infections-in-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Poverty, dignity, human rights</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This report from the Service for the fight against poverty, insecurity and social exclusion explains to which extend poverty and social exclusion can violate human dignity and human rights. That&#8217;s why even in 2008 the government has to strengthen three levers for the fight against poverty: our social security system, public services and social participation, the authors of the report say. They also remind us that without a pension system, 90% of the elderly people would be living in poverty.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 05 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/poverty-dignity-human-rights/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/poverty-dignity-human-rights/</guid>
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<title>System of innovation in Wallonia</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Is the Wallonia&#8217;s innovation system performant enough? Is it good enough compared to the systems set up in other European regions? In this publication, the Federal Plan Bureau investigates these questions and concludes that despite some good results, Wallonia can not but reform. Much progress still needs to be made, in R&amp;D and innovation in particular. Until now, they did not yield enough new activities capable of redeploying the Region into the sectors of the future.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 05 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/system-of-innovation-in-wallonia/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/system-of-innovation-in-wallonia/</guid>
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<title>The maximum invoice for chronic diseases: advantages and disadvantages</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This study from the Independent Mutualities finds that the classic maximum invoice has, despite its merits, one important disadvantage: the patient has to pay first and might be reimbursed later. For chronic diseases, this can be a reason to limit medical expenses. The study therefore suggests reforming the application of the maximum invoice for chronic diseases by immediately reimbursing the proportion of medical expenses payable by the patient up to a certain ceiling. This ceiling would depend on the real cost of their chronic disease.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 05 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-maximum-invoice-for-chronic-diseases-advantages-and-disadvantages/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-maximum-invoice-for-chronic-diseases-advantages-and-disadvantages/</guid>
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<title>Video Column : Monetary Policy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ To the general public, it must seem that the only role of the central bank is fluctuating the interest rate according to the economic circumstances. If this was true, the American Central Bank would have become superfluous: the interest rate has been equal to zero for quite a while now. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 05 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-column--monetair/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-column--monetair/</guid>
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<title>Video Column Protectionism</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In times of recession, the concept of international collaboration often makes way for the concept of protectionisme. This can prove to be dangerous for small open economies, such as Belgium.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 03 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-column-protectionism/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-column-protectionism/</guid>
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<title>More renewable electricity without any reduction of European CO2-emissions?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Germany is the greenest nation on earth. The proportion of renewable energy produced thanks to technology like wind turbines, waterpower, biomass power stations and solar panels increased from less than 5% in 1998 to more than 15% in 2008. An impressive evolution! But is there really a CO2 gain for Mother Earth? Because eventually, ecological benefits are the reason why we invest in renewable energy, don&#8217;t we. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 02 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-renewable-electricity-without-any-reduction-of-european-co2-emissions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-renewable-electricity-without-any-reduction-of-european-co2-emissions/</guid>
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<title>The Great Crisis will weigh heavily on the future</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos doubts whether stimulus plans will be able to reverse the economic decline in the short run. But in the long run, the Great Crisis risks heaving an important and mostly negative impact on growth potential.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-great-crisis-will-weigh-heavily-on-the-future/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-great-crisis-will-weigh-heavily-on-the-future/</guid>
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<title>Migrants and educational achievement : ten policy suggestions </title>
<description><![CDATA[ In most OECD countries, migrant students&#8217; performance remains relatively low with respect to native students&#8217; performance, PISA studies say. Some factors like selection mechanisms, resources inequalities, school organization, language difficulties of foreign students, etc would decrease migrants&#8217; education outcomes. The latter is nonetheless important for their labor market integration. This OECD report offers then solutions aimed at facilitating a better integration of young migrants into our educational system.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 25 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migrants-and-educational-achievement-ten-policy-suggestions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migrants-and-educational-achievement-ten-policy-suggestions/</guid>
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<title>Temporary jobs and job search in Europe</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What reform could help reduce today&#8217;s unemployment level? The relaxation of employment protection systems by allowing firms greater freedom to create temporary jobs does not seem to be unanimously accepted. This IZA publication investigates the impact of contract duration on worker&#8217;s search effort for a job. It is concluded that temporary jobs in Belgium and other European countries can give incentives to look for a permanent job, given that the number these temporary contracts is not too high and their duration not too long.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 25 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/temporary-jobs-and-job-search-in-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/temporary-jobs-and-job-search-in-europe/</guid>
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<title>Flanders compared</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Flemish live in a prosperous region. The perception of Flanders as a European top region needs to be nuanced though &#8211; it has been resting on its laurels. Flanders performances for classic economic indicators are good but its prize list for other indicators (labour market, innovation &#8230;) is less pretty. That is why this report from the Flemish government identifies several indicators that are of crucial importance for the health of an innovation oriented economy. From thereon several benchmark regions that scored better than Flanders were selected. These are supposed to stimulate Flanders&#8217; ambitions for the future.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/flanders-compared/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/flanders-compared/</guid>
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<title>Our financial sustainability</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With all the stimulus plans, loan guaranties and capital injections, our long term financial sustainability is more than ever at the heart of the societal debate. In this working paper from the Plan Bureau, two budgetary policy scenarios are presented in the light of an ageing society. On top of the perspectives of these policy scenarios not being very encouraging, we learn that they do not even take into account the current economic crisis. It&#8217;s about time this lost decade comes to an end&#8230;. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/our-financial-sustainability/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/our-financial-sustainability/</guid>
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<title>Video Column : Narrow Bank</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Advocates of the narrow banking system state that their should be a clear differentiation between financial houses and depostit banks.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-column-narrow-bank/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-column-narrow-bank/</guid>
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<title>Video Column Bad Bank</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Now that is has become clear that a worldwide recapitalization round is inevitable, the idea of Bad Bank is gaining popularity.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-column-bad-bank/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-column-bad-bank/</guid>
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<title>Banking Crisis : causes, consequences and remedies</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The financial crisis reaped havoc worldwide, and Belgium was not spared.
Paul De Grauwe (KULeuven and CESifo) offers the brand new government Van Rompuy I tangible solutions on how to limit the effects of the crisis in time and proportion and to avoid future crises 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 19 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/lessons-from-the-banking-cirisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/lessons-from-the-banking-cirisis/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/MEMOpdg.pdf" length="462349" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>Fully Booked: Luncheon Lecture: Lessons from the financial crisis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p align="justify">The financial crisis reaped havoc worldwide, and Belgium was not spared. Paul DeGrauwe (KULeuven and CESifo) offers the brand new government Van Rompuy I tangible solutions on how to limit the effects of the crisis in time and proportion and how to avoid future crises.<br/></p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 19 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/luncheon-lecture-lessons-from-the-financial-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/luncheon-lecture-lessons-from-the-financial-crisis/</guid>
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<title>Presentation: Lessons from the banking crisis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The financial crisis reaped havoc worldwide, and Belgium was not spared.
Paul De Grauwe (KULeuven and CESifo) offers the brand new government Van Rompuy I tangible solutions on how to limit the effects of the crisis in time and proportion and to avoid future crises 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 19 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/presentation/</guid>
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<title>Necessity of an audacious monetary policy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ It is important for us to learn from the failure of the Japanese experience in the 90s. A first lesson is certainly that the bank system has to be seriously cleared up. The Japanese financial institutions are associated with the notion of zombie banks. They survived because of the public authorities&#8217; back-up, although they were not able to offer credit to households and companies any longer. A second lesson is that monetary policy must really be audacious.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/necessity-of-an-audacious-monetary-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/necessity-of-an-audacious-monetary-policy/</guid>
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<title>Nosocomial infections in Belgium: update</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Nosocomial infections are problematic. These infections lengthen hospital stays, require extra diagnosis and therapies en increase mortality. According to Fran&#231;ois Daue and Brieuc Van Damme the costs are underestimated in the estimations. Fortunately, several initiatives are launched abroad and at home to tackle the problem.&#8221;]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 16 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/nosocomial-infections-in-belgium-update/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/nosocomial-infections-in-belgium-update/</guid>
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<title>355% or the crisis in one figure</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The American problem of an excessive debt is so far leading to a growing public debt. The American debt needs to be lowered and therefore a high inflation rate is rather likely.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/355-of-the-crisis-in-one-figure/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/355-of-the-crisis-in-one-figure/</guid>
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<title>Are young and old workers harmful for firm productivity?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ If it wants to respect the Lisbon Strategy, Belgium needs to increase its employment rate either for people aged 55-64 (the lowest in the OECD: 34% in 2007) or for younger people. In the light of an ageing population, giving incentives to older workers not to retire too early seems evident. But will large firms, mainly the ICT industry, go for it? According to this IZA publication, these firms would younger workers over older ones as increasing in the share of younger (older) workers has a positive (negative) impact on firm productivity. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/are-young-and-old-workers-harmful-for-firm-productivity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/are-young-and-old-workers-harmful-for-firm-productivity/</guid>
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<title>Cheaper Child Care, More Children</title>
<description><![CDATA[ An extended labour force is the way to counter the pernicious effect of ageing. There are two ways to increase labour supply: on the short term, immigration can be a temporary solution, but on the long term the birth rate would have to go up eventually. Given the high labour force participation of mothers, the latter should not be taken for granted. According to this IZA publication based on Swedish data, child care policies can improve fertility and, later, expand the labour force.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/cheaper-child-care-more-children/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/cheaper-child-care-more-children/</guid>
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<title>Don&#8217;t be fools, invest in schools!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The one inexhaustible resource we can always rely on is our grey cells. The privileged place to develop our brains is school. And the only way to trigger economic growth is by creating added value through innovative thinking. If you agree with these three simple statements, you&#8217;ll also agree that better schools lead to more growth, right? This CESifo working paper confirms there is a strong link between school performance and economic growth, both for general level education and for high performers. Therefore, dear policymakers, don&#8217;t be fools and invest in schools!]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/dont-be-fools-invest-in-schools/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/dont-be-fools-invest-in-schools/</guid>
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<title>Temporary unemployment is not the solution</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos underscores the perverse effects of temporary unemployment and proposes to reform it into an insurance system that internalizes the costs and pays more attention to activation. A transparent single employment status for both blue collar and white collar workers is the road to a clean combination of flexibility and security.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/temporary-unemployment-is-not-the-solution/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/temporary-unemployment-is-not-the-solution/</guid>
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<title>The impact of offshoring on employment in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Too often, offshoring is accused of being responsible for destroying jobs. According to this report from the Bureau du Plan, we should reconsider our judgment. Indeed, it appears that offshoring in the industry had a very low impact on overall employment between 1995 and 2003.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-impact-of-offshoring-on-employment-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-impact-of-offshoring-on-employment-in-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Wind at work</title>
<description><![CDATA[ For the first time in history, wind energy is the source of energy with the highest growth rate in Europe, says the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA). In this report, the EWEA analyses this industry&#8217;s benefits in terms of direct and indirect employment created across Europe. However, we are threatened by a workforce shortage. If we want to guarantee an increasing use of this renewable energy, we need to continue to promote job in the wind energy sector.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wind-at-work/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wind-at-work/</guid>
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<title>The bidding war of neo-protectionism and isolationism has to stop</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos notes how measures of economic nationalism and isolationism pass under the cover of economic &#8220;stimulus&#8221;. The smallest countries are their biggest victims. Europe has to intervene to ensure a fair free trade.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 09 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-bidding-war-of-neo-protectionism-and-isolationism-has-to-stop/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-bidding-war-of-neo-protectionism-and-isolationism-has-to-stop/</guid>
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<title>Performance indicators serving public interests </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The question is not to know whether the State is too large or too small, but whether it works properly.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 05 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/performance-indicators-serving-public-interests/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/performance-indicators-serving-public-interests/</guid>
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<title>&#8216;Buy American, first test for Obama&#8217;</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The steel lobby convinced the United States House of Representatives to add a &#8220;Buy American&#8221; clause to the rescue plan. The big test to the new US president is a fact: will Obama use his veto against the protectionist clause?]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 04 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/buy-american-first-test-for-obama/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/buy-american-first-test-for-obama/</guid>
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<title>Obama demonstrates Belgium's woes.  </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos finds president Obama inspiring, because his vision puts the finger on fundamental flaws in the Belgian makeup.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 03 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/obama-demonstrates-belgiums-woes/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/obama-demonstrates-belgiums-woes/</guid>
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<title>Are Americans leading in innovation because they want to control risks, not eliminate risks?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Americans are no Europeans from Europe anymore since a long time. According to the philosopher Peter Sloterdijk, the United-States are the only modern country that is not on the way of being a social care and security state. Then, religion in the US keeps an unusual meaning and Americans are also maybe less risk averse. Are Americans leading in innovation because they want to control risks, not eliminate risks?]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 02 Feb 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/are-americans-leading-in-innovation-because-they-want-to-control-risks-not-eliminate-risks/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/are-americans-leading-in-innovation-because-they-want-to-control-risks-not-eliminate-risks/</guid>
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<title>Bad bank</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Being clear now that we need to make a second round of recapitalization around the world, the concept of bad bank reappears. This is an institution where junk credits from big Belgian banks can be put. Before carefully implementing it, we need, however, to seriously consider the different modalities.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 26 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bad-bank/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bad-bank/</guid>
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<title>Are threshold values in healthcare unethical? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ When resources are scarce, making choices is unavoidable. This is no different for healthcare. Cost-effectiveness analyses inform policy makers about the cost of the societal value added of medical interventions. Economic considerations in healthcare are not unethical, this KCE report says, given that allocating resources to one program limits the resources for other programs. But contrary to countries like Great-Britain, Belgium does not use transparent threshold values yet. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 20 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/are-threshold-values-in-healthcare-unethical/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/are-threshold-values-in-healthcare-unethical/</guid>
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<title>Economic effects of post-enlargement migration: negative, neutral or positive?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The 2004 and 2007 enlargements of the European Union were unprecedented in a number of economic and policy aspects. This IZA essay provides a broad and in-depth account of the effects of the post-enlargement migration flows on the receiving as well as sending countries in three areas: labour markets, welfare systems, and growth and competitiveness. It concludes that on the whole, no negative immigration-related effects could be detected, that post-enlargement migration contributes to growth prospects of the EU and that restrictions on the free movement of workers bring about difficulties. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 20 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economic-effects-of-post-enlargement-migration-negative-neutral-or-positive/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economic-effects-of-post-enlargement-migration-negative-neutral-or-positive/</guid>
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<title>12 suggestions for the new President </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Who still believes what happens in the United States doesn&#8217;t affect us? The way the United States is going to respond to challenges as global warming, the necessary energy transition, financial and economic stabilisation, innovation policy etc. will largely influence our own policy responses and affect our situation at home. In this RAND Review, 12 suggestions are made for doing things better in the United States during the new Presidential mandate in policy area&#8217;s as diverse as education, healthcare, geopolitics and the economy. A must-read for everybody that is concerned with the future of America, and our own&#8230;.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/12-suggestions-for-the-new-president/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/12-suggestions-for-the-new-president/</guid>
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<title>Keep an eye on our climate</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Has our country&#8217;s climate changed? Is it raining more and are our summers hotter? These are some of the questions people ask every day to our Royal Meteorological Institute. In this report, the institute tries to give clear answers to these and more questions. Despite the gloomy perspectives, the researches do not lose faith in scientific progress. Recently increased interest in climate change will, indeed, create opportunities for an improved development model that will reconcile man with his environment, the report says. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/keep-an-eye-on-our-climate/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/keep-an-eye-on-our-climate/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Economic revival thanks to a slimmer government?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Economic confidence can be best restored when tax reductions are financed by structural reductions in government expenditures and not by higher budget deficits.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 14 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economic-revival-thanks-to-a-slimmer-government/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economic-revival-thanks-to-a-slimmer-government/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Labour market policies exercice I</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Employment growth is often associated with lower average measured labour productivity growth as more low-skilled workers enter the workforce. However, policies can also have sizeable direct effects on individual productivity levels and/or growth by creating incentives for workers to invest in training, facilitating reallocation of resources (through employment protection legislation for example) to their most productive uses and generating or maintaining high-quality job matches. In this paper, Bassanini and Venn analyze the impact of such labour market policies on productivity in OECD countries.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-market-policies-exercice-i/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-market-policies-exercice-i/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Happiness and depression</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In 2009, a considerable number of Belgians will be unemployed. This will not only affect their income, but also their mood. During an economic crisis, divorces and suicides tend to increase slightly and this is no different for discrimination and crime. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/happiness-and-depression/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/happiness-and-depression/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Labour market policies and productivity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Employment growth is often associated with lower average measured labour productivity growth as more low-skilled workers enter the workforce. However, policies can also have sizeable direct effects on individual productivity levels and/or growth by creating incentives for workers to invest in training, facilitating reallocation of resources (through employment protection legislation for example) to their most productive uses and generating or maintaining high-quality job matches. In this paper, Bassanini and Venn analyze the impact of such labour market policies on productivity in OECD countries.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-market-policies-and-productivity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-market-policies-and-productivity/</guid>
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<title>Optimizing age-dependent employment protection </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The question how we intend to keep our older workers active is an important one if we want to keep the welfare state as we know it affordable. One suggestion to do so is to introduce age-dependent employment protection. According to this IZA publication, theory of age-dependent employment protection implies of implementing age-decreasing firing taxes for the older workers. That way, job creation is maximized and job destruction minimized, the author argues. Surprisingly this is at odds with the current practise in Belgium and most OECD countries, which have implemented an age-increasing employment protection.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/optimizing-age-dependent-employment-protection/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/optimizing-age-dependent-employment-protection/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Protests in Belgium against the Gaza war, or the need for common citizenship</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos explains that the protests in Belgium against the Gaza war are a symptom of a diasporaculture and minority thinking. He stresses the need for another integration vision, through spontaneous assimilation in a common citizenship.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/protests-in-belgium-against-the-gaza-war/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/protests-in-belgium-against-the-gaza-war/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Synopsis Newyear memo</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/synopsis-ny-memo/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/synopsis-ny-memo/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Microsoft%20Word%20-%20synopsis%20NY%20memo.pdf" length="117277" type="application/pdf" />
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<item>
<title>New Years memo : Presentation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Institute presents it's NEW YEAR's MEMO 2009, our vision of the policy priorities for the Van Rompuy I Government.We stress the importance of the current legislation, and formulate a list of recommendations for bold, proactive policy choises.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 06 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/new-year-memo--presentation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/new-year-memo--presentation/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/en/doc/Microsoft%20PowerPoint%20-%20handouts%20-%20NY%20Memo%202009.pdf" length="1666338" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>New Years Memo 2009</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Institute presents it's NEW YEARS MEMO 2009, our vision of the policy priorities for the Van Rompuy I Government. We stress the importance of the current legislation, and formulate a list of recommendations for bold, proactive policy choises.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 06 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/new-years-memo-2009/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/new-years-memo-2009/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/en/doc/Nieuwjaarsmemo%20FR.pdf" length="1997542" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>New Years Memo 2009: Press Release</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p>The Itinera Institute presents it's NEW YEAR's MEMO 2009, our vision of the policy priorities for the Van Rompuy I Government.We stress the importance of the current legislation, and formulate a list of recommendations for bold, proactive policy choises.<br/></p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 06 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/ney-year-memo-2009/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/ney-year-memo-2009/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Video: a better and more modern pension system</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 06 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-a-better-and-more-modern-pension-system/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-a-better-and-more-modern-pension-system/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Video: a solid and visionary labour market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 06 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-a-solid-and-visionary-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-a-solid-and-visionary-labour-market/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Video: New Years Memo</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 06 Jan 2009 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-new-years-memo/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/video-new-years-memo/</guid>
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<item>
<title>(Un)employment of foreign workers in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ At the international level, Belgium is one of the countries where the disparities between immigrants and nationals on the labour market are the highest: lower employment rate and higher unemployment rate than nationals, more temporary and partial work and overrepresentation in the blue-collar workforce. What is to blame? Several factors like training differences, asymmetric information or unemployment traps. This report from de General Directorate for Employment therefore implicitly concludes that a good activation policy would be a good integration policy.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 29 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/un-employment-of-foreign-workers-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/un-employment-of-foreign-workers-in-belgium/</guid>
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<item>
<title>E-government</title>
<description><![CDATA[ As one of our recent studies has shown, Belgium&#8217;s public sector has to become more efficient. Several experiences abroad have shown that e-government can really improve public service performance. This OECD report shows how Belgium&#8217;s governments are gradually realizing the potential of ICT. In terms of online availability of public services for businesses, we can say that Belgium ranks among the leaders in the EU. Internet access for the population should be improved though.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 29 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/e-government/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/e-government/</guid>
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<title>Coinciding elections constitute the opportunity of the governmental crisis</title>
<description><![CDATA[ For Marc De Vos, the crisis of the government Leterme is the crisis of the politician Leterme, but it also symptomatic for the malaise in the Belgian political culture. He argues in favour of coinciding federal and regional elections after an interim federal government. This would force political parties to coordinate their federal and regional agendas.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 24 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/coinciding-elections-constitute-the-opportunity-of-the-governmental-crisis/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/coinciding-elections-constitute-the-opportunity-of-the-governmental-crisis/</guid>
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<title>INVEST NOW</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Energy and climate are hot topics but the necessary investments in energy R&amp;D remain extremely low.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 18 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/invest-now/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/invest-now/</guid>
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<title>Fully booked: Luncheon Lecture:The Future of Health Care: Daring the Diagnosis and the Treatments</title>
<description><![CDATA[ On the 17th of December, the Itinera Institute will present the results of its exhaustive study on Belgium&rsquo;s health care system: What are its assets and weaknesses facing the challenges of the XXIth century? What possible solutions are there to guarantee a sustainable healthcare system in Belgium?<br/>]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/luncheonlecturethe-future-of-health-care-to-dare-the-diagnosis-and-the-therapies/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/luncheonlecturethe-future-of-health-care-to-dare-the-diagnosis-and-the-therapies/</guid>
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<title>Second session: Luncheon Lecture: The Future of Health Care: Daring the Diagnosis and the Treatments</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Since the lunch lecture &quot;The Future of Health Care: Daring the Diagnosis and Treatments&quot;&nbsp; on the 17th secember from 11.45 till 14.00 is fully booked, we will give a <strong>second session</strong> of the lecture from <strong>14.30 till 16.00</strong> on the <strong>same day</strong>.<br/>]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/second-session-luncheon-lecture-the-future-of-health-care-daring-the-diagnosis-and-the-treatments/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/second-session-luncheon-lecture-the-future-of-health-care-daring-the-diagnosis-and-the-treatments/</guid>
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<title>Memento: The future of Healthcare: diagnosis and remedies </title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/memento-the-future-of-healthcare-diagnosis-and-remedies/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/memento-the-future-of-healthcare-diagnosis-and-remedies/</guid>
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<title>The Future of healthcare</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Institute is proud to present it's new book:&quot;The future of Health Care: dariong the diagnosis &amp; treaments&quot;
The Belgian Healthcare system possesses numerous assets, but is also seriously threatened by the new challenges of the 21st century.Even if these challenges are numerous,it is not too late to act. But if we do not react on time, we won&#8217;t be able to continue to assure the access to care, its quality, while mastering its costs. To guarantee the future of our healthcare system, we suggest a set of concrete and innovative actions for a sustainable system.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-of-healthcare/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-of-healthcare/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The future of Healthcare: diagnosis and remedies</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Institute is proud to present it's new book:"The future of Health Care: dariong the diagnosis & treaments"
The Belgian Healthcare system possesses numerous assets, but is also seriously threatened by the new challenges of the 21st century.Even if these challenges are numerous,it is not too late to act. But if we do not react on time, we won’t be able to continue to assure the access to care, its quality, while mastering its costs. To guarantee the future of our healthcare system, we suggest a set of concrete and innovative actions for a sustainable system.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-future-of-healthcare-diagnosis-and-remedies/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-future-of-healthcare-diagnosis-and-remedies/</guid>
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<title>The future of Healthcare: diagnosis and remedies - Powerpoint presentation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Institute is proud to present it's new book:&quot;The future of Health Care: dariong the diagnosis &amp; treaments&quot;
The Belgian Healthcare system possesses numerous assets, but is also seriously threatened by the new challenges of the 21st century.Even if these challenges are numerous,it is not too late to act. But if we do not react on time, we won&#8217;t be able to continue to assure the access to care, its quality, while mastering its costs. To guarantee the future of our healthcare system, we suggest a set of concrete and innovative actions for a sustainable system.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-of-healthcare-diagnosis-and-remedies-powerpoint-presentation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-of-healthcare-diagnosis-and-remedies-powerpoint-presentation/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Microsoft%20PowerPoint%20-%2020081217%20-%20Lecture%20-%20Version%204%20%201(1).pdf" length="3191113" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>The future of Healthcare: diagnosis and remedies - Quick wins</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Institute is proud to present it's new book:&quot;The future of Health Care: dariong the diagnosis &amp; treaments&quot;
The Belgian Healthcare system possesses numerous assets, but is also seriously threatened by the new challenges of the 21st century.Even if these challenges are numerous,it is not too late to act. But if we do not react on time, we won&#8217;t be able to continue to assure the access to care, its quality, while mastering its costs. To guarantee the future of our healthcare system, we suggest a set of concrete and innovative actions for a sustainable system.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-of-healthcare-diagnosis-and-remedies-quick-wins/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-of-healthcare-diagnosis-and-remedies-quick-wins/</guid>
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<title>Collective bargaining level and wages</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In Belgium industry agreements are complemented by firm-specific agreements. This DULBEA working paper provides a critical survey of the literature on effects of this two-tier bargaining system on the structure of wages in Europe and more particularly in Belgium. It is found that firm-level agreements have a positive and significant effect on workers&#8217; wages. The impact on the dispersion of wages, however, is ambiguous. The degree of centralisation of the negotiations also appears to be a key factor here.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 12 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/collective-bargaining-level-and-wages/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/collective-bargaining-level-and-wages/</guid>
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<title>No economic recovery plan without recovery plan for ageing !</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos stresses the need for efficiency and budget limits in the race for economic recovery plans. The government should not announce a recovery plan without clear prior budgetary goals. Every recovery plan for the economy should be tied to a subsequent recovery plan to compensate for the delay in budgetary preparation for ageing.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 12 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-economic-recovery-plan-without-recovery-plan-for-ageing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-economic-recovery-plan-without-recovery-plan-for-ageing/</guid>
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<title>Socio-economic performances of Belgium and the Netherlands</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the report from the Centre for Social Policy the socio-economic outcomes of Belgium and the Netherlands are compared. How have relations over the past 15 years evolved in terms of welfare, labour market and poverty between both neighbouring countries? According to the report, Belgium has lost ground compared to the Netherlands and can therefore use the Dutch reform story well.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 12 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/socio-economic-performances-of-belgium-and-the-netherlands/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/socio-economic-performances-of-belgium-and-the-netherlands/</guid>
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<title>Why social partners and government fail with the centralized wage bargaining</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos points out that the new central bargaining agreement does not achieve its purpose of guaranteeing competitiveness. The government moreover encourages more than it corrects. The system of negotiated wage moderation fails.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 11 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-social-partners-and-government-fail-with-the-centralized-wage-bargaining/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-social-partners-and-government-fail-with-the-centralized-wage-bargaining/</guid>
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<title>A well-considered labour market policy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ During the 70&#8217;s, we thought we could reduce unemployment by sending older workers on early retirement. Today, some people still believe that the retiring baby boomers will release jobs easily accessible to the youngsters for whom everything will have become much easier. Apparently, people are reluctant to see that when people leave the labour market, the cake gets smaller so that these jobs will not necessarily be transferred to others.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 09 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-well-considered-labour-market-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-well-considered-labour-market-policy/</guid>
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<title>From bubble to correction</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The gravity of the forthcoming economic crisis is starting to get through. A month ago one was accused of doom-mongering if one considered an economic recession possible. Today, one is considered na&#239;ve if one doesn&#8217;t. The truth however is that there has never been more uncertainty about the future.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 09 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-bubble-to-correction/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-bubble-to-correction/</guid>
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<title>Building a sustainable economy. Investing in the future</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Great challenges bring great opportunities. How can we benefit from these opportunities and how can private companies create more sustainable activities? In this publication, the Flemish Ministry of Economy, Science and Innovation collected inspiring visions of entrepreneurs, technology watchers, pioneers and policymakers.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/building-a-sustainable-economy-investing-in-the-future/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/building-a-sustainable-economy-investing-in-the-future/</guid>
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<title>Childcare in Belgium and women&#8217;s employment rate</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With an employment rate for of 55.3% for women in 2007, Belgium is still far from the 60% objective fixed by the Lisbon Strategy. Childcare is a key factor for women when considering their position on the labor market. This report from the ULB analyzes the situation and comments on how the public authorities try to improve childcare structures &#8211; and by doing so female employment.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/childcare-in-belgium-and-womens-employment-rate/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/childcare-in-belgium-and-womens-employment-rate/</guid>
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<title>Employment and migration in Europe</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to this European Commission report, migrants have made a strong contribution to recent labor market performance of the EU, addressing labor and skill shortages and increasing flexibility. Nevertheless, there remain considerable challenges regarding the adequate integration of migrants into the labor market in particular with regard to quality of employment and effective use of their human capital, the authors argue. With only one out of tree migrants working, this is particularly true for Belgium.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/employment-and-migration-in-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/employment-and-migration-in-europe/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Organization and quality of our health care</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Once again, the debate on the quality of our health care system is opened. During a hospital stay, the way health care is organized is often the cause of adverse effects (AE) for the patient. In this report, the Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre uses administrative data from hospitals in order to better understand this phenomenon. Confronted with a lack of accurate data on AE, its first recommendation is aimed at improving the way data are collected and treated. And that is a recommendation we&#8217;ve encountered before.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/organization-and-quality-of-our-health-care/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/organization-and-quality-of-our-health-care/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Giving innovative drugs a chance</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Risk-sharing schemes are a useful instrument to manage the risk of introducing innovative but expensive drugs. It is fundamental though that all involved parties (insurer &#8211; producer) work out a balanced and detailed protocol that limits potential conflicts and abuses.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 03 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/giving-innovative-drugs-a-chance/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/giving-innovative-drugs-a-chance/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>More public investments ? BANANA !</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How realistic is it to accelerate large investment projects in response to the economic recession?]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 03 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-public-investments-banana/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-public-investments-banana/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>An appropriate answer to the banking crisis in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The financial crisis we&#8217;re going through urges us to fundamentally rethink our financial system. We often pretend to be entirely dependent of foreign solutions for our problems. In this nota, it is shown we can actually control for a few things ourselves. It is as important to pay attention to short term problems, like protecting our economy from the financial meltdown, as to make sure such a catastrophe will never happen again.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 28 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/an-appropriate-answer-to-the-banking-crisis-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/an-appropriate-answer-to-the-banking-crisis-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Belgium&#8217;s recovery plan must focus on policy reform</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos explains that the European recovery plan does not turn back the clock of economic history. He underscores that Belgium has little room for a Keynesian stimulus. The priority for Belgian policy is policy reform that saves money or at least does not cost money.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 28 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgiums-recovery-plan-must-focus-on-policy-reform/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgiums-recovery-plan-must-focus-on-policy-reform/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Determinants of innovation in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What are the determinants of innovation, and thus of economic growth, in a small open economy like Belgium? The objective of this working paper of the Federal Plan Bureau is to analyze on the sector level what the impact of three of the most cited factors in the literature - efforts in R&amp;D, the qualification of the workforce and propagation of ICT &#8211; is on innovation. And let us tell you already that some of the results might surprise you&#8230; .]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 28 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/determinants-of-innovation-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/determinants-of-innovation-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Economic impact of the migration flows following the 2004 enlargement</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This European Commission Paper shows that migration-induced reallocation of labour resources across countries following the 2004 EU enlargement process has already brought sizeable economic benefits for the enlarged EU. It would be na&#239;ve to think, however, that all European citizens have won from the enlargement the authors say. At the level of specific skill groups, for example, there is the potential  for income losses for the low skilled in the &#8220;receiving&#8221; countries and for medium to high skilled workers in the &#8220;sending countries&#8221;.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 28 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economic-impact-of-the-migration-flows-following-the-2004-enlargement/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economic-impact-of-the-migration-flows-following-the-2004-enlargement/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Financial crisis impact on the real economy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The financial crisis made clear we need a financial reform. But on top of that, shouldn&#8217;t we also be seriously concerned with macroeconomic and structural policies to allow us to bear the consequences of the crisis? In this report, the Plan Bureau investigates the impact of the financial crisis on our real economy (private consumption, companies&#8217; investments, exports,&#8230;) and focuses on the policies we have to pursue or introduce.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 28 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/financial-crisis-impact-on-the-real-economy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/financial-crisis-impact-on-the-real-economy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Private pension provisions</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Demography is an enormous challenge for our pension system. Are we sure we&#8217;re going to receive an adequate and sustainable pension in the future? This report from the Social Protection Committee explores pension payment systems across some European countries and their privately funded part in particular. There is no doubt, the authors say, that private pension provisions can really help people to maintain a certain level of income and consumption once retired.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 28 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/private-pension-provisions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/private-pension-provisions/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The energy [R]evolution</title>
<description><![CDATA[ When and how are we going to fight global warming? From Greenpeace, the time for the energy [r]evolution has arrived. It still needs political support though. In this report, Greenpeace advances different energy scenarios and recalls the advantages of renewable energy for the transport sector. It also gives important policy recommendations for the energy [r]evolution&#8217;s activation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 28 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-energy-r-evolution/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-energy-r-evolution/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Unconventional Fossil-Based Fuels</title>
<description><![CDATA[ There&#8217;s a lot of uncertainty about the future evolution of oil prices and we still do not seem to want to abandon this fossil-based energy source for less polluting ones. In this report, the RAND Corporation argues that it is possible to develop new technologies for limiting CO2 emissions. And surprisingly these alternatives can be unconventional fuels extracted out of oil and coal. To a certain extend, these unconventional fossil-based fuels can even become cost competitive if compared to our precious petroleum.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 28 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unconventional-fossil-based-fuels/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unconventional-fossil-based-fuels/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Bank control by the public authorities</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Eventhough it&#8217;s important to be preoccupied by stability, it&#8217;s absolutely not desirable that the public authorities are permanently present within our financial institutions.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 25 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bank-control-by-the-public-authorities/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/bank-control-by-the-public-authorities/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Debating thresholds in assessing health technology</title>
<description><![CDATA[ To prioritize spending of taxpayers&#8217; money on healthcare, one way is known as Health Technology Assessment (HTA). To evaluate treatments in terms of their utility, HTA institutions have measured the benefits of a treatment as the period by which one&#8217;s life is extended and improved. This may sound (too?) scientific but does not exclude making a choice on an economic threshold of a given medicine, according to this Stockholm Network paper. There is a lot of room for improving today&#8217;s threshold concept before it can actually be used, the authors argue. Thresholds would need to be made more explicit and transparent, while taking into consideration the quality of evidence for instance.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/debating-thresholds-in-assessing-health-technology/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/debating-thresholds-in-assessing-health-technology/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Privatization and changes in the wage structure</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With the financial crisis and the government&#8217;s subsequent increased role in the economy, the question whether to privatize firms or not is certainly as relevant now as it was under Thatcher. The first to be affected by those kinds of decisions are the workers of the considered firms. This IZA publication for example found that wage and wage growth distributions widened significantly after privatization. The central questions really remain however who the winners and the losers are and why?]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/privatization-and-changes-in-the-wage-structure/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/privatization-and-changes-in-the-wage-structure/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>State under pressure</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The evolution of the financial crisis and the attempts to end it announced the return of the State. This ideological shift should not impede us from detecting its challenges though: the State is put under a lot of pressure and our public service needs a global organizational modification.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 20 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/state-under-pressure/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/state-under-pressure/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>A nuclear cordon sanitaire</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What to learn from a new report on the Belgian energy mix?]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 19 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-nuclear-cordon-sanitaire/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-nuclear-cordon-sanitaire/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Budgetary extravagance kills Keynes</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Because we did not save our margins when the economy was doing well, the average employee will have to pay an extra &#8364;3700. This also implicates we will not have the budgetary means of effectively stimulating the economy. Had we saved the decreasing interest charges in stead of spending them, this effort would have been minimal.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 19 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/budgetary-extravagance-kills-keynes/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/budgetary-extravagance-kills-keynes/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Succeeding in reforming the state</title>
<description><![CDATA[ State reforms abroad teach us an important lesson: their success depends on the focus that is being put on the role and mission of a public service to achieve internal as well as external adhesion. But one should also give state reforms the necessary time and means to involve society as a whole.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 19 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/succeeding-in-reforming-the-state/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/succeeding-in-reforming-the-state/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Taking inspiration from Finland to increase the employment rate of our seniors</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the mid 90s, Finland was far from shining with an extensive use of its mature labour forces. However, by making active ageing one of the priorities of its employment policy, it is at present one of the European leaders regarding the participation of seniors in the labour market. Na&#239;m Cordemans and Jean Hindriks analyse the policies led by Finland and invite Belgian politics to take inspiration from it.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 19 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/taking-inspiration-from-finland-to-increase-the-employment-rate-of-our-seniors/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/taking-inspiration-from-finland-to-increase-the-employment-rate-of-our-seniors/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Fortis Saga </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Thanks to deposits banks are able to finance their activities at a fixed interest rate. Their profit is therefore potentially unlimited which gives them huge incentives to take risks. This is why there have always been and there will always be banking crisis, notwithstanding well intended regulation like Bazel II and the regulation that is about to replace it.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 19 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-fortis-saga/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-fortis-saga/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Active labour market policy: synergies and trade-offs</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What benefits can be attained from an active labour market policy? Author R&#248;ed investigates and found that an active labour market policy is not only good for finding a job, but also for the quality of the job found. Choices still need to be made though: higher unemployment benefits, for example, increase the quality of the found job, but also the length of the period of unemployment. Activation measures boost the probability of finding a job quickly, but diminish its expected allowance.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 17 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/active-labour-market-policy-synergies-and-trade-offs/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/active-labour-market-policy-synergies-and-trade-offs/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Low education level and position on the labour market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How can a low education level influence one&#8217;s working conditions and probability to keep a job? This report from the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions investigates how low-skilled workers position themselves on the labour market in the 27 EU member states. Not surprisingly, education and training has to be encouraged before and during one&#8217;s career, says the report. This way, we can stabilize the employment rate, improve social mobility and increase our economic competitivity.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 17 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/low-education-level-and-position-on-the-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/low-education-level-and-position-on-the-labour-market/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The civil servant and the unemployed</title>
<description><![CDATA[ When jobs in the private sector are not competitive anymore, public employment is an easy option to make sure people have a job. This is the Scandinavian model. But a better solution is to subsidize employment, as service coupons in Belgium are successfully doing by creating 65.000 jobs.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 17 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-civil-servant-and-the-unemployed/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-civil-servant-and-the-unemployed/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Global Gender Gap</title>
<description><![CDATA[ We hear a lot of talking on the wage disparities between men and women, about the low proportion of women in the higher political and economic realms, and about their growing access to education. But what is the actual situation today? This report from the World Economic Forum investigates gender inequalities in more than 115 countries, Belgium included.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 17 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-global-gender-gap/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-global-gender-gap/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The necessity of a bailout should not become a habit</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos warns that the bailout in the financial sector was necessary to avoid a systemic crisis. This is not the case for the car industry. If we turn the necessity to a bailout into a habit we will sow the seeds of our own economic demise.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 17 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-necessity-of-a-bailout-should-not-become-a-habit/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-necessity-of-a-bailout-should-not-become-a-habit/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>What can be learnt from the Dutch integration story?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In what social and economic areas is the gap between autochthones and immigrants closing? And in what areas nothing has changed? What factors are determining? This year report 2008 of the Dutch bureau for statistics is a source of inspiration about the actual situation of the social integration processes. And for a country like Belgium which is very close to the Netherlands according to the Migration Policy Index, this report can be an important source of inspiration on what to do, and what not to do.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 17 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-can-be-learnt-from-the-dutch-integration-story/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-can-be-learnt-from-the-dutch-integration-story/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Fight against poverty and battle against the middle class&#8217; economic progression</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How consistent is the war on poverty to high tax rates for low incomes?]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fight-against-poverty-and-battle-against-the-middle-class-economic-progression/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fight-against-poverty-and-battle-against-the-middle-class-economic-progression/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Obama's impossible task</title>
<description><![CDATA[ From the beginning, it was clear Obama's electoral promises were unrealistic. And the financial crisis is the perfect excuse to proceed to the matters at hand and leave the promises for what they were. Of course, the matter at hand is to clean the mess and limit the damages from the financial cataclysm.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/obamas-impossible-task/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/obamas-impossible-task/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Brussels&#8217; economic paradox</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Economically, our capital seems to suffer from schizophrenia. On the one hand it accommodates the headquarters of Belgium&#8217;s most important businesses and the European institutions, but on the other hand Brussels is also known for its economic and social problems. This report gives an overview on Brussels&#8217; key poverty indicators such as unemployment and housing, and notices that there are important differences between the municipalities of the Brussels region. Can this be related with the extra complicated fragmentation of competences in our capital city? ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 10 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/brussels-economic-paradox/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/brussels-economic-paradox/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Effect of tax reduction on job vacancy and unemployment</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The unemployment rate in Belgium remains relatively high with respect to other European countries. However, some job vacancies are still open. This nota realized by the KUL analyses the possibility of reducing fiscal pressure in order to solve these two issues. It also makes a comparison between Belgium and Denmark by examining the influence some factors like education and transfers may have on the unemployment rate.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 10 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/effect-of-tax-reduction-on-job-vacancy-and-unemployment/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/effect-of-tax-reduction-on-job-vacancy-and-unemployment/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Fiscal reform: impact on the consumption of Belgian households</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The objective of the fiscal reform introduced in 2002 by the government Verhofstadt II was to reduce Belgian households&#8217; taxes in order to stimulate Belgium&#8217;s macroeconomic activity. But has this fiscal policy yielded the expected results? This study from Regards Economiques of October 2008 analyses to which extend Belgian households&#8217; consumption was influenced by this reform.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 10 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fiscal-reform-impact-on-the-consumption-of-belgian-households/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fiscal-reform-impact-on-the-consumption-of-belgian-households/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Stimulating the profession of general practitioner (GP)</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The profession of GP could become a bottleneck profession. Given the estimated growth in demand for healthcare in the future this is bad news. So what factors influence attraction, recruitment and professional loyalty of GPs in Belgium then? This is the key question in this report from the Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre. Recommendations towards the medical faculties, the working conditions and the job&#8217;s financial aspects are also made, since these appear to be decisive for GPs (to be) in the exercise of their profession. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 10 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/stimulating-the-profession-of-general-practitioner/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/stimulating-the-profession-of-general-practitioner/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Welcome, mister President</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The election of Barack Obama has turned out to be an historical inevitability. Marc De Vos indicates that the greatest strength of candidate Obama is also the greatest risk of president Obama. At the international level we need an American president, not only of dialogue but also of audacity and action.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 06 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/welcome-mister-president/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/welcome-mister-president/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Sarkozy: an inspiration for reforming the Belgian healthcare system ?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Could Nicolas Sarkozy&#8217;s bill &#8220;H&#244;pital, patients, sant&#233;, territoire&#8221; serve as a source of inspiration for future reforms of the Belgian healthcare system? Fran&#231;ois Daue en Brieuc Van Damme critically scrutinized the text to extract its priorities and most interesting proposals for Belgium.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 05 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/sarkozy-an-inspiration-for-reforming-the-belgian-healthcare-system/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/sarkozy-an-inspiration-for-reforming-the-belgian-healthcare-system/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Beyond Copernicus: From Confusion to Consensus?: a Roadmap for an better Government-PRESENTATION </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The 2000 Copernicus reform has faded away before flourishing. Belgium has the highest public spending and public employment in the OECD and still the relative quality and quantity of public services remain disappointing.  With so many challenges ahead such as globalisation, population aging, the race for talents, the digital revolution, it is urgent to send a wake-up call for a government that is steering and not rowing. Jean Hindriks makes the diagnosis and suggests several &#8220;quick wins&#8221;.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 04 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/beyond-copernicus-from-confusion-to-consensus-a-roadmap-for-an-better-government-presentation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/beyond-copernicus-from-confusion-to-consensus-a-roadmap-for-an-better-government-presentation/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Microsoft%20PowerPoint%20-%2020081029A-%20Efficiency%20presentation%20Final%20[Compatibility%20Mode].pdf" length="1774358" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>A new dismissal regulation is necessary</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos reacts against the demand of the employers&#8217; organisation to limit the redundancy period for blue collar workers. We need a new dismissal regulation that promotes employability and where the redundancy period is only one pillar. Not higher or lower, but different, that is the message.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 03 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-new-dismissal-regulation-is-necessary/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-new-dismissal-regulation-is-necessary/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>In-work poverty is weak in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This paper regards the incidence of in-work poverty and how it is reduced by the payment of social transfers in 20 European countries. Belgium appears as the country with the lowest pre-transfer in-work poverty and is ranked third regarding post-transfer in-work poverty. The paper attributes this to a high level of bargaining centralisation and to generous social benefits.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 03 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/in-work-poverty-is-weak-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/in-work-poverty-is-weak-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>R&amp;D: Europe progresses, but the efforts need to be pursued</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to the 2008 EU Industrial R&amp;D Investment Scoreboard of the European Commission, with 8,8 %, companies of the EU show for the first time a stronger growth of the R&amp;D investments than their Americans counterparts (8,6 %). The research intensity, that is the ratio between R&amp;D and net sales, stays nevertheless very superior in the United States, where it establishes, on average at 4,5 % against 2,7 % in Europe. Besides, the R&amp;D of the private sector in Europe represents only 1 % of the gross domestic product, what would indicate that an increasing part of the investments in R&amp;D of the European firms is made outside the Union. We get closer to the Lisbon objectives, but the efforts need to be pursued to hope reaching them.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 03 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/r-d-europe-progresses-but-the-efforts-need-to-be-pursued/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/r-d-europe-progresses-but-the-efforts-need-to-be-pursued/</guid>
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<title>The wage disparities progress</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to this report from the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the financial globalisation contributes to increasing the wage disparities. It argues that income disparities have increased, notably under the influence of &quot;performance based payment systems&#8221;. Without surprise, Belgium shows wage gaps among the lowest in comparison with other advanced economies. Between 1990 and 2000, it is however the country which shows the strongest progress of the disparities, with Finland and Sweden. To be closely watched.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 03 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-wage-disparities-progress/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-wage-disparities-progress/</guid>
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<title>Beyond Copernicus: From Confusion to Consensus?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p class="MsoNormal" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" align="justify">The 2000 Copernicus reform has faded away before flourishing. Belgium has the highest public spending and public employment in the OECD and still the relative quality and quantity of public services remain disappointing.&nbsp; With so many challenges ahead such as globalisation, population aging, the race for talents, the digital revolution, it is urgent to send a wake-up call for a government that is steering and not rowing. The quality of government is a serious comparative advantage in the international competition.</p><p align="justify">&nbsp;</p><p align="justify">The debate on public sector performance is too often reduced to stereotypes and slogans. Under the supervision of leading experts and with the consultations of top public managers, the Itinera Institute has submitted the whole Belgian public sector, both federal and regional, to a full independent review based on official reports and up-to-date information. The verdict is clear: the Belgian public sector is underperforming. To go further, we provide a set of innovative and concrete actions for better performance and higher aspirations in the government in our groundbreaking book: &ldquo;Beyond Copernicus: From Confusion to Consensus?&quot;.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" align="center"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB">&nbsp;</span></b></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 30 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/beyond/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/beyond/</guid>
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<title>Beyond Copernicus: From Confusion to Consensus?: a roadmap for an better Government - MEMENTO</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The 2000 Copernicus reform has faded away before flourishing. Belgium has the highest public spending and public employment in the OECD and still the relative quality and quantity of public services remain disappointing.  With so many challenges ahead such as globalisation, population aging, the race for talents, the digital revolution, it is urgent to send a wake-up call for a government that is steering and not rowing. Jean Hindriks makes the diagnosis and suggests several &#8220;quick wins&#8221;.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 30 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/beyondcopernicusfromconfusiontoconsensusaroadmapforanbettergovernmentmemento/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/beyondcopernicusfromconfusiontoconsensusaroadmapforanbettergovernmentmemento/</guid>
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<title>Beyond Copernicus: From Confusion to Consensus?: a scenario for an improved public sector</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The 2000 Copernicus reform has faded away before flourishing. Belgium has the highest public spending and public employment in the OECD and still the relative quality and quantity of public services remain disappointing.  With so many challenges ahead such as globalisation, population aging, the race for talents, the digital revolution, it is urgent to send a wake-up call for a government that is steering and not rowing. Jean Hindriks makes the diagnosis and suggests several “quick wins”.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 30 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/beyond-copernicus-from-confusion-to-consensus-a-scenario-for-an-improved-public-sector/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/beyond-copernicus-from-confusion-to-consensus-a-scenario-for-an-improved-public-sector/</guid>
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<title>Beyond Copernicus: From Confusion to Consensus?: a roadmap for an better Government</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The 2000 Copernicus reform has faded away before flourishing. Belgium has the highest public spending and public employment in the OECD and still the relative quality and quantity of public services remain disappointing.  With so many challenges ahead such as globalisation, population aging, the race for talents, the digital revolution, it is urgent to send a wake-up call for a government that is steering and not rowing. Jean Hindriks makes the diagnosis and suggests several &#8220;quick wins&#8221;.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 29 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/beyond-copernicus-from-confusion-to-consensus-a-roadmap-for-an-better-government/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/beyond-copernicus-from-confusion-to-consensus-a-roadmap-for-an-better-government/</guid>
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<title>In search of attention</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Publishing is vital for scientists. With the growing number of scientists, the amount of publications and scientific journals is increasing tremendously. This does not mean attention is allocated efficiently though: those who receive a lot of attention will only receive more, whether that recognition is justified or not.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 29 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/in-search-of-attention/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/in-search-of-attention/</guid>
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<title>Belgium is economically free but less than one year ago</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium&#8217;s economy is 71.5 percent free according to the Economic Freedom Index 2008, which makes it the world&#8217;s 20th and Europe&#8217;s 10th freest economy. This is a 0.9 percentage point decrease from last year, primarily reflecting increased government spending. Contrary to common thoughts, it is emphasized that creating a Business in Belgium is easy and fast, but it is also recalled that income as well as company taxes are amongst the World&#8217;s highest. This can be a serious handicap in an ever-more globalizing world.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 24 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-is-economically-free-but-less-than-one-year-ago/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-is-economically-free-but-less-than-one-year-ago/</guid>
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<title>Benefits of circular migration</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Circular migration is a continuing, long-term, and fluid pattern of international mobility of people among countries that occupy what is now recognized as a single economic space. According to this MPI Insight, both countries of origin and destination gain from this international mobility because it conforms to the natural preferences of many migrants and makes labour markets more flexible &#8211; an important instrument to cushion asymmetric shocks (economic shocks that hit countries differently) in Europe for example. Removing administrative obstacles to mobility and developing flexible long-term residence permits are only two of the many other policy recommendations advanced in this article. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 24 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/benefits-of-circular-migration/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/benefits-of-circular-migration/</guid>
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<title>Electricity from the North Sea needs investments in a backbone grid</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Electricity, not oil, is the heart of our energy economy. Electricity is relatively cheap and we have sufficient technologies and energy supplies to generate it &#8211; just think of the advances in renewable energy technologies. The production of electricity will be less centralised and, according to the Manhattan Institute, this evolution will only be possible if investments in a backbone grid are made. With the start of energy production in the North Sea this challenge is particularly relevant for Belgium. 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 24 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/electricity-from-the-north-sea-needs-investments-in-a-backbone-grid/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/electricity-from-the-north-sea-needs-investments-in-a-backbone-grid/</guid>
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<title>What is to know about corporations&#8217; learning curve</title>
<description><![CDATA[ More competition enhances productivity: it stimulates corporations to work more efficiently and gives them incentives to learn from other domestic companies. According to the Dutch Central Plan Bureau, the know-how present within domestic companies is more important than the know-how abroad. This is why companies have to invest in R&amp;D, to be capable of imitating. This is also why foreign companies have to be given a real opportunity to settle in Belgium. In these turbulent economic times, protectionism is thus not an option. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 24 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-is-to-know-about-corporations-learning-curve/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-is-to-know-about-corporations-learning-curve/</guid>
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<title>Marx, Darwin or Marx..?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With the financial crisis, capitalism is under attack and in need of solutions. Johan Albrecht wonders whether Marx or Darwin could help.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 21 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/marx-darwin-or-marx/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/marx-darwin-or-marx/</guid>
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<title>How Is the Economic Turmoil Affecting Older Workers</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This paper from the Urban Institute examines the impact of the ongoing economic turmoil on retirement savings, home values, and retirement decisions. The slumping stock market, falling housing prices, and weakening economy have serious repercussions for older Americans who are approaching retirement or already retired. More and more older adults are working to bolster their retirement incomes, but the rising unemployment rate limits their prospects. In Belgium, the turmoil may also incite older workers to work later.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-is-the-economic-turmoil-affecting-older-workers/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-is-the-economic-turmoil-affecting-older-workers/</guid>
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<title>Is free higher education really democratic?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ At first sight, free higher education is a good thing. Nonetheless, this article from the Institut Montaigne reminds us that this is contrary to the initial concept of democratisation. Higher education is indeed being financed by taxes from all to benefit largely the better off that are going to college without having any difficulties paying for it. This article makes several suggestions to make individual efforts in financing higher education more efficient and equitable.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/is-free-higher-education-really-democratic/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/is-free-higher-education-really-democratic/</guid>
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<title>Our castle complex</title>
<description><![CDATA[ We need a serious reflexion on how to handle the most important moment of the parliamentary year, which is the vote of the budget. Our budget draughtsmen suffer from the typically Belgian &#8220;castle complex&#8221;. In stead of preparing the measures thoroughly, to communicate them to all the interested parties and experts, they lock themselves up in a castle until everybody is so tired they accept about anything.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/our-castle-complex/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/our-castle-complex/</guid>
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<title>What are the effects of a flat tax?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This IZA paper studies the effect of flat tax (referring to a tax with a single rate) reforms in Western Europe on income distribution and work incentives. The simulation of the authors shows that a revenue neutral flat tax with existing basic allowances improves labor supply incentives, but results in higher inequality. It also shows that under some conditions flat taxes may increase both equity and efficiency, but Belgium does not qualify for such statement.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-are-the-effects-of-a-flat-tax/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-are-the-effects-of-a-flat-tax/</guid>
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<title>Working against moonlighting</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This report from, the result of a collaboration between Li&#232;ge University and Leuven University, tries to sketch a picture of the size and evolution of moonlighting in Belgium. According to the authors, clear political will and the unambiguous support of the trade unions and the employers&#8217; federations are needed to fight moonlighting. We would have a better understanding of this hidden reality and we&#8217;d observe a more efficient control &#8211; with all the positive budgetary consequences that this implies.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/working-against-moonlighting/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/working-against-moonlighting/</guid>
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<title>The State of the Union is lamentable</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos parodies the annual Belgian &#8220;State of the Union&#8221; and declares it to be lamentable. The federal budget is shocking.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 16 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-state-of-the-union-is-lamentable/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-state-of-the-union-is-lamentable/</guid>
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<title>Confidence makes the economy running</title>
<description><![CDATA[ For markets to be efficient you need trust &#8211; morality can take care of that. We found this range of thought already with Adam Smith.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 13 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/confidence-makes-the-economy-running/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/confidence-makes-the-economy-running/</guid>
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<title>Labour in the future</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Labour and ideas about labour have changed a lot over time. In times of important demographic change, labour is given an even more important place in the societal debate and one&#8217;s individual life path. This report from the Netwerk Toekomstverkenningen painted four possible scenarios of how labour could evolve in the future, each with its own array of opportunities and problems. The key question is whether we&#8217;ll have to work to live, or live to work? It will probably be something in between but it will most certainly be different.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 13 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-in-the-future/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-in-the-future/</guid>
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<title>Obama vs. McCain: Competing Health Care Visions</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In this paper, the Council for Affordable Health Insurance gives its views on the U.S. presidential candidates&#8217; health care policies. What to do with the uninsured and how could access be improved? What do senators McCain and Obama think of transparency and price control? What are the other areas of reform? You&#8217;ll find everything about it in this short but comprehensive paper.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 13 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/obama-vs-mccain-competing-health-care-visions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/obama-vs-mccain-competing-health-care-visions/</guid>
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<title>University accessibility and university quality do not always go hand in hand</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With more and more high-school graduates going on to university, governments face tough decisions on funding and quality standards to ensure that their education systems respond adequately to booming demand for degrees, a new OECD publication shows. In Belgium too, governments will have to cut the knot: university accessibility and university quality do not necessarily go hand in hand.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 13 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/university-accessibility-and-university-quality-do-not-always-go-hand-in-hand/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/university-accessibility-and-university-quality-do-not-always-go-hand-in-hand/</guid>
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<title>Main street after the meltdown</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The financial crisis in bringing havoc but the real economy can sustain as long as competitiveness remains pivotal for policymakers.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 10 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/main-street-after-the-meltdown/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/main-street-after-the-meltdown/</guid>
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<title>Confidence and the credit market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The banking channel, which allows with a limited initial quantity of money to carry the economy at a higher level through the lever of credit, requires, almost by definition that, in period of distrust, - as recently on the inter-bank market - it is the central bank which supplies liquid assets.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 08 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/confidence-and-the-credit-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/confidence-and-the-credit-market/</guid>
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<title>How to increase old workers employment rate?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This paper investigates the influences on retirement behavior among older workers. It is found that increases in all categories of wealth (pension, housing equity and other financial wealth) raise the probability of retiring, while good earnings prospects induce continued employment. These results suggest that increasing the employment rate of older workers in Belgium can be done through making work pay more at an old age or increasing pension allocations for those who retire later.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 06 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-increase-old-workers-employment-rate/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-increase-old-workers-employment-rate/</guid>
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<title>Off-shoring and immigration of skilled workers fosters competitiveness</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to this Bruegel policybrief, Europe&#8217;s corporations are changing the way they do business, in a context of increasing competition and scarcity of top-talent. They are slicing up the value chain and introducing flatter chains of command in order to cut costs and woo the highly skilled workers. Contrary to popular belief, both off-shoring to the near-abroad and immigration of skilled workers can foster European competitiveness and help keep jobs in Europe. This is also highly relevant for a small open economy like Belgium.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 06 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/off-shoring-and-immigration-of-skilled-workers-fosters-competitiveness/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/off-shoring-and-immigration-of-skilled-workers-fosters-competitiveness/</guid>
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<title>The labour market can benefit from a greener economy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the green growth is promising for the labour market: 2 to 3,5 millions jobs could for example be created in Europe and in the United States if big energy efficiency construction sites were launched in the construction sector. This is what comes out of this report which estimates, at the horizon 2030, the job creation potential from a shift towards a less polluting economy. ILO agrees however that the evolution towards a green economy may encounter financing and manpower problems in several developed countries.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 06 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-labour-market-can-benefit-from-a-greener-economy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-labour-market-can-benefit-from-a-greener-economy/</guid>
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<title>Welcome to the health economy!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ We are spending an increasing amount of our budget on health care. Private as well as public health expenses are growing spectacularly: 5% on average every year over the past 25 years! What&#8217;s to blame? In fact, the main suspects are our own preferences: the richer we get the more we are willing to spend on healthcare. This NBER paper found an income elasticity for health services of 1.6, meaning that income expenditures on health care in the U.S. are likely to reach 29 percent of the GDP by 2040! This confirms earlier findings of the Belgian Plan Bureau. Welcome to the health economy!]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 06 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/welcome-to-the-health-economy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/welcome-to-the-health-economy/</guid>
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<title>The financial capitalism subject to scathing criticism</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Banks will have to go back to a human level, what has not been the case for a long time with the modern American banking model. It is also going to affect the wages in the banking sector. Another lesson that we have to draw is that the complete faith in very sophisticated models contains enormous risks. It also brings to light the reasons for which the &quot;nice&quot; Belgian banks are affected by the crisis.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 03 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-financial-capitalism-subject-to-scathing-criticism/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-financial-capitalism-subject-to-scathing-criticism/</guid>
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<title>Towards a new financial capitalism</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos explains that the credit crisis is not only a case of market failure, but also of regulatory failure. Crisis management is necessary, but a new and better regulatory framework needs to be developed quickly. Government must play its role as regulator, stabilizer, currency holder, and lender of last resort. But government cannot replace the market itself.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 01 Oct 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-new-financial-capitalism/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/towards-a-new-financial-capitalism/</guid>
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<title>Break the Belgian Paradox</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos explains that small countries are typically homogeneous and flexible, while Belgium is heterogeneous and rigid precisely because it is small. This Belgian paradox needs to be broken to avoid the current institutional crisis from degenerating into years of political instability. An institutional catharsis is needed to secure the social and economic future.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 29 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/break-the-belgian-paradox/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/break-the-belgian-paradox/</guid>
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<title>Credit for knowledge</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The last couple of years we have lived with the illusion that wealth is only a matter of numbers by selling homes to an ever higher price. Yet, we knew wealth is not generated by making one bigger bet after the other, but by technological progress.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 29 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/credit-for-knowledge/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/credit-for-knowledge/</guid>
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<title>Slender, obese or unconstrained? An analysis of public employment in Belgium between 2001 and 2007</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Public employment did grow by 11.75% in Belgium while the growth of total employment was 6.1%. In Flanders, public employment is bigger than inFlanders How sustainable is this evolution?']]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 29 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/slender-obese-or-unconstrained-an-analysi-of-public-employment-in-belgium-between-2001-and-2007/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/slender-obese-or-unconstrained-an-analysi-of-public-employment-in-belgium-between-2001-and-2007/</guid>
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<title>Slender, obese or unconstrained? An analysis of public employment in Belgium between 2001 and 2007</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Public employment did grow by 11.75% in Belgium while the growth of total employment was 6.1%. In Flanders, public employment is bigger than inFlanders How sustainable is this evolution?']]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 25 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/slender-obese-or-unconstrained-an-analysi-of-public-employment-in-belgium-between-2001-and-2007/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/slender-obese-or-unconstrained-an-analysi-of-public-employment-in-belgium-between-2001-and-2007/</guid>
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<item>
<title> What a glass of wine can do (to one&#8217;s health)</title>
<description><![CDATA[ To evaluate one&#8217;s health, insurance companies might need to ask what one&#8217;s daily consumption of wine is. Studies have indeed shown that wine consumption and health are closely correlated. The question however remains in what direction causality goes: is wine drinking healthy or are healthy people drinking more wine? Because wine consumption is associated to a balanced and comfortable lifestyle, the latter seems more accurate: the circumstances in which one grows lives and works determine one&#8217;s health and the possibilities to fight illness and disability. So not wine, but social position create health inequalities. This World Health Organisation report scrutinizes what can be done to promote health equity in different countries, including Belgium, and suggests three principles of action to closing the gap in one generation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-a-glass-of-wine-can-do-to-ones-health/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-a-glass-of-wine-can-do-to-ones-health/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Ageing, demographic uncertainty and its economic impact</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Because of ageing, the ratio of retirees to workers is going to increase steadily, which is going to increase pressure on the public finances and the economy in general in the decades to come. Nevertheless, because of the uncertainty regarding future demographic developments, the exact extend of the problem is unknown. This impedes on a country&#8217;s budgetary strategy: how much less are we aloud to spend? How will economic uncertainty be affected and how will that affect investments? In this paper; the Dutch Plan bureau makes an attempt to estimate the role of uncertainty and discuss possible outcomes.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-demographic-uncertainty-and-its-economic-impact/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-demographic-uncertainty-and-its-economic-impact/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Entrepreneurship as a source of wealth</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Some entrepreneurs chose for the profession out of necessity while others made a deliberate choice in order to grasp a business opportunity. For the first group, push factors like the small amount of job opportunities triggered by a high unemployment were a sufficient motivation. This can probably explain why Flanders&#8217; part of self employed is higher than in Wallonia compared to total population, but not compared to the working population. The employment rate is just lower in the south of the country.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/entrepreneurship-as-a-source-of-wealth/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/entrepreneurship-as-a-source-of-wealth/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>High food prices: temporary bubble or structural disaster?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A year ago food prices stopped decreasing. At first, the speculators and high energy prices were blamed. Later, the Chinese, whose meat consumption is increasing every day, and the bio fuels were held responsible. But has it occurred to you that all of these factors are on the demand side? This is why the Dutch Plan bureau concludes that production will have to grow faster if we do not want to start living in a world of scarcity. This temporary bubble cannot become structural; there are just too many lives at stake.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/high-food-prices-temporary-bubble-or-structural-disaster/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/high-food-prices-temporary-bubble-or-structural-disaster/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How do outsourcing and taxation affect employment and welfare?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This Iza paper analyses how international outsourcing and labour taxation affect wage formation, employment and welfare. It shows that higher productivity and lower outsourcing costs increase wage dispersion between skilled and unskilled workers. Increasing wage tax progression increases the labour demand for unskilled workers, but decreases their welfare. On the contrary, it increases the welfare of skilled workers and the profit of firms. These results suggest that there may be a trade-off between employment and welfare for the unskilled workers. Reducing personal income tax rates for low-income workers, on the other hand, could positively affect both.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-do-outsourcing-and-taxation-affect-employment-and-welfare/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-do-outsourcing-and-taxation-affect-employment-and-welfare/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Our nuclear housekeeping</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Two weeks ago, there was a discharge of nuclear iodine at the Institute for Radio-elements in Fleurus. This incident raises questions on how to manage such risks.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/our-nuclear-housekeeping/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/our-nuclear-housekeeping/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Sustainable development needs the support of everyone</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This working paper of the Bureau du Plan discusses two different scenarios which should both lead to a sustainable development. The first one, &quot;the pyramid&quot;, emphasizes a strengthened international cooperation and large-scale technical progress. The second, &quot;Mosaic&quot;, rests on national ambitions and the change of individual behavior. Whatever is the scenario, the Bureau du Plan insists on the indispensable support from the citizens for the project of sustainable development. Remember: to consume is to choose the world in which one wants to live.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/sustainable-development-needs-the-support-of-everyone/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/sustainable-development-needs-the-support-of-everyone/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Temporary agency work as a transition for a more efficient labour market? Reflection.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Following the lecture of Jan Denys, Randstad, of the 17th of September, Fons Leroy, VDAB, answers.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/temporary-agency-work-as-a-transition-for-a-more-efficient-labour-market-reflection/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/temporary-agency-work-as-a-transition-for-a-more-efficient-labour-market-reflection/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The social cost of carbon: towards a bankrupt or collectivised economy?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Nowadays, very few people doubt the effects of dioxide emissions on climate change. The measures taken to slow the process down and limit as much as possible irreversible damages are costly, but its effects might well be priceless. In this article, Richard Tol estimates polluting effects inflicted to and borne by the society as a whole &#8211; the so-called social cost. His conclusion: &#8220;if everyone were to pay a carbon price equal to the social cost of carbon [&#8230;], there is a fair chance that annual taxes would exceed annual income for many people. If the carbon price is a liability, this would imply bankruptcy. If the carbon price is a tax, this would imply complete collectivisation of the economy&#8221;. This definitely justifies greenhouse gas reduction today!]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-social-cost-of-carbon-towards-a-bankrupt-or-collectivised-economy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-social-cost-of-carbon-towards-a-bankrupt-or-collectivised-economy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Luncheon Lecture: Temporary agency work as a transition for a more efficient labour market?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p>Itinera Institute Luncheon Lecture&nbsp;</p><p>Temporary agency work in Belgium is traditionally considered as important in the transition from school to work and from inactivity to work. Jan Denys (Randstad) argues that temporary agency work is also crucial in the work-work transition, and expresses clear recommendations towards a better policy for an efficient labour market. Fons Leroy, (VDAB) concludes the lecture with an objective reflection.<br/></p><p>&nbsp;</p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/the-role-of-temporary-agency-work-in-a-traditional-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/the-role-of-temporary-agency-work-in-a-traditional-labour-market/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Temporary Agency Work as a Transition for a more efficient Labour Market?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Temporary agency work has known an important expansion during the last 40 years.  Today, 3,3 million agency workers are employed on a daily basis in the European Union. In 2012 they will be 5 million. The penetration rate is the most common indicator to measure the impact of agency work on the labour market.  This indicator compares the share of agency workers with the total number of employed people. Belgium has a penetration rate of 2,5%.  In this contribution we want to measure the impact of agency work in another way.  We apply the concept of the transitional labour market, developed by the German sociologist Gunther Schmidt. The transitional labour market model focuses on the transitions between school and education, work, unemployment, inactivity (household activities) and retirement.  A smooth transition between these different activities is an important feature of a well-functioning labour market. We will examine the the role of agency work in these different transitions. Traditionally, agency work is considered as important in the transition from school to work and from inactivity to work. Our analysis of the Belgian situation shows that agency work is crucial in the transition from work to work as well.  In this contribution we try to benchmark Belgium on an international basis.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/temporary-agency-work-as-a-transition-for-a-more-efficient-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/temporary-agency-work-as-a-transition-for-a-more-efficient-labour-market/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Exceptionally gifted children: A potential to be exploited in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ At the moment, the attention paid to the wasted talents that are the exceptionally gifted children who got through the stitches of the net increases slightly. However, it is still very likely that a large number of them will drop out somehow during the school year 2008-2009.
In this report, we develop solutions proposals which rest on a systematic and premature detection. We demonstrate besides that such an investment is profitable on the short run and that there is thus no place for delay on this topic. Even in period of budgetary illness.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 16 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/exceptionally-gifted-children-a-potential-to-be-exploited-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/exceptionally-gifted-children-a-potential-to-be-exploited-in-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Gifted children, unused potential</title>
<description><![CDATA[ At the moment, the attention paid to the wasted talents that are the exceptionally gifted children who got through the stitches of the net increases slightly. However, it is still very likely that a large number of them will drop out somehow during the school year 2008-2009.
In this report, we develop solutions proposals which rest on a systematic and premature detection. We demonstrate besides that such an investment is profitable on the short run and that there is thus no place for delay on this topic. Even in period of budgetary illness.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 16 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gifted-children-unused-potential/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gifted-children-unused-potential/</guid>
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<title>Migration policy: Belgium is lagging behind, but progresses</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This OECD report provides a broad update of migration policies and contains notably a &#8220;scoreboard&#8221; of immigrant employment integration. Belgium appears in the very bottom league regarding the gap between foreign-born and the native-born: It is ranked last but one, just before Poland. The immigrant employment rate in our country appears among the lowest in the OECD area, while foreign-born unemployment rate appears among the highest. In 2006, only one immigrant in two was employed. The outcome improves when the education profile is taken into account (57%), but not enough to change Belgium&#8217;s position. Despite these bad performances, one can however note that Belgium has made considerable progress since 2001, especially in the case of immigrant women.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 12 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migration-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migration-policy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>What performances for public expenditures in Belgium?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This Working Paper of the Belgian National Bank assesses the relative efficiency of Belgian general government in the field of health care, education and public order and safety. Several drawbacks indicate that results must be interpreted cautiously, but these drawbacks aside, several interesting results appear. The analysis reveals for example that Belgium is relatively efficient in the field of health care. It shows that, as a whole, the Belgian education system is more expensive but also produces better results than the European average. However significant community differences exist: an analysis based on a limited set of indicators reveals that the French-speaking education sector is very inefficient while the Flemish Community&#8217;s efficiency is markedly better. As far as public order and safety are concerned, the paper concludes that, major improvements could and should be made, either to improve service or cut costs.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 12 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-performances-for-public-expenditures-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-performances-for-public-expenditures-in-belgium/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Family attention pays</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Inequality between young Americans is increasing. While the lucky ones get a college degree, the less fortunate ones, whose intellectual and socio-emotional capabilities aren&#8217;t equally developed, fight against inequality, in a part due to a lesser productivity on the labour market. For James J. Heckman (Chicago University) the environment in which these kids grow up is in part responsible for these social differences, which is why they need to be tackled right there. Today policies tend to focus on the intellectual capabilities of teenagers, while the focus should be on the young children because economically more profitable. Therefore, family plays a crucial part in the development of a child, and this is true not only for the U.S. but for every country in the world.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/family-attention-pays/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/family-attention-pays/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Patients want more voice</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This publication from the Roi Baudoin foundation is the result of a consultation which analysed the possibility for patients to be more actively involved in the Belgian health policy decision making. Foremost, patients want all patient groups to be represented in an integrated &#8211; and not fragmented &#8211; way. According to the questioned citizens, this representation would also have to be backed with extra financial means. We can only guess whether this can truly improve the quality of our healthcare system.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/patients-want-more-voice/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/patients-want-more-voice/</guid>
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<item>
<title>The Danish Employment Miracle</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Flexible hiring and firing rules, generous unemployment insurance and an active monitoring and assistance of the unemployed; those are the main elements of the Danish Flexicurity model that several Belgian politicians cite as a solution for our high unemployment rate. Many researchers stress the importance of the activation policy towards the unemployed. Others on the contrary, can not find a direct positive effect of specific assistance programs on employment. This paper builds a bridge between both views by showing that the motivation of the unemployed to find a job, ultimately comes from the threat to have to attend such an assistance program. 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-danish-employment-miracle/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-danish-employment-miracle/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Trouble in paradise</title>
<description><![CDATA[ From the start of the Euro zone, the great danger of instability that threatens a single currency area was pointed out, if no explicit transfers were possible when an asymmetric shock occurs, that hits one country more than the rest of the members. The crisis in which the European project has been involved for years (like the rejection of the European Constitution) makes the further development of its economic structure politically impossible. But like a boomerang, this could turn itself against us in the coming years.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/trouble-in-paradise/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/trouble-in-paradise/</guid>
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<title>Employment assimilation of immigrants in the Netherlands: Catching up and the irrelevance of education</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This Iza study examines employment assimilation of immigrants in The Netherlands. The authors observe marked differences between immigrants by source country: Predictably, non-western immigrants never reach parity with native Dutch, but even the second generation immigrants never fully catch-up. On the contrary, the western, immigrants seem to face no considerable difficulties on the Dutch labour market. The most striking result is however that education is irrelevant for socio-economic position of immigrants once the country of origin has been controlled for, suggesting that immigrants are still subject to discrimination.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/employment-assimilation-of-immigrants-in-the-netherlands-catching-up-and-the-irrelevance-of-education/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/employment-assimilation-of-immigrants-in-the-netherlands-catching-up-and-the-irrelevance-of-education/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Health Policy makes a difference on the labour market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Children from disadvantaged families lag behind their classmates in terms of general development. This decreases their chances of finding a decent job and may cause a vicious cycle to emerge. The traditional focus for narrowing this gap is on better schooling and closer monitoring. This paper on the other hand, shows that health policy can also be a powerful lever. Health problems occur more frequently with children from poorer families and have, when they arise, a more negative impact on the development of the child. 
One relevant policy issue surfaces in the mean time: in frameworks such as the valuable Marshall plan for Wallonia, it is probably better to foresee, in addition to fiscal and more general economic measures, a chapter on the health problems of disadvantaged children.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/health-policy-makes-a-difference-on-the-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/health-policy-makes-a-difference-on-the-labour-market/</guid>
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<title>Poorly Educated Europe</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Europe &#8211; not to mention Belgium &#8211; doesn&#8217;t have universities that are absolute world class. The immediate result is that Europe, in comparison to the United States, Australia and even China, is falling behind in the increased international competition for talented academics and students. On the longer term, however, this means that the goal of the Lisbon strategy &#8211; to make Europe the most competitive knowledge-based economy &#8211; is being jeopardized. As universities are key actors in a knowledge-based economy. This paper identifies the problems and proposes reforms that are needed to turn the tide. Bologna has put the issue on the political agenda, now the time has come to undertake action.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Sep 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/poorly-educated-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/poorly-educated-europe/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Europe vs. America</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Many of the recent economic problems have their origin in the United States: this does not mean, however, that unemployment and inflation will hit harder there. Most likely, it will be the other way around.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 26 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/europe-vs-america/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/europe-vs-america/</guid>
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<title>German reforms pay off</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A recent OECD study found that only Italy and Turkey do worse than Belgium regarding the participation of elder employees on the labour market. So, if Belgium wants to control the costs of the ageing population, activating these employees will be one of the most important challenges. We can learn something from our German neighbours in this respect, as Germany has succeeded in raising the participation of elder employees with 15% in seven years (up to 52%). On top of that, German unemployment fell with 1.2 million between 2005 and 2007. The authors of this paper conclude that these excellent results stem from reforms that made the labour market more flexible &#8211; and not solely from the upswing of the economy in the recent years &#8211; and point to a number of good practices. A must read for Belgian policy makers in other words.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 22 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/german-reforms-pay-off/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/german-reforms-pay-off/</guid>
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<title>Immigrants do not squeeze natives out of labour market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ As much as we used to think that squeezing out the older workers out of the labour market (lump of labour fallacy) would translate in to jobs for young people, believing immigrants on the labour market have the same effect on native employment is na&#239;ve. This is what follows from this NBER paper by Ottaviano and Peri who pone that immigrants and native jobs can be complementary which means the natives&#8217; wages could go up thanks to immigration.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 22 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/immigrants-do-not-squeeze-natives-out-of-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/immigrants-do-not-squeeze-natives-out-of-labour-market/</guid>
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<title>Ireland and its war on poverty</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Despite strong economic growth during the last years, Ireland still counts an important number of people who live in poverty, or who are at risk of poverty. This paper provides a detailed overview of the available options to eradicate poverty by 2016. In this regard, this paper provides an important benchmark for everyone who is concerned with the fate of approximately 1.5 million Belgians.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 22 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ireland-and-its-war-on-poverty/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ireland-and-its-war-on-poverty/</guid>
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<title>The U.S., land of economic liberalism, and sportive dirigisme</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Olympic Games are a true triumph for China: an incredible organisation and a sportive success measured by the number of medals wan. Economic research shows that authoritarian regimes are more capable to succeed in top-class sports. America&#8217;s dirigisme in sports, on the other hand, is less well-known.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 22 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-us-and-of-economic-liberalism-land-sportive-dirigisme/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-us-and-of-economic-liberalism-land-sportive-dirigisme/</guid>
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<title>A common framework for blue collar and white collar workers implies new labour market policies</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos calls for a common legal framework but stresses that it involves fundamental questions for better labour market performance. The impasse on the common framework hides a deficit of vision on labour market policy.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-common-framework-for-blue-collar-and-white-collar-workers-implies-new-labour-market-policies/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-common-framework-for-blue-collar-and-white-collar-workers-implies-new-labour-market-policies/</guid>
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<title>Europe&#8217;s immigration priorities</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to this Bruegel policy brief, purely national migration policies are increasingly ineffective in addressing the EU&#8217;s urgent migration challenges. The author identifies high-skilled migration, irregular migration and asylum policy as the key areas for common action, while mid- and low-skilled legal migration and the integration challenge should continue to be dealt with at the national level. Regarding high-skilled immigration, he claims that the European blue card directive needs to be revised so that it genuinely offers access to the entire EU labour market, and that developing countries concerned about brain drain should be offered an opt-out clause.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 12 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/europes-immigration-priorities/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/europes-immigration-priorities/</guid>
</item>
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<title>How consumption taxes can influence income distribution?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This OECD article highlights that consumption taxes increase the difference between the highest and the lowest incomes. There are, however, important differences between countries. Surprisingly enough, it appears that Belgium is one of the countries where increasing consumption taxes would favour the rich the least. However, a more recent study of the Catholic University Leuven has shown that a decrease in direct taxes (on income or wealth for instance) and an increase in indirect taxes (like the VAT) would significantly raise inequality.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 12 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-consumption-taxes-can-influence-income-distribution/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-consumption-taxes-can-influence-income-distribution/</guid>
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<title>Social fraud in social security</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium is accumulating victories in its battle against social fraud. This is good for the state, and good for our social system.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 12 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/social-fraud-in-social-security/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/social-fraud-in-social-security/</guid>
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<title>Why do Europeans work part-time?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This paper of the ECB analyses the relative contribution of the business cycle and structural factors to the development of part-time employment in the EU. It comes out that, in the short-run, the business cycle affects negatively the development of part-time employment. In the long run, however, institutions and other structural factors are found to be the key drivers of the rate of part-time employment. In Belgium for instance, the relaxation of the legislation on part-time jobs had a positive effect on recent part-time employment development. Despite some drawbacks, part-time work may increase the labour choices open to individuals and may allow employers to adjust hours worked to cyclical conditions more easily. In the ageing context, it may also allow senior workers to opt for a smooth retirement and positively affect their employment rates.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 12 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-do-europeans-work-part-time/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-do-europeans-work-part-time/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>There comes the recession?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to Ivan van de Cloot, it&#8217;s important to distinguish the virtual losses of the stock exchange and housing market from the real economic activity. The financial crisis can slow the US and thus also the Belgian economy down, but will not necessarily lead to a recession. The pessimistic reporting of the press for the past few months, on the contrary, will certainly have its price.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 11 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/there-comes-the-recession/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/there-comes-the-recession/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>With kind regards to the Immigrant</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The reasoning sounds compelling: the more immigrants, the larger the number of potential workers and the more the wage of the native worker is threatened. However, for this argument to hold economically, other additional assumptions have to hold. One is, for example, the conjecture that both workers are competing for the same job. This study on the other hand &#8211;  Ottaviano and Peri (NBER, 2007) &#8211;  shows that this wasn't true for the United States in the period 1990-2004, so that the average wage of  the American employee benefited both in the long and in the short run from immigration. European and Belgian policymakers therefore have to keep this result in mind when imposing continuously stricter immigration laws.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 11 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/with-kind-regards-to-the-immigrant/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/with-kind-regards-to-the-immigrant/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Young Children are the Future</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What if there was a silver bullet to lower both crime and teen pregnancy rates and to make society both more productive and more equal, all at the same time? According to this paper, a policy that addresses the noncognitive skills of young children (perseverance, motivation, risk aversion, etc.), by focusing on family ties, could tackle all these problems in the most efficient way. With jam-packed prisons, growing number of poor people and the necessity to raise productivity to meet the demands of the ageing population and globalization, Belgian policy makers can probably not afford not even taking a look at this paper.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 11 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/young-children-are-the-future/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/young-children-are-the-future/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The olympic choice</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos analyses the failure of the Doha-round and warns for the creeping malaise in economic globalisation. Will the world community continue on the path of an international legal order and common wealth creation?
]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 06 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-olympic-choice/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-olympic-choice/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Dismissal regulations dampen productivity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Financing the growing non active population assumes a rise in the productivity of the active population. This IZA paper shows that mandatory dismissal regulations can have a negative impact on productivity. The main reasons behind this result are the higher dismissal costs and reduced worker effort. Making it easier for the employer to hire temporary workers, on the other hand, enhances productivity. Hence, this paper provides grounds to re-evaluate the future of our dismissal regulation and suggests to think more along the lines of securing lifelong working than a particular lifelong job.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 04 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/dismissal-regulations-dampen-productivity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/dismissal-regulations-dampen-productivity/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Maximuminvoice works, but could be improved</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This KCE report shows that the maximuminvoice (MAF), according to which health care costs paid by patients are limited, still hasn&#8217;t realized its objective. The number of Belgian households who still allocate more than the proposed benchmark &#8211; i.e. 5% of the household income &#8211; to the non-refundable part of medical expenses, amounts to an important 3%. This number even goes up to 10% when supplements are taken into account. The KCE report consequently studies the background of these households, the revisions that can be made to align the results of the maximuminvoice with its initial intention and the consequences for the budget.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 04 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-maximuminvoice-works-but-could-be-improved/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-maximuminvoice-works-but-could-be-improved/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How to improve social mobility?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In this article, social mobility is not handled from the classical economic perspective of income groups but from the labour market participation perspective. The social hierarchy is thus based on the quality and sustainability of the job. The authors underline that by supporting people in their labour market achievements, policy makers will help to break up the walls to intergenerational and intragenerational social mobility.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 01 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-improve-social-mobility/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-improve-social-mobility/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Pension system reform: Belgium lags behind most other OECD countries</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In response to population ageing, pension spending effort is set to increase significantly over the coming decades in OECD countries. But, as this IZA paper recalls, pension policy is challenging and controversial, since it involves long-term decisions in the face of numerous short-term political pressures. Nevertheless, in many OECD countries, much has been done since the early 1990s to make pension systems fit for the future. Belgium appears as an exception: it has not led any major pension reform and still offers many routes for early exit from the labor market. With the baby-boomer generation reaching retirement soon and the perspective of a squeezing labour force, wouldn&#8217;t it be high time to act?]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 01 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pension-system-reform-belgium-lags-behind-most-other-oecd-countries/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pension-system-reform-belgium-lags-behind-most-other-oecd-countries/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The price of non-globalisation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Globalisation has been accused of stealing jobs and depressing wages in the developed part of the world. According to this ECIPE paper, these fears are however based on erroneous facts and wild exaggerations. The authors analyse what some goods would have costed if globalization had been freezed at its level in 1970 and 1980 and claim that the remarkable period of disinflation between 1980 and today has fed into higher real income.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 01 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-price-of-non-globalisation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-price-of-non-globalisation/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Oil through the roof</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Many hope a barrel of petrol will go back to a 100 dollar before the end of the year. Their argument is, of course, that the price of 135 dollars per barrel does not reflect the market price triggered by supply and demand but has been caused by financial speculation. In the United States the presidential candidates are trying to surpass one another by cursing the speculators. It is, however, not that simple to estimate the role of speculation on the current oil price. Ivan van de Cloot argues that its role should not be overestimated.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 31 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/oil-through-the-roof/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/oil-through-the-roof/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Public investments and the economy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Often, public investments are not based upon economic arguments but turn out to be a real horse trading. Economists, on the other hand, always plead in favour of weighing social benefits against societal costs (including potential pernicious effects on health and environment). Public authorities oblige everybody to financially support their projects. It is only normal they should manage that money well.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 31 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/public-investments-and-the-economy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/public-investments-and-the-economy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Should public authorities subsidise external beauty?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Figures that have recently been published by the Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre show that health insurance spending for plastic surgery has more than doubled in only 11 years. This example serves to introduce a debate on the desirability of health expenses in general.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 28 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/should-public-authorities-subsidise-external-beauty/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/should-public-authorities-subsidise-external-beauty/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Employment risks and opportunities for an ageing workforce</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This WZB article provides a detailed analysis of the employment situation of older workers (55-64 years) in the EU member states. Highlighting country differences, the authors draw the conclusions that this labour market challenge can be characterised to a large extent as a gender problem, that labour market policy for an ageing workforce must start much earlier than just with older people and that their employment situation can to a great extent be sought in the general economic parameters and especially in the degree of employment growth in the service sector. With a senior employment rate of 34,4%, Belgium is in the bottom league by European standards and needs to react quickly to strive towards the Stockholm targets of 50% by 2010.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 25 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/employment-risks-and-opportunities-for-an-ageing-workforce/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/employment-risks-and-opportunities-for-an-ageing-workforce/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>European energy markets lack integration</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ten years after the process started, the full liberalization of the European energy market is still far from being achieved. And this is not only due to technical difficulties, but also because of the weak political support to the process of integration. This Bruegel report underlines that the new energy policy developments should consider how to bypass national incentives to guarantee domestic energy supply, to protect access to domestic sources of energy and to protect national industry from the impact of stricter environmental regulation. It stresses that the effective fight against climate change requires common action and that a single market for energy is the basis for a common approach to EU climate policy.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 25 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/european-energy-markets-lack-integration/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/european-energy-markets-lack-integration/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How to improve the performances of European universities?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This report of Bruegel looks at the factors explaining the under-performance of the European universities in the ranking of Shanghai and identifies the priority reforms for higher education on the old continent. It brings to light a lack of student mobility, an insufficient flexibility of the first cycle programs and a severe underdevelopment of research. The authors plead in favour of a gradual increase of the annual spending in the higher education in the next decade, for more autonomy for institutions and for an intensification of the mobility of the students and the teachers-researchers.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 25 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-improve-the-performances-of-european-universities/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-improve-the-performances-of-european-universities/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The silver lining</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos hopes that the ongoing political troubles in Belgium will lead to a workable state and efficient government. He points out that the Flemish consensus for more devolution hides great differences on policy views. Policy reform, not devolution per se, is the only silver lining of the current institutional crisis.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 24 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-silver-lining/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-silver-lining/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Disadvantaged children: an effective intervention is an early one</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This IZA discussion paper pones that, if society intervenes early enough, it can improve cognitive and socio-emotional abilities and the health of disadvantaged children. These interventions are estimated to have high benefit-cost ratios and rates of return. As programs are currently configured, interventions early in the lifecycle of disadvantaged children have much higher economic returns than later interventions such as reduced pupil-teacher ratios, public job training, convict rehabilitation programs, adult literacy programs, tuition subsidies or expenditure on police.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 18 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/disadvantaged-children-an-effective-intervention-is-an-early-one/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/disadvantaged-children-an-effective-intervention-is-an-early-one/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>SMEs and the tax system: What so different about them?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This article discusses some key tax policy issues relating to SMEs. It argues that most common claims on the role of SMEs do not provide a solid basis for a different treatment of SMEs as compared to larger taxpayers. However, he recognizes the existence of fixed costs related to tax compliance and administration, and emphasises the need for simple tax procedures in order to reduce them.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 18 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/smes-and-the-tax-system-what-so-different-about-them/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/smes-and-the-tax-system-what-so-different-about-them/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The economic returns to a second language</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Knowledge of an additional language may be associated with enhanced earnings because it may reflect what might generically be called &#8216;ability&#8217; bias or because it may actually be useful at the workplace (and therefore demand of bilinguals is higher). Using Canadian data, this IZA publication found very substantial, statistically significant rewards to second official language use in Quebec, but not for the rest of Canada, which is Anglophone. This suggests that smaller language communities have larger incentives to learn other languages, well.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 18 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-economic-returns-to-a-second-language/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-economic-returns-to-a-second-language/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The inflation-health multiplier</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This IZA paper investigates the possibility of intergenerational transmission of unhealthy eating habits from parents to adult children.  It is found that only maternal history influences negatively the eating behaviour of their daughters. Even more preoccupying is the fact that eating intergenerational transmission appears to be more intense amongst lower household income individuals. With the rising food prices, lower income families are very likely to shift to an unhealthier diet which will be transmitted to the following generation(s) &#8211; and thus worsening the harm. Inflation has a health component too.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 18 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-inflation-health-multiplier/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-inflation-health-multiplier/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>To &#8220;flexirationalise&#8221; the public sector</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The age average in the public sector is generally higher than in the private one. So, according to this OECD report, to attract and to retain capacities in the public service could indeed represent a severe challenge in the years to come. To increase its attractiveness, the report favours the flexibility in employment rather than the increase of the public pensions that it considers as an expensive and insufficiently targeted approach. If Belgium still has progress to make in comparison with it&#8217;s neighbours, it should neither lose sight that the retirement of numerous civil servants also represents a tremendous opportunity to rationalize public employment.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 18 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/to-flexirationalise-the-public-sector/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/to-flexirationalise-the-public-sector/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Oil prices: risk and opportunities</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Based on US data, this paper explores the roles of oil demand and supply shocks in industrial production. It shows that if oil shocks of both types lead to a higher price and have in this regard negative effects, demand shocks also have the positive effect of increasing the demand for goods and services by emerging economies. It suggests that the emergence of new players in the global economy may increase the cost of resources, but it also offers trade opportunities. It is the ability &#8211; or lack thereof &#8211; to innovate and produce goods that are not easily substitutable that determines whether the new challengers represent a risk or an opportunity for industrialised countries like Belgium.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/oil-prices-risk-and-opportunities/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/oil-prices-risk-and-opportunities/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>For an effective adaptation to climate change.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Addressing climate change requires mitigation as well as adaptation strategies. Humans have adapted to climatic changes for millennia, but effective adaptation starts with appropriate incentives and adequate information. This OECD report provides a critical assessment of adaptation costs and benefits for key climate sensitive sectors at the national and global level. Special emphasis is on insurance and risk sharing, environmental markets and pricing, and public private partnerships.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 10 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/for-an-effective-adaptation-to-climate-change/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/for-an-effective-adaptation-to-climate-change/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The determinants of a high employment rate.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This paper compares labor market policies, institutions and outcomes for the EU member states, for the period 2000-2005. It focuses on indicators of generosity (expenditures relative to GDP) and relates these and other policy indicators to indicators of labor market outcome and performance. The results show that, on a cross-country basis, higher rates of employment are in general associated with higher expenditures on labor market policies, a lower degree of rigidity in labor market institutions and in product market regulation. With one of the lowest employment rate in the EU-15, Belgium should definitely act. It performs quite well regarding labor market policies, but there is considerable room for improvement regarding labour market flexibility and product market regulation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 10 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-determinants-of-a-high-employment-rate/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-determinants-of-a-high-employment-rate/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The impact of EU migration on native workers.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This DWP paper found no statistically significant impact of migration from the new EU Member States on claimant unemployment, either overall of for any identifiable subgroup. In particular the authors found no adverse impacts on the young or low-skilled, nor on wages, either on average or at any point in the wage distribution. Thus, the impact of EU migration on the labour market is not negative now, and given the changing demography, could become a real asset.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 10 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-impact-of-eu-migration-on-native-workers/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-impact-of-eu-migration-on-native-workers/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Too Young to Leave the Nest? The Effects of School Starting Age </title>
<description><![CDATA[ This IZA paper uses data on the population of Norway to examine the role of school starting age on longer-run outcomes. They find evidence that starting school younger has a small positive effect on IQ scores at 18, a large positive effect at tests, a significant positive effect on the probability of teenage pregnancy, but has little effect on educational attainment of boys or girls. Overall, there is not much evidence to suggest that there are strong reasons for parents to hold their children out of school or to time the births of their children to influence school starting age.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 10 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/too-young-to-leave-the-nest-the-effects-of-school-starting-age/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/too-young-to-leave-the-nest-the-effects-of-school-starting-age/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Will Soaring Transport Costs Reverse Globalisation?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This paper of CIBC World Markets Inc. discusses the impact of higher energy prices on transport cost and on globalization. It emphasizes that nowadays, the cost of moving goods, not the cost of tariffs, is the largest barrier to global trade. As an example, In 2000, when oil prices were $20 per barrel, transport costs were the equivalent of a 3% tariff rate. Currently, transport costs are equivalent to an average tariff rate of more than 9%. With the perspectives of a barrel at 200 dollars, this suggests not only a potential major slowdown in the growth of world trade, but also a fundamental realignment in trade patterns in the future.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 10 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/will-soaring-transport-costs-reverse-globalisation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/will-soaring-transport-costs-reverse-globalisation/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Break the budgetary deadlock on ageing</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos argues for a policy strategy for new wealth creation and new social protection. Belgium is missing its appointment with demographic history and needs to do more than a minimalist budgetary policy.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/break-the-budgetary-deadlock-on-ageing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/break-the-budgetary-deadlock-on-ageing/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Private spending: the magic bullet for the healthcare funding challenge?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Total healthcare is likely to rise in the future. According to this IPPR report, collective, public funding will remain the most efficient and equitable way of financing healthcare. Private spending plays a valid role in the health economy though but will not provide an efficient means of increasing resources for health. Policymakers should thus reform the public system first, whilst considering the contribution and efficiency of the diverse types of private healthcare spending as integral to health system strategies. 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 04 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/private-spending-the-magic-bullet-for-the-healthcare-funding-challenge/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/private-spending-the-magic-bullet-for-the-healthcare-funding-challenge/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Specific-training worse than general training for the senior employment rate</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Many studies have shown that employees with firm-specific skills are more likely to be covered by employer-sponsored pension schemes than workers with general skills. Following this, this IZA paper tests the effect of trainings on retirement, and finds that workers who participated in firm-specific training in their early careers retire earlier than workers with a general training background. This indicates that shared investments in firm-specific training are embedded in implicit contracts that induce early retirement and suggests that training participation should be encouraged at a broader level than at the firm one.   
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 04 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/specific-training-worse-than-general-training-for-the-senior-employment-rate/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/specific-training-worse-than-general-training-for-the-senior-employment-rate/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Wealth and income: what relationship?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This OECD report examines the correlation between family wealth and disposable income. More precise information on wealth will enable policies to be better targeted, especially knowing that the correlation between the two is not perfect, even if positive and strong.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 04 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wealth-and-income-what-relationship/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wealth-and-income-what-relationship/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>What we can learn from return migration?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to this EUI paper, a large part of the return migrants from the Maghreb positively evaluate their migration experience. Migrants that left as students or employees, for instance, often go back to occupy high-quality jobs, become self-employed or even employer. But returnees do not form a homogenous group. The high value that returnees may attach to human capital transfer and skill acquisition abroad will determine whether they will consider their migration experience as a success &#8211; or not. 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 04 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-we-can-learn-from-return-migration/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-we-can-learn-from-return-migration/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>High oil prices; the government should adapt as well</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The government cannot control escalating energy prices but should strongly support the adaptive capacity of our economy.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/high-oil-prices-the-government-should-adapt-as-well/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/high-oil-prices-the-government-should-adapt-as-well/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Languages and Economy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ As 59% and 53% of Flemish people master French and English, only 19% and 17% of the Walloon speak Dutch and English. The economic impact of this is not to be underestimated.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/languages-and-economy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/languages-and-economy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>A global production cap: the only way to climate success?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This Stockholm Network report describes 3 plausible futures resulting from 3 different approaches to climate policy at the international level. More specifically, they examine the various climatic, economic and social costs &#8211; and consequences &#8211; of international policy. Worryingly, only one scenario achieves climate change success as defined by the EU. This &#8216;step change&#8217; scenario looks at the possibility that policy may take a radically different course in response to a step change in concern about climate change, which lead to the adoption of an entirely new policy framework &#8211; a global production cap.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-global-production-cap-the-only-way-to-climate-success/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-global-production-cap-the-only-way-to-climate-success/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Do poor children become poor adults?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In this IZA paper, Dr. Corak suggests that income transfer is important for the protective purposes IN THE SHORT RUN but appears to have little impact on the future mobility of children. Instead, the focus should be on social investments across the life stages of child and youth life with a particular focus on post-secondary attendance and achievement. Canada has performed well in comparison to countries like Finland or Sweden and is far advanced in relation to the US and the UK.  It is high time our understanding of social mobility in Belgium would be based on facts and research than the current unsubstantiated belief in the superiority of our system.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/do-poor-children-become-poor-adults/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/do-poor-children-become-poor-adults/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Ethnic background matters on labour market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ More evidence from the Netherlands shows that non-western immigrants never reach parity with native Dutch on the labour market, says this IZA working paper. Ethnic background thus seems to matter in explaining the underperformances of immigrants. Labour market integration therefore requires policies on various fronts such as unemployment, job quality and relation to education and upward mobility. Belgium is only just starting with unemployment&#8230;.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ethnic-background-matters-on-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ethnic-background-matters-on-labour-market/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How to combine labour intensification and population ageing?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In industrialised nations, there's an obvious trend towards labour intensification, by accumulation of diverse temporal constraints. At the same time, the population is ageing and the age structure of the working population is changing. This article of the &#8220;centre d&#8217;&#233;tude de l&#8217;emploi&#8221; underlines the challenge that the combination of these two tendencies represents. The authors approach the fact that the senior workers are less resistant to temporal pressure at work. They insist on the necessity of guaranteeing to seniors a suited working environment if one wants to promote longer professional careers.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-combine-intensification-of-the-work-and-population-ageing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-combine-intensification-of-the-work-and-population-ageing/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>No more trade-off between government size and output volatility</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This Bruegel Working Paper sheds light on the fact that the negative relationship between government size and output volatility was strong prior to 1990 but vanished afterwards. According to the results of the authors, a one percentage point increase in the size of government is now unlikely to yield a reduction in output volatility exceeding 0.1 percentage point, once public expenditures reaches around 40% of GDP. They conclude that the impact of a marginal change in the size of government is bound to be very small for most countries in the euro area. Looking at government expenditure as a stabilizing force in the economy seems less relevant today.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-more-trade-off-between-government-size-and-output-volatility/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-more-trade-off-between-government-size-and-output-volatility/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>School improvement and economic development</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The role of improved schooling, a central part of most development strategies, has become controversial because expansion of school attainment has not guaranteed improved economic conditions. This NBER working paper reviews the role of education in promoting economic well-being, with a particular focus on the role of educational quality. It concludes that there is strong evidence that the cognitive skills of the population - rather than mere school attainment - are powerfully related to individual earnings, to the distribution of income, and to economic growth.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/school-improvement-and-economic-development/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/school-improvement-and-economic-development/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>It&#8217;s the economy, stupid!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sees insufficient economic growth as the root cause of the problems of purchasing power and low pensions. He notices a new Belgian paradox of insufficient means for our needs and too much expenditure for our capacity. Real policy reform is indispensable to stop further relative decline.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 25 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/its-the-economy-stupid/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/its-the-economy-stupid/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Luncheon Lecture Erik Jones on his new book: Economic Adjustment &amp; Political Transformation in Small States</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p>Political crisis is no longer 'news' in Belgium or the Netherlands.&nbsp; Less well understood is the toll that this controversy is taking on patterns of economic policymaking. Belgium and the Netherlands used to rely on consensus to stabilize welfare state institutions and to underwrite national competitiveness.&nbsp; This is no longer possible in times of political crisis. As a result, both countries are less flexible and more vulnerable than ever since the end of the second world war.&nbsp; Worse, they may never recover the ability to foster economic consensus.</p><p>&nbsp;<br/></p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 24 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/last-seats-luncheon-lecture/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/last-seats-luncheon-lecture/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Price of Political Crisis: Economic Adjustment and Political Transformation in Belgium and the Netherlands</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Political crisis is no longer 'news' in Belgium or the Netherlands.  Less well understood is the toll that this controversy is taking on patterns of economic policymaking. Belgium and the Netherlands used to rely on consensus to stabilize welfare state institutions and to underwrite national competitiveness.  This is no longer possible in times of political crisis. As a result, both countries are less flexible and more vulnerable than ever since the end of the second world war.  Worse, they may never recover the ability to foster economic consensus.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 23 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-price-of-political-crisis-economic-adjustment-and-political-transformation-in-belgium-and-the-netherlands/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-price-of-political-crisis-economic-adjustment-and-political-transformation-in-belgium-and-the-netherlands/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Nota%2024_political%20crisis%20Erik%20Jones%20FVH01_ENG.pdf" length="476469" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>Belgium is badly ranked to attract investments</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This study of Price Waterhouse Coopers seeks to compare the ease of paying taxes in 178 countries around the world. The Maldives is the country which makes paying tax the easiest and Panama is the one which makes it the most difficult. With a ranking of 154, Belgium remains towards the bottom of the league and is behind almost all European countries, with the exception of France and Italy. As testified by the notional interest deduction system or the drop in personal income tax, Belgian fiscal policy has clearly improved over recent years. But we have to continue to adapt our system if we want to be competitive in attracting investments.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-is-badly-ranked-to-attract-investments/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-is-badly-ranked-to-attract-investments/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>For more and better interactions between universities and the business sector</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This Policy brief of &#8220;The Knowledge for Growth&#8221; Expert Group emphasizes the importance of the interactions between universities and the business sector. It stresses however that it is necessary to take into account the diversity in models of modern universities and that interaction with the business sector do not conform to &#8220;one-size-fits-all&#8221; prescriptions. Following this, the authors invite public authorities to develop a combination of incentives and liberalized regulations that permit differentiated institutions to adopt different modes of governance that will enable them to compete for varied source of funding. Also in Belgium there is room for improvement as universities could reach out more to the business sector.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/for-more-and-better-interactions-between-universities-and-the-business-sector/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/for-more-and-better-interactions-between-universities-and-the-business-sector/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Migration flows do not only react to economic incentives</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This study of the Catholic University of Leuven offers a structural explanation of migration patterns to European countries between 1980 and 2004. The authors demonstrate that migration flow react to economic incentives, mainly with regard to the labor market, but also to cultural and colonial linkage. They show that the response of migration patterns to shortages in the labor market is highly efficient, while immigrants are not foremost attracted by high levels of social expenditure.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migration-flows-do-not-only-react-to-economic-incentives/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migration-flows-do-not-only-react-to-economic-incentives/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>More satisfied workers, but only in the North</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This study led by ZebraZone brings to light that the global satisfaction of the Belgian workers increased last year. Among the explanatory factors, it notably cites a bigger confidence of the workers in the organisation, more autonomy, better interpersonal contacts and a reduction of the stress. It underlines however that the increase of satisfaction is only noticed in Flanders, where it is significantly higher than in the two other regions of the country. The authors invite companies to invest first and foremost in a better policy of change, in career&#8217;s opportunities and working conditions.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-satisfied-workers-but-only-in-the-north/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-satisfied-workers-but-only-in-the-north/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>To revise the financing of health insurance</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The budget of numerous European countries is not well, especially since the recent economic slowdown. The increasing health spending does not improve things. This working document of the Montaigne Institute suggests shifting over the national insurance contributions, very high in France but also in Belgium, towards other sources of financing &#8211; the income tax or the VAT for example. And this to assure the efficiency of the system &#8211; through a decrease of the labour costs notably &#8211; but above all its sustainability. Unfortunately, the weakest of our society risk losing there, and it is indeed for that that the authors defend a cautious estimation before shifting everything.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/to-revise-the-financing-of-the-health-insurance/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/to-revise-the-financing-of-the-health-insurance/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>European Blue Cards: What are the main stakes</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Fr&#233;d&#233;ric Docquier analyses the Belgian and European migration policies in the context of an ageing society that looses some of its qualified workforce to the rest of the world. He concludes that a selective migration policy that respects certain crucial principles is not neccesarily pernicious for the countries of origin. The question should rather be: what's in it for the host countries?]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/european-blue-cards-what-are-the-main-stakes/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/european-blue-cards-what-are-the-main-stakes/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Ivan Van de Cloot joins Itinera Institute as Chief Economist</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ivan Van de Cloot, the famous economist who comments regularly on the socioeconomic developments of Belgium, in the press and in diverse publications, has joined the Itinera Institute as chief economist.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/ivan-van-de-cloot-joins-itinera-institute-as-chief-economist/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/ivan-van-de-cloot-joins-itinera-institute-as-chief-economist/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Microsoft%20Word%20-%20Press%20release%20website%20EN.pdf" length="81780" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>Renewable energy; what the German success story can teach us</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In a short time, the renewable energies have become a big business in Germany. Johan Albrecht describes how a stimulating policy has created in 10 years not less than 180.000 jobs. The German experience also illustrates the relevance of an annual and critical policy evaluation.&quot;]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/renewable-energy-what-the-germany-success-story-can-teach-us/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/renewable-energy-what-the-germany-success-story-can-teach-us/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Red, orange and green lights for end-of-career policies</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to the 2001 Stockholm objectives, 50% of the 55- to 64-year olds should be working by 2010. To monitor in- and output incentives, a performance measurement system is required, a scorecard for example, pretty much as this WSE Steunpunt publication. The authors notice very little structural progress, and with a mere 31% of the 55- to 64-year olds working in Belgium, more drastic measures are becoming inevitable. A lot of work needs to be done.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 16 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/red-orange-and-green-lights-for-end-of-career-policies/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/red-orange-and-green-lights-for-end-of-career-policies/</guid>
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<item>
<title>The creative economy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A new development paradigm is emerging that links the economy and culture, embracing economic, cultural, technological and social aspects of development at both the macro and micro levels. Central to the new paradigm, called the creative economy, is the fact that creativity, knowledge and access to information are increasingly recognized as powerful engines driving economic growth and promoting development in a globalizing world. This UN report looks deeper into the concept of creative economy, its dimensions, measurement and (policy) implications. A must-learn concept for every economy that highly depends on innovation and seeks to be sustainable &#8211; like ours in fact.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 16 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-creative-economy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-creative-economy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Age and the labour market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos sketches the impact of ageing on the labour market and shows how the lamentable position of older workers on the Belgian labour market is untenable. He argues for a new paradigm and for a mobilisation that breaks open the Generation Pact for a &#8220;New Deal&#8221; on age and the labour market.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/age-and-the-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/age-and-the-labour-market/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Equality is a political choice</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Inequality is significantly related to fiscal and socio-economic choices. Europe is less unequal than the US because of the European social model with minimum wages, stronger unionisation and central wage mechanisms.  The intra-European variation is attributed to the different degree of redistributive policies. A mixture of policies can reduce inequality: redistributive taxation, a &#8220;flexicure&#8221; labour market, easier access to education, public housing and health services and a more inclusive immigration policy.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/equality-is-a-political-choice/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/equality-is-a-political-choice/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Fashion Awards</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Jean Hindriks and Brieuc Van Damme are critical towards Knack&#8217;s and Le Vif&#8217;s ranking of the best communes and note important methodological failures. They shed light that income is by far the most important variable in the study and defend Itinera&#8217;s communes ranking, based on good governance.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fashionawards/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fashionawards/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Greening the economy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This review of the Insead Innovation Centre seeks to identify how the European Union can shape a transition towards a more sustainable and competitive economy. It stresses the role governments have to play in promoting eco-innovation, by supporting research and development, as well as their responsibility in facilitating investments in clean energy, by creating legal and institutional incentives that make it easier for entrepreneurs to set up a company in the EU.   
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/greening-the-economy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/greening-the-economy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Immigrant's educational dispersion and disadvantage</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This IZA working paper confirms what many studies found before: immigrant's educational dispersion exceeds that of natives. This derives from very low achieving immigrants who fall considerably behind 'worst' achieving native students. This is not different for Belgium. The author suggests that factors such as language, family structure and socio-economic status are important in explaining these differences. Surprisingly, even the immigrants' country of origin explains only a very small part of immigrant's achievement. 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/immigrants-educational-dispersion-and-disadvantage/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/immigrants-educational-dispersion-and-disadvantage/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Reason over the purchasing power emotion</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos nuances the cabal on purchasing power and argues for a pragmatic policy aimed at market functioning, sharp prizes, more employment and a focused compensation for inflation that also serves in the upcoming negotiations on the wage norm for 2009-10.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reason-over-the-purchasing-power-emotion/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/reason-over-the-purchasing-power-emotion/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Surviving the international war on talent together</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A way to limit our current losses in the international war on talent is to &#8216;produce&#8217; more talent ourselves. This KBF report tells how to do this, provided all societal actors are collaborating. The private sector should give (even) more attention to young talent through enhanced cooperation with schools. Schools have to put more focus on talent and technology. And what about the public authorities? They have to assure a flexible education system, widen the development opportunities of teachers and stimulate entrepreneurship. But the biggest challenge of all will be to double the amount of young graduates by 2020. 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/surviving-the-international-war-on-talent-together/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/surviving-the-international-war-on-talent-together/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Belgium is likely to lose the international war on talent</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This NBER article found that the more educated are more likely to emigrate and that more-educated migrants are more likely to settle in destination countries with high rewards to skill. Belgium will therefore have to make efforts in becoming more attractive in the context of an international war on talent. Given our tight labour market and limited income dispersion, many challenges lie ahead.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 09 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-is-likely-to-lose-the-international-war-on-talent/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-is-likely-to-lose-the-international-war-on-talent/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Early retirement: incentives and remedies</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This C.D. How Institute publication warns for structures of defined-benefit pension plans that may create incentives for early retirement in Canada. Individuals may indeed have incentives to retire at the age when unreduced benefits are first available. Obviously, in the context of ageing, this may aggravate its effects. The author advocates as possible remedies the use of penalties, in the form of reduced pensions for early retirement, and flexibility in pension arrangements that reflect the preferences of workers and employers.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 09 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/early-retirement-incentives-and-remedies/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/early-retirement-incentives-and-remedies/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Education: the germ for research and innovation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ If Flanders wants to become a pole of knowledge, it will have to pay close attention to research in its higher education system, but also to the teaching itself, according to this VLOR publication. This can be done by increasing the number of admitted and graduated students, by paying more attention to society&#8217;s needs, rewarding excellent teaching, developing the interaction with the labour market, making the budget meet the European objective and by internationalizing. Where the needed 0,8% of the Gross Regional Product is to be found is unfortunately not specified.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 09 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/education-the-germ-for-research-and-innovation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/education-the-germ-for-research-and-innovation/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>For more energy efficiency</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This comprehensive WEC report reviews the contribution of energy efficiency improvements in energy security and climate policy. In global terms the energy efficiency improved by 1.6% per year between 1990 and 2006 but there are enormous differences between countries and between economic sectors. The report claims that further energy efficiency will be required in the long term, for several reasons. It encourages countries to develop a favorable and stable institutional framework as well as to reinforce their collaboration at international level.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 09 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/for-more-energy-efficiency/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/for-more-energy-efficiency/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>High taxation creates gender gap on the labour market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Policies and institutions do play a role in explaining differences in working hours among employed individuals across OECD countries. According to this OECD working paper, high taxation on second earners has a significant disincentive effect on the intensive margin of labour supply and is one of the main causes of the gender gap on the labour market. A matter of concern is that all the factors that are seen to suppress working time in the OECD are cumulatively present in Belgium. In the context of an ageing population, it is high time to lift the barriers to a longer working time.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 09 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/high-taxation-creates-gender-gap-on-the-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/high-taxation-creates-gender-gap-on-the-labour-market/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Inequalities affect subjective well-being</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This paper from the Social Science Research Center of Berlin compares the quality of life of given societies across time and space. According to the results, East European countries tend to have a rather low quality of life, while Austria, Belgium, The Netherlands, Sweden and Denmark form a cluster of countries with high quality of life. The paper also shows that most inequality dimensions affect people&#8217;s subjective well-being, but that some of the more materialistic inequality dimensions (such as income) tend to be less important in rich societies, while certain non materialistic dimensions (such as family) are getting more important.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 09 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/inequalities-affect-subjective-well-being/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/inequalities-affect-subjective-well-being/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Measuring and interpreting cross-country hospital efficiency</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Identifying the best practices in hospital performances by measuring cross- country differences is becoming increasingly important. Very useful indeed, but definitely not easy, claims this OECD working paper. The authors suggest here that cross-country hospital efficiency differences might be linked to institutional factors. Also within Belgium hospital performance differences are known to be important, which suggests windows of opportunity for efficiency improvements.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 09 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/measuring-and-interpreting-cross-country-hospital-efficiency/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/measuring-and-interpreting-cross-country-hospital-efficiency/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How to reconciliate inflation and purchasing power ?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Na&#239;m Cordemans looks into the explanations of the gap between official and perceived inflation. He underlines that perceived inflation cannot be used as a reference for monetary policy or wage indexation. In the context of rising food prices, he discusses different ways to support the purchasing power of households. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 05 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/howtoreconciliateinflationandpurchasingpower/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/howtoreconciliateinflationandpurchasingpower/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Get richer, get happier !</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Two Wharton economists conclude that richer countries are happier than poorer ones and that as countries get richer, their inhabitants become happier. This finding directly challenges the conventional wisdom that there is no link between the level of economic development and the average level of happiness. Apparently, economic growth is a relatively good indicator of well-being and should be encouraged. Next to income-based indicators, alternative measures to better assess quality of life should however be further developed.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 02 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/getrichergethappier/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/getrichergethappier/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Highly educated immigrants even more important than highly educated Belgians on labour market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to the Socio-Economic Council of Flanders, many highly educated immigrants work under their qualifications and skills level. Unemployment is also 7 times higher compared to highly educated Belgians. Not only is this a waste of societal capital but also a discouraging example for the rest of the immigrant community. The solutions will have to come from all parties involved. The government has to set up and implement a proactive diversity policy, but employers and employees will have to contribute too, through life-long learning or the study of a second official language for example.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 02 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/highly-educated-immigrants-even-more-important-than-highly-educated-belgians-on-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/highly-educated-immigrants-even-more-important-than-highly-educated-belgians-on-labour-market/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Implementing reforms and adapting behaviours can transform ageing into a real opportunity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to this policy brief of the European Centre, ageing can become a real opportunity to develop even faster and with a greater extent of social cohesion across generations if societies prepare it well and much in advance. It is stressed that public policies regarding pension, health, long-term care, employment, migration, integration and infrastructure development all need to be adapted to account for population ageing issues. However, according to the author, the private sector and the civil society as well as the individuals concerned will also be key actors in adapting to the new situation and in coming up with innovations that could provide solutions to this challenge. While it is high time for Belgian public authorities to implement reforms, this suggests Belgian companies and citizen should also start reviewing their attitudes.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 02 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/implementing-reforms-and-adapting-behaviours-can-transform-ageing-into-a-real-opportunity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/implementing-reforms-and-adapting-behaviours-can-transform-ageing-into-a-real-opportunity/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Improving investment climate to improve energy security</title>
<description><![CDATA[ An uninterrupted supply of energy at affordable prices is essential to ensure a proper functioning of the economy. Europe is one of the largest energy consuming regions in the world, but the energy production of European countries is insufficient to cover their energy demand. Except for Russia and Norway, ensuring the security of energy supply is thus a critical issue for European states. This new report of the World Energy Council concludes that an improvement of Europe's energy security is possible but requires a more attractive European investment climate.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 02 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/improving-investment-climate-to-improve-energy-security/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/improving-investment-climate-to-improve-energy-security/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Why budget deficits matter</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Rising costs for health care and ageing will cause government spending to rise substantially. But why is that a problem? This paper from the Congressional Budget Office estimates the long run budget deficits and their direct economic impact: crowding out of productive capital investments and the unsustainable interest snowball effect. Of course, this would negatively affect real GNP per person. And alternatively financing budget deficits by raising taxes has pernicious effects on the nation's wealth too. The issue facing policymakers is thus not whether to address rising deficits, but when and how to address them.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 02 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-budget-deficits-matter/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-budget-deficits-matter/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Why the minimum wage policy is an ineffective tool in reducing poverty</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The poverty rate, as measured by the number of people with net equivalence incomes below half the median income, has been increasing in recent years in Germany says this IZA publication. To prevent poverty among the working poor, introducing or increasing the minimum wage seems at first sight like a plausible cure. However, the authors found a weak link between low hourly wages and net household incomes, making the minimum wage policy a rather ineffective tool to combat poverty. This is due to the complex interactions between individual wages, the tax benefit system and net household incomes.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 02 Jun 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-the-minimum-wage-policy-is-an-ineffective-tool-in-reducing-poverty/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/why-the-minimum-wage-policy-is-an-ineffective-tool-in-reducing-poverty/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Repensons nos pensions</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This Press release is only available in French and Dutch.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 30 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/pensions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/pensions/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Can the social dialogue save the social policy?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos launches an appeal to the social partners to take up their responsibility, in the face of an impotent government, for a broad mobilisation on the Belgian labour market.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 27 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-the-social-dialogue-save-the-social-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-the-social-dialogue-save-the-social-policy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Belgium is budgetary transparent but still lacks fiscal policy coordination</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to this IMF report, Belgium in many areas meets, and in some exceeds, the requirements of the IMF fiscal transparency code. However, it underlines that there is room for improvement in several fields. Amongst them: The quality and openness of budget processes, the amount of information available to the public on some specific topics and the coordination of the internal audit process. The most striking remark concerns the institutional arrangements for fiscal policy coordination. The report claims that this latter could be strengthened by reinforcing and expanding the role of the High Council of Finance. It also suggests converting the budgetary agreements between the federal government, regions, and communities into published agreements which would specify the targeted balance for each partner and identify the measures needed to achieve this target.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 23 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-is-budgetary-transparent-but-still-lacks-fiscal-policy-coordination/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-is-budgetary-transparent-but-still-lacks-fiscal-policy-coordination/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>European regional integration increased within country inequality</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This paper focuses on the net effect of regional integration on total income inequality in the European Union. According to the results of the study, regional integration remaps inequality in Europe: Regionalization is associated with both a decrease in between-country inequality, and an increase in within-country inequality. Overall, the evidence is that the net effect is negative, and that within-country inequality now comprises a larger proportion of total income inequality. However, this does not mean that regional integration should be blamed since it may have increased the overall size of the pie...
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 23 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/european-regional-integration-increased-within-country-inequality/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/european-regional-integration-increased-within-country-inequality/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Let&#8217;s rethink our pension system</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the context of globalisation and ageing, everybody agrees that short term measures have no future. Since 1960 the average pension length has gone from 8 to more than 20 years. It is expected that in the coming 40 years there will be tree times less actives for every pensioner. Ageing is an insurmountable burden for the future generations. And meanwhile it seems like our government is definitively temporarily. There are however simple solutions, as the Swedish model has shown. Ageing is less a demographic or economic problem than it is a political one. We have to act fast to maintain the vital intergenerational solidarity and rethink our pension system to avoid the clash of&#8230; generations.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 23 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/repensons-nos-pensions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/repensons-nos-pensions/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>More technology for less unemployment</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This European University Institute working paper challenges the conventional wisdom and states that technology deficit is more responsible for high unemployment than are labor institutions. The authors argue that the pace of technology adoption plays a fundamental role for how an economy&#8217;s labor market reacts to an acceleration in capital-embodied growth. This is good news for Belgium. It may suggest that in the fight against unemployment, creating conditions that prevent the emergence of a technology deficit should receive at least as much attention as labour market reform.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 23 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-technology-for-less-unemployment/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-technology-for-less-unemployment/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The importance of being in a healthy fiscal position</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This IMF paper shows that, on average, small states have larger governments and public debt. The authors stress that there are structural factors which may explain this, like limited economies of scale. The IMF emphasizes however that low debt and a healthy fiscal position gives policymakers the flexibility to react effectively to shocks. They find that states with smaller governments and lower public debt tend to grow faster and are less vulnerable. Belgium has one of the largest governments in the EU and the third highest public debt. In the context of population ageing, this highly suggests the need for strong fiscal adjustments.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 23 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-importance-of-being-in-a-healthy-fiscal-position/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-importance-of-being-in-a-healthy-fiscal-position/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Free CO2 as price lever</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Johan Albrecht on the impact of CO2 emissions trading on the electricity price. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 22 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/free-co2-as-price-lever/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/free-co2-as-price-lever/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The unbearable lightness of Belgium&#8217;s strike laws</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos deplores the impasse in the Belgian debate about strikes and argues that it leads to growing litigation. He pleads for a new societal consensus on the limits of an otherwise fundamental right to strike.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 20 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-unbearable-lightness-of-belgiums-strike-laws/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-unbearable-lightness-of-belgiums-strike-laws/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Driving down CO&#178; Emissions </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Increasing vehicle efficiency is an important component of climate policy. This paper from the Institute for Public Policy Research focuses on the current 120g CO2/KM target by the European Commission. and recommends a lower target at 95g CO2/KM by 2020. Setting targets for new car emissions is one thing, but having an entire car park renewed is another. This requires a comprehensive policy approach.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/driving-downcoemissions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/driving-downcoemissions/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Breaking the vicious circle economy-environnement-health</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The economic activity affects the environment, which affects our health, which affects in turn our activity and our economic performances. This article of the OECD proposes different answers to better take into account the risks the environment can represent for our health.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 16 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/break-the-vicious-circle-economy-environnement-health/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/break-the-vicious-circle-economy-environnement-health/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Design principles for a patient-centered market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Another way to enhance the healthcare system's quality is the &quot;patient-focused&quot; or &quot;consumer-centered&quot; approach. The aim of this Heritage Foundation study is to clarify these trendy, but often misused concepts. Six key principles were identified in which the freedom of choice and the transparency of the system seem to be crucial. Whilst Belgium is performing rather well in terms of choice, it should also realize that access to information is a key element of a system's quality. 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 16 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/design-principles-for-a-patient-centered-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/design-principles-for-a-patient-centered-market/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Education policy and economic performance</title>
<description><![CDATA[ As many studies have shown, investment in education can both promote efficiency and reduce inequality. This is particularly relevant for Belgium: the regions that are underinvesting in education are also those that are underperforming and more unequal.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 16 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/education-policy-and-economic-performance/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/education-policy-and-economic-performance/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How to improve the quality of our general medicine?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A recent report of The Itinera Institute underlined the necessity to focus on the quality of the Belgian healthcare system. By leaning on a certain number of convincing international experiences, this report of the KCE tries to identify potential ways to improve our general medicine. For example, we can quote the case of the United Kingdom, which offers bonuses to the general practitioners having achieved the required objectives. But the report also mentions non-financial measures which seem interesting. For examples, the Australian government invested in professional networks whereas The Netherlands set up a robust program of practice accreditation.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 16 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-improve-the-quality-of-our-general-medicine/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-improve-the-quality-of-our-general-medicine/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Student exchange helps to foster a European labour market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Increasing international labour mobility is essential in the Euro zone given the loss of most of the monetary and trade instruments. If that has been the aim of ERASMUS, then the program succeeded! This IZA publication computed that studying abroad increases one's probability of working in a foreign country by about 20 percentage points. Rational economic thinking is not necessarily what drives former ERASMUS students to work abroad though: the effects on the students' (language) skills matter, but also the interest in foreign cultures and... the desire to stay with the foreign partner.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 16 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/student-exchange-helps-to-foster-a-european-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/student-exchange-helps-to-foster-a-european-labour-market/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Demography is destiny</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc de Vos offers perspectives on the new demographic predictions for Belgium and warns that structural scarcity on the labour market can engender a real workforce crisis. He pleads for a mobilisation that includes selective immigration but warns that immigration is not a magical solution and that it implies long term consequences.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 14 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/demography-is-destiny/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/demography-is-destiny/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Does wage fixation in Belgium increase unemployment rates in period of bad conjuncture?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ When times are difficult, companies often maintain labour costs under control. This study of the national bank indicates that, more often than not, this takes place through a decrease in hirings and an increase in dismissals. Wage fixation by the collective work agreements and automatic indexations indeed leave little space for wage cuts. Wage rigidity influences negatively work possibilities for job seekers.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-wage-fixation-in-belgium-increase-unemployment-rates-in-period-of-bad-conjuncture/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-wage-fixation-in-belgium-increase-unemployment-rates-in-period-of-bad-conjuncture/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Pension indexation VS the cost of ageing: An inevitable trade-off ?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Since large numbers of households prepare to retire, rapidly-aging economies will experience a surge in savings, which will depress world real interest rates in the next three decades. According to this IMF Working Paper, this will result in higher capital-labour ratios - since declining interest rate reduces the cost of capital &#8211; and, in fine, in increased wages &#8211; since workforce will be relatively scarcer and labour will be more capital intensive. Higher wages, in turn, will be passed on to pension benefits, exacerbating aging-related fiscal pressure. The conclusion of the author is that pension reforms, particularly those that change the indexation of pensions from wages to prices, are highly desirable since they provide substantial macro-insurance against long-run declines in world interest rates. Since higher wages will imply higher contributions, this would definitely help coping with ageing, while maintaining the retiree standard of living.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pension-indexation-vs-the-cost-of-ageing-an-inevitable-trade-off/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pension-indexation-vs-the-cost-of-ageing-an-inevitable-trade-off/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Ageing&#8217;s collateral damage: how to face a generalist shortage?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Health Tracking predicts that population growth and ageing will lead to deficits of adult care generalists and will increase their workload. The foundations of primary care for adults in the States as well as in Belgium are endangered in other words. But increasing today&#8217;s availability of generalists is not that simple &#8211; employers, insurers, and government as well as medical education have roles to play. Financial incentives to students, commitment to education of generalists and the abolition of the numerus clausus are considered to be promising solutions.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageings-collateral-damage-how-to-face-a-generalist-shortage/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageings-collateral-damage-how-to-face-a-generalist-shortage/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Belgium benefits from its neighbour's Labor Market Reforms, but insufficiently</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This paper of the IMF reveals that German Labor market reforms have strong positive effects on the domestic economy, and positive spillover effect on the rest of the Euro area through trade and financial market linkages. In light of these results, the authors are of opinion that one can expect labor market reforms to have gradual expansionary effects on the national economy. Belgium benefits from labor market reforms implemented abroad, but it can definitely benefit more by implementing its own reforms. 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/o/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/o/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Can faster economic growth bail out retirement programs?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to this Paper of the Urban Institute, economic growth is highly desirable to face the challenge of an ageing population since it increases the tax revenues and makes the society suffer less from higher tax burden or slower benefits growth. However, the authors think that growth in the US cannot solve the long-run budgetary problems of ageing, since health care expenses and other entitlements are narrowly linked to economic dynamism.  They stress that, concerning the US, reforms leading to significant reductions in the growth of pension and health benefits (or increases in tax burdens) are required. In Belgium however, unless we move to ever more welfare adjustment, we still have scope for saving social protection; but if and only if we make the necessary reforms. 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-faster-economic-growth-bail-out-retirement-programs/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-faster-economic-growth-bail-out-retirement-programs/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Flanders&#8217; economy compared</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Flemish live in a prosperous region. The perception of Flanders as a European top region needs to be nuanced though &#8211; it has been resting on its laurels. Flanders performances for classic economic indicators are good but its prize list for other indicators (labour market, innovation &#8230;) is less pretty. That is why this report from the Flemish government identifies several indicators that are of crucial importance for the health of an innovation oriented economy. From thereon several benchmark regions that scored better than Flanders were selected. These are supposed to stimulate Flanders&#8217; ambitions for the future.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/flanders-economy-compared/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/flanders-economy-compared/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Migration from the new member states: trends and misconceptions</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The successive enlargements of 2004 and 2007 have lowered barriers to intra EU mobility. This explains the enormous increase of new member states immigrants to the EU 15 countries &#8211; and especially to countries like the UK that have open labour markets. According to this study of the Institute for Public Policy Research, the British economy has benefited from this migration flow through the supply of a young, dynamic, increasingly educated and hard working workforce. Only drawback: because of economic, financial and demographic factors, arrivals from the new member states will start to fall and eventually stagnate. This suggests that, as the other old member states, Belgium will have to diversify its remedies to face challenges like ageing or skilled workforce scarcity: migration alone and open labour markets will not be enough.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migration-from-the-new-member-states-trends-and-misconceptions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migration-from-the-new-member-states-trends-and-misconceptions/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The future of health: an economic constitution?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Demand for healthcare and healthcare services changes over time. According to this Reform report, in the future, people will be asking for more qualitative and locally dispatched services. To bring about this needed structural change, taking into account the greater financial constraints, the authors advance the idea of an economic constitution. More than a mere mission statement, this constitution would be used as a reference document when evaluating new healthcare priorities and initiatives. It would also define duties for legislator and providers, such as quality, information obligations and competition. An interesting solution not to lose track of the initial objectives along the politically sensible way of structural change.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-of-health-an-economic-constitution/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-of-health-an-economic-constitution/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Work Collective Agreements: To decentralise rather than to regionalise?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This study of the Dulbea brings to light that it is essentially the possibility to fix salaries at the company level and the subdivision of joint commissions (JC) in sub-JC or in regional joint sections which allow at present the adaptation of salaries to the regional difference in productivity. According to the authors, larger use of those two mechanisms could represent an appealing alternative to the regionalisation of wage negotiations: they would, on one hand, allow the avoidance of increasing administrative complexity in the joint commissions where a more important wage differentiation is not necessary. On the other hand, they would not only allow for taking into account productivity differences between regions, but also between provinces, labour pools and companies.  
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/work-collective-agreements-to-decentralise-rather-than-to-regionalise/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/work-collective-agreements-to-decentralise-rather-than-to-regionalise/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Years of service do not protect low-wage workers</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Instead of raising retirement age, tying retirement benefit eligibility to years of services has often been offered as a solution to population ageing, since it would better protect lower-wage workers who start their careers relatively early and work more years prior to retirement than higher wage workers. However, according to this paper of the Urban Institute, men and woman with the least education (and thus often the lowest salary) also work the least, since early start is offset by higher disability rates and greater employment volatility. For the authors, years of service are consequently not likely to provide an effective way to protect the lowest-wage workers. This suggests the prominent need to increase the employability of low-educated workforce.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/years-of-service-do-not-protect-low-wage-workers/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/years-of-service-do-not-protect-low-wage-workers/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The European blue cards &#8211; What are the main stakes?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Fr&eacute;d&eacute;ric Docquier (UCL) discusses economic migration policies in Europe and their impact on the workers' home countries. <br/>]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 07 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/theeuropeanbluecardswhatarethemainstakes/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/theeuropeanbluecardswhatarethemainstakes/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Belgian social model is not  a model anymore</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos gives critical reflections on the unions and mutual funds call to maintain the so called &#8220;Belgian social model&#8221;. He points out that this model has been under existential pressure for over thirty years and that it can only survive through reform.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 02 May 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-belgian-social-model-is-not-anymore-a-model/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-belgian-social-model-is-not-anymore-a-model/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Controlling climate change: a hindrance to achieve the Millennium Development Goals?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Climate change can have a pernicious effect on development and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015. Economic development risks to furhter increase environmental stresses. This paper wonders whether there is necessarily a trade-off between controlling climate change on the one hand and meeting the MDGs on the other. It is argued that there is no a priori conflict between the two, although it should also be recognised that the achievement of the MDGs will not necessarily depend on the control &#8211; or not &#8211; of climate change.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/controlling-climate-change-a-hindrance-to-achieve-the-millennium-development-goals/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/controlling-climate-change-a-hindrance-to-achieve-the-millennium-development-goals/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Counting and Multidimensional Poverty Measurement</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ever since the introduction of the Human Development Index (HDI) in the 70s, unidimensional poverty measurements almost belong to past. Despite its undisputable advantages, multi-dimensional thinking is still in an early stage and many problems are yet to be solved. This paper deals with the identification of the poor in a multidimensional setting; how can we aggregate across dimensions?  This paper introduces an intuitive &#8211; but yet technical! &#8211; approach to multidimensional poverty measurement and counting. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/counting-and-multidimensional-poverty-measurement/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/counting-and-multidimensional-poverty-measurement/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Creative with bottlenecks on the labour market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Belgian activity ratio has to go up &#8211; no doubt about it. An important part of the solution is to solve the bottleneck vacancies. Based on different cases, first on micro level, then on macro level, innovative interventions are being suggested. The diversity of bottlenecks on the labour market &#8211; for the poorly educated, the technicians and the highly educated &#8211; demands as many strategies in order to solve this asap. In the light of the ageing problem, structural programs are being advanced too. Demand-oriented labour mediation, coordination and the right incentives are the key elements of the solution.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/creative-with-bottlenecks-on-the-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/creative-with-bottlenecks-on-the-labour-market/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Does citizenship matter? The economic impact of naturalisations in Germany</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Several reasons could explain why citizenship affects the labour market performance of immigrants. First, productivity could increase thanks to unrestricted market access, second a reduction of the administrative burden that could increase labour opportunities and thirdly it could enhance the employer&#8217;s willingness to invest in human capital. This study, shows an immediate positive naturalization effect on wages and on wage growth. But, as often, differences between immigrants seem to play a considerable role as well. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-citizenship-matter-the-economic-impact-of-naturalisations-in-germany/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-citizenship-matter-the-economic-impact-of-naturalisations-in-germany/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Does cultural diversity affect productivity?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The immigration debate has long ago stopped of being a social or a cultural one only. The general economic impact of interactions among a rising and increasingly diversified number of people is now widely recognised &#8211; just think about ageing. But is a culturally diversified society more or less efficient than a culturally homogenous one? The potential benefits &#8211; a wider variety of goods, services and skills &#8211; could be outweighed by potential costs such as racism and prejudices. Using EU 15 data, it is shown that cultural diversity stimulates productivity.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-cultural-diversity-affect-productivity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-cultural-diversity-affect-productivity/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Does employment protection help immigrants? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Severe employment protection legislation (EPL) creates an information gap between native and immigrant workers. Because of sociological barriers &#8211; language, experience in the labour market, union membership etc. &#8211; the latter are less aware of their rights, and the duties of the employers. This information asymmetry creates a hiring asymmetry in favour of the immigrant worker: the fewer the worker is informed the lower the hiring cost, thus creating a comparative advantage that will benefit to the immigrant worker.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-employment-protection-help-immigrants/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-employment-protection-help-immigrants/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Inform to heal better</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to the Belgian Ministry of Health hospital-acquired infections kill 2500 to 3000 people per year and cost more than 100 million a year only in extra hospitalisation days. There are, however, no official, disaggregated figures about one of the most underestimated problems of our modern health care. This study presents official figures for Pennsylvania based on individual hospital reports over time &#8211; which allows for comparisons. By informing patients with such detailed information, peer pressure increases. This enhances inter-hospital competition which is expected to have a direct positive impact on the quality of healthcare. Informing the patient being Belgium&#8217;s Achilles tendon, coming up with this report should be interpreted as more than just a hint...]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/inform-to-heal-better/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/inform-to-heal-better/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Inter-regional economic performance differences in Belgium: what is to blame?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ General economic performance highly depends on economic growth. For the past three decades, the latter was sensibly higher in Flanders than in Brussels or Wallonia. The employment growth rate was also higher in the northern part of the linguistic frontier. According to the Planbureau, the causes for the economic growth differences are to be found in differences in employment growth rate rather than in productivity growth differences as often assumed.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/inter-regional-economic-performance-differences-in-belgium-what-is-to-blame/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/inter-regional-economic-performance-differences-in-belgium-what-is-to-blame/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How healthy is the Belgian healthcare system?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Belgian healthcare system has important assets. The system is nonetheless threatened by many factors when confronted with the challenges of the XXIst century. This publication shows that the budgetary priority of the past 25 years will be largely insufficient for the future. New priority setting is a necessity and will have to go hand in hand with a real middle and long term vision that is non existent today.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-healthy-is-the-belgian-healthcare-system/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-healthy-is-the-belgian-healthcare-system/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How healthy is the Belgian healthcare system?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This Press release is only available in French and Dutch.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/hc/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/hc/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How healthy is the Belgian healthcare system? Presentation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Belgian healthcare system has important assets. The system is nonetheless threatened by many factors when confronted with the challenges of the XXIst century. This presentation shows that the budgetary priority of the past 25 years will be largely insufficient for the future. New priority setting is a necessity and will have to go hand in hand with a real middle and long term vision that is non existent today.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-healthy-is-the-belgian-healthcare-system-presentation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-healthy-is-the-belgian-healthcare-system-presentation/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Innovation as a second nature?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Innovation is central in every vision of economic success and sustainable welfare. &lsquo;Invest more in R&amp;D&rsquo; has become a popular suggestion. Is this the way to tell the innovation story or are there alternative perspectives? And can innovation truly become a second nature?]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 28 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/innovation-as-a-second-nature/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/innovation-as-a-second-nature/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Food, oil and the kingdom of scarcity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The food crisis, energy crisis as well as the credit crisis follow from the lower investments in risk minimization instruments. And therefore we are back in the age of scarcity.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 24 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/food-oil-and-the-kingdom-of-scarcity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/food-oil-and-the-kingdom-of-scarcity/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Europe&#8217;s R&amp;D: Missing the wrong targets? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ It is not a surprise that Europe is not delivering on its Lisbon agenda commitment to increase its R&amp;D-to-GDP ratio to three percent by 2010. More surprisingly, this Bruegel policybrief underlines that the European Commission&#8217;s benchmarking of member states against the headline three percent figure is questionable, because such comparisons rarely take into account the industrial specialisation. Moreover, it claims that setting targets for private R&amp;D is ineffective and calls for a support of research activities up to a threshold of one percent of GDP by the aggregate government sector. This Policybrief advocates a more integrated European market for technology (notably an EU patent) and increased funding for academic research, which significantly induces further research in the business sector. 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 16 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/europesrdmissingthewrongtargets/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/europesrdmissingthewrongtargets/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The case for renewables subsidies must be studied carefully</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This study of the IMF analyses the total costs to society of renewable support mechanisms. The justifications for subsidizing renewables (reductions in carbon emissions, technology spillovers due to R&amp;D efforts and security of energy supply) must be balanced against subsidy costs and the cost of alternative strategies. It stresses that the case for subsidies must be studied carefully in each individual case and pushes for a higher emphasis on development of new technologies relative to current productive activity.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-case-for-renewables-subsidies-must-be-studied-carefully-in-each-individual-case/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-case-for-renewables-subsidies-must-be-studied-carefully-in-each-individual-case/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Vaccination against indexation fever</title>
<description><![CDATA[ For Marc De Vos, 2008 is a pivotal year for the Belgian wage norm, rather than for the Belgian system of wage indexation. He pleads for remedies that combine the protection of both competitiveness and purchasing power.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vaccination-against-indexation-fever/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/vaccination-against-indexation-fever/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Are all labour regulations equal?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Using India as its research pool, this study analyzes the effects of increases in employment protection and labour dispute regulation. Both are shown to substantially reduce employment and output. These laws do no seem to benefit workers either, as they do not increase the share of value added that goes to labour. Labour-intensive industries are the hardest hit by amendments that increase employment protection while capital-intensive industries are the most affected by laws that increase the cost of labour dispute resolution. These adverse effects are not alleviated by the widespread and increasing use of contract labour. A useful reminder to those who cast doubts on the trade-offs between employment and employment regulation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/are-all-labour-regulations-equal/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/are-all-labour-regulations-equal/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Inflation decreased during 2007, but has strongly accelerated since the beginning of the year</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This chapter of the Annual Report of the National Bank of Belgium reveals that inflation rate decreased from 2,3% to 1,8% between 2006 and 2007, which ranks Belgium amongst the countries with the lowest inflation rate in the Monetary Union for 2007. It underlines however that these good results are only due to temporary factors and notes that if inflation went down between January and August, it strongly accelerated during the last months of the year 2007, pushed up by the combined effects of an increase in the price of energy products and an acceleration in the price of foodstuffs. This tendency has continued during the first months of the year 2008, with an inflation rate which reached 3,64% on an annual basis for the month of February, ranking Belgium first in terms of inflation rate for this period&#8230;]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/inflation-decreased-during-2007-but-has-strongly-accelerated-since-the-beginning-of-the-year/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/inflation-decreased-during-2007-but-has-strongly-accelerated-since-the-beginning-of-the-year/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>International outsourcing does not reduce employment</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the public debate, international outsourcing is mainly associated with employment losses. However, this paper on Germany shows that international outsourcing has, if anything, a positive effect on employment. Contrary to popular belief, there is barely any overall impact in the manufacturing sector, while job stability in the services sector is profiting from the productivity gains of outsourcing. This strengthens the conviction that outsourcing can induce employment growth by increasing the competitiveness and the productivity of firms.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/international-outsourcing-does-not-reduce-employment/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/international-outsourcing-does-not-reduce-employment/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Less coordination in wage bargaining may reduce regional unemployment differential</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Empirical evidence in this paper of the IMF confirms that countries with more coordinated wage bargaining systems have lower regional wage differentials and higher regional unemployment differentials. Belgium is ranked second in the EU-15 with regard to the importance of regional unemployment disparities, and second regarding the level of coordination of wage bargaining. The results presented in this study suggest that less coordination in wage bargaining may significantly reduce the huge regional unemployment differentials faced by the country.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/less-coordination-in-wage-bargaining-may-reduce-regional-unemployment-differential/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/less-coordination-in-wage-bargaining-may-reduce-regional-unemployment-differential/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Post Kyoto options for Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This report has followed the decisions taken by EU leaders at the Spring European Council of 2007 (to cut 20% of the EU&#8217;s greenhouse gas emissions and use 20% of renewable energy by 2020) and examines possible post-Kyoto options for Belgium. It shows that it is possible to attain very stringent CO2 reductions at a limited welfare cost (0,7% of the GDP in the case of a 22,5% reduction in 2050) and that the CO2 constraints do not impose major shifts in the energy system in the medium term. It emphasizes that what is predominant for the country is the use of more energy efficient technologies and a switch to gas. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/post-kyoto-options-for-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/post-kyoto-options-for-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Unemployment insurance is also a labour market policy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos supports the systematic combination of unemployment benefits and activation measures. He underscores that activation is a social policy for the weaker participants of the labour market. While the combination of federal and regional competences appears inevitable, he warns that regional mobility should benefit rather than suffer from further devolution.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unemployment-insurance-is-also-a-labour-market-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unemployment-insurance-is-also-a-labour-market-policy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Young generation of Dutch women still prefer part time work notwithstanding increased labour market opportunities.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Dutch model for combining labour and care is internationally unique with a high participation of women and a high share of part-time employment. The authors of this CPB study find that policies such as lower taxes for partners or better childcare arrangements did not lead to more hours worked. They conclude from this finding that the Dutch model of part-time employment is the result of (societal) preferences rather than of institutional barriers. The survey offers an alternative pitch about labour market differences between men and women.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/young-generation-of-dutch-women-still-prefer-part-time-work-notwithstanding-increased-labour-market-opportunities/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/young-generation-of-dutch-women-still-prefer-part-time-work-notwithstanding-increased-labour-market-opportunities/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Entrepreneurship as a public good </title>
<description><![CDATA[ International comparisons learn that Belgium counts too few start-up companies. Apparently, potential entrepreneurs need to be activated just as the unemployed. Is there a genetic explanation for this passive attitude or is the average Belgian most and for all a rational free-rider preferring others to take up the efforts and risks of job creation?]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 31 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/entrepreneurship-as-a-public-good/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/entrepreneurship-as-a-public-good/</guid>
</item>
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<title>Is Belgium prepared for the cost of ageing?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ageing inevitably increases the pressure on the resources of the social security system and calls for adequate policy reforms. While Belgium is no doubt in a better position do deal with aging that it was a decade ago, it is far from prepared to meet the challenges of the projected rise in the budgetary costs of aging. This paper and presentation from IMF economist Luc Everaert takes a critical look at the existing strategy to deal with the projected budgetary costs of aging. It estimates the costs of delaying reform, highlights the magnitude of the implementation gaps so far, and describes the tensions and synergies between the different components of the strategy required to deal with aging. Against this background, and based on cross-country experience, it also provides some suggestions about the course ahead.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 28 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/isbelgiumpreparedforthecostofageing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/isbelgiumpreparedforthecostofageing/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Nota%208_2008_EN.pdf" length="373608" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>Is Belgium prepared for the cost of ageing? - Presentation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Luc Everaert (IMF) gives a critical look at the existing strategy of Belgium to deal with aging. He warns against every delay or postponement of the reforms and provides some suggestions of new political options. 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 28 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/isbelgiumpreparedforthecostofageingpres/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/isbelgiumpreparedforthecostofageingpres/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/20080327%20-%20Ageing%20Final%20-%20Luc%20Everaert's%20slides.pdf" length="82618" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>Is Belgium prepared for the cost of ageing?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Luc Everaert (IMF) scrutinizes Belgian budgetary policies during a lunch lecture at the Itinera Institute on March 27 2008. Ageing is a long-term challenge with significant budgetary implications. How well is Belgium prepared and what is the risk from inappropriate policy responses?<br/>]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/is-belgium-prepared-for-the-cost-of-ageing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/is-belgium-prepared-for-the-cost-of-ageing/</guid>
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<item>
<title>The Cancer Plan needs more than a budget only!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A budget of 380 million euros has been freed for the Cancer Plan for the period 2008-2010. This testifies of a middle-term vision. It would be an error to think this plan guarantees results though. The Cancer Plan needs more than only a budget to be successful. Four basic conditions have to be fulfilled: prevention, collaboration, mobilisation of all the actors and finally innovation. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-cancer-plan-needs-more-than-a-budget-only/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-cancer-plan-needs-more-than-a-budget-only/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Educational inequalities among immigrants</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A precondition for immigrants&#8217; integration is their point of departure for labour market success: their education and ability. Whereas most studies disguise the diversity within the immigrant population by focusing on average educational attainment of immigrants vis-&#224;-vis natives, this paper examines educational inequalities among immigrants in eight high immigration countries. The results indicate that for almost all countries immigrants&#8217; educational dispersion is considerably higher than for natives. In most countries immigrants&#8217; high educational dispersion derives from a considerable group of 'worst' achieving immigrants who fall considerably behind 'worst' achieving native students.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 20 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/educational-inequalities-among-immigrants/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/educational-inequalities-among-immigrants/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Capital Flows and Demographics &#8211; An Asian Perspective</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Demographic disparities can be mutually beneficial. Regions in the world are at different stages of the demographic transition: Some, as Europe, are ahead and already experience slowing or negative labor growth. Others, as India or Africa, are at early stage of the demographic transition, and witness strong labor growth. This paper of the IMF investigates the impact of demographics on international capital flows, focusing on Asia. The author ensures that open capital accounts will speed up the relocation of production from fast aging to slower aging economies and benefits everybody&#8217;s welfare. For that, he underlines that capital markets should be supervised and that countries should reform their unsustainable pay-as-you-go pension system. Definitely, pension reform has his bunch of opportunities.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 18 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/capital-flows-and-demographics-an-asian-perspective/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/capital-flows-and-demographics-an-asian-perspective/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Does immigration affect the Phillips curve? Some evidence from Spain</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Immigration can help to moderate wages

What is the impact of immigration on inflation? Spain experienced a drop in unemployment by 15 percentage points over the period 1995-2006, with roughly constant inflation. This paper estimates that the fall in unemployment since 1995 would have led to an annual increase in inflation of 2.5 percentage points if it had not been largely offset by immigration, a finding that suggests that immigration can help to suppress inflation as unemployment falls and labour market shortages appear.  The Spanish example suggests that also the Belgian economy, with rising inflation and a labour market with increasing shortages, could benefit from more immigration.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 18 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-immigration-affect-the-phillips-curve-some-evidence-fom-spain/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-immigration-affect-the-phillips-curve-some-evidence-fom-spain/</guid>
</item>
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<title>From words to action</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos welcomes the Solidarity Pact which the regional and federal employer organisations have collectively proposed. He supports the basic goal of more growth and more jobs for better solidarity. But missing are the concrete steps that employers and their organisations themselves are able and willing to take to realize this goal.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 18 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-words-to-action/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-words-to-action/</guid>
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<title>How open economies absorb large immigration flows</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Several decades of research have shown that the effects of immigration flows on wages are surprisingly small. This IZA paper explores alternative channels by which open economies absorb immigration flows. Unprecedented massive immigration into Spanish regions in the period 2001-2006 led to a large expansion of employment in high immigration regions. The main absorption channel has been within-industry changes in the skill composition of sectoral employment (the typical industry in a high-immigration region has increased the share of low educated workers in its workforce, relative to the same industry in a low-immigration region). The authors conclude that, overall, Spanish regions have absorbed immigration flows in the same way as US local economies. With its small and open economy also Belgium could benefit from more immigration.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 18 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-open-economies-absorb-large-immigration-flows/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-open-economies-absorb-large-immigration-flows/</guid>
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<title>How to respond to short and middle-term economic weakness?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Slowing economic growth inspires policy makers to look for formulas to turn the tide. This CBO study examines the potential of fiscal policy in the US context and recommends selection based upon three main criteria: cost-effectiveness, timeliness, and certainty of effects. Undoubtedly, this American lesson can also be instructive for other countries.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 18 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-respond-to-short-term-economic-weakness/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-respond-to-short-term-economic-weakness/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Ageing: Fatality or Opportunity?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos addresses the causes and consequences of ageing. He offers a critical appraisal of the Belgian response to ageing and argues for an alternative growth strategy. Ageing offers opportunities to improve the social and economic performance of Belgium. Only when we fail to grasp these opportunities will ageing become a fatality.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 17 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-fatality-or-opportunity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-fatality-or-opportunity/</guid>
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<title>Can unemployment insurance stimulate economic transition?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Unemployment insurance can have pernicious effects on employment since it finances inactivity. However, it can also facilitate economic transition by diminishing its cost for the workers. This study presents some empirical findings illustrating the latter. What remains is the need to design unemployment insurance designed in such way that activity is encouraged as much as possible. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 10 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-unemployment-insurance-stimulate-economic-transition/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-unemployment-insurance-stimulate-economic-transition/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Unemployment%20&amp;%20structural%20changes.pdf" length="454033" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
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<title>Belgium is running behind in its budgetary response to ageing</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This year&#8217;s Belgian public finances are not doing that well &#8211; alarming even according to the Plan Bureau. Especially the costs related to ageing are insufficiently anticipated: without budgetary surpluses these costs would have to decrease by one fourth through structural reforms: activate more people, have them work longer and have the health care costs that are independent from ageing financed by future generations. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 07 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-is-running-behind-in-its-budgetary-response-to-ageing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-is-running-behind-in-its-budgetary-response-to-ageing/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Ageing blues</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium is running behind in its budgetary strategy to cope with the cost of an ageing population. Marc De Vos explains that ageing requires both a budgetary strategy and policy reform. The predictions of the cost of ageing by the official Belgian committee on ageing are based on premises that imply social and economic reforms.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 05 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageingblues/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageingblues/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Coming of age: Report on the euro area</title>
<description><![CDATA[ At the end of 2007, inflation in the euro area had jumped to above three percent, while economic growth was slowing and unsteadiness in financial markets persisting. This comprehensive study of Bruegel assesses whether Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) is equipped to sail trough less calm and, perhaps even stormy waters. It emphasizes that by many standards, the euro is a major success, but notes that since is has been launched, the performances of the euro area have not been spectacular. The report underlines that willingness to adapt the EMU policy framework in the light of the experience gained is crucial to the long-term success of the euro and identifies different drivers of reform.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 21 Feb 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/coming-of-age-report-on-the-euro-area/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/coming-of-age-report-on-the-euro-area/</guid>
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<title>Guaranteed survival income trap threatens about 7,000 people in Ghent</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Families which must manage with an unemployment benefit, a guard compensation or a another replacement income, are frequently worse off than people who live from a guaranteed minimum income. According to a study of ACW-Ghent this is the case for about 7,000 people in Ghent. By means of examples it becomes clear how big the differences in monthly income can be. Many people just above the treshold to qualify for additional support whose people with a guaranteed minimum income get are actually worse off than these latter. The ACW-Ghent proposes to also give the former entitlements to additional support. The authors do not investigate whether or not this policy would increase the guaranteed survival income trap.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 21 Feb 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/guaranteedsurvivalincometrapthreatensabout7000peopleinghent/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/guaranteedsurvivalincometrapthreatensabout7000peopleinghent/</guid>
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<title>Is a smoking ban efficient?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ From July 1 2008 onwards the Dutch hotel and catering industry will be smoke-free. This CPB study provides a cost-benefit analysis of the smoking ban and compares the policy to a less drastic alternative, improved ventilation. Both the costs and the benefits of a smoking ban depend upon health gains, i.e. higher pension costs and higher costs for care in the extra life years. The authors conclude that, in comparison with the current policy of self-regulation in the hotel and catering industry, the benefits of the smoking ban exceed its costs by more than 75 million euros. The results confirm those from other studies realised in the United Kingdom.    
]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 21 Feb 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/isasmokingbanefficient/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/isasmokingbanefficient/</guid>
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<title>Integration and assimilation are inseparable</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos contests Turkey&#8217;s prime minister Erdogan&#8217;s labeling of assimilation as a crime against humanity. A degree of assimilation is the natural result of integration. What is more, in western democracies assimilation is a requirement of integration in view of our common and individual citizenship.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 Feb 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/integratieenassimilatiezijnonafscheidelijk/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/integratieenassimilatiezijnonafscheidelijk/</guid>
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<title>Financing Europe&#8217;s Fast Movers</title>
<description><![CDATA[ European &#8220;champions&#8221; are generally much older than American ones and new companies generally find it harder to emerge in Europe than in the US. This is what reveals this Bruegel policybrief which emphasizes the role of the finance system in fostering innovation and growth. It also stresses the importance of corporate finance for the unlocking of the growth potential in Europe and advocates that the ability to foster corporate growth should be given higher priority in EU financial policy. 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 15 Feb 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/financingeuropesfastmovers/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/financingeuropesfastmovers/</guid>
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<title>How to respond to short-term economic weakness?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Slowing economic growth inspires policy makers to look for formulas to turn the tide. This CBO study examines the potential of fiscal policy in the US context and recommends selection based upon three main criteria: cost-effectiveness, timeliness, and certainty of effects. Undoubtedly, this American lesson can also be instructive for other countries.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 13 Feb 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/howtorespondtoshorttermeconomicweakness/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/howtorespondtoshorttermeconomicweakness/</guid>
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<title>The UK is no longer mid-Atlantic</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In 1997 the UK had a tax burden some 7.6% lower than that of the eurozone, the strongest pension system in Europe, and a far less complex and distortionary tax and benefits system than it has today. There is still a popular misconception that the country still enjoys these advantages, that Britain is still the mid-Atlantic economy with tax and spending burdens part-way between the US and Continental Europe. This is however no longer the case: the UK is instead tending towards being a fully fledged member of the continental European club, with a share of government outlays in its GDP that by now exceeds the German figure. This paper examines areas where Germany&#8217;s arrangements appear superior to Britain&#8217;s. It suggests that Belgium should rather look for inspiration in Germany than in the UK. 
]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 13 Feb 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-uk-is-no-longer-mid-atlantic/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-uk-is-no-longer-mid-atlantic/</guid>
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<title>Belgo-Turkish: A bridge or a Breach between Turkey and the European union?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Migration is a fact of life, a helpful boost to ageing populations, but also a source of division. This study of the King Baudouin Foundation explores the identity of the different Turkish communities in Belgium. While emphasizing the potential of Belgian-Turks as &#8220;intercultural ambassadors&#8221; between communities, it sheds light on the lack of integration of some categories of migrants, like married women and the young. It suggests the development of inclusion policies directed towards migrants associations and civil society organisations working with migrants.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 11 Feb 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgo-turkish-a-bridge-or-a-breach-between-turkey-and-the-european-union/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgo-turkish-a-bridge-or-a-breach-between-turkey-and-the-european-union/</guid>
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<title>Pension Reform, retirement and life-cycle unemployment</title>
<description><![CDATA[ It is now widely accepted that in the absence of reform, pension spending will grow to unprecedented levels. This paper investigates the measures that preserve labor market incentives and studies the potential economic impacts of the measures recently implemented in Austria. In the long-run, these latter will produce a significant GDP gain, they might postpone the average age of retirement by almost one year, boost labor market participation of older workers and offer significant aggregate welfare gains. There is inspiration to be taken for Belgium&#8230;    ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 11 Feb 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pension-reform-retirement-and-life-cycle-unemployment/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/pension-reform-retirement-and-life-cycle-unemployment/</guid>
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<title>Early retirement does not create jobs for younger workers</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The assumption that early retirement provides additional job opportunities for younger workers has been at the core of the Belgian labour market policy for decades. In this IMF paper, four economists of the University of Li&#232;ge give the death blow to this &#8220;lump-of-labour&#8221; idea. On the macro level of the labour market they indicate a negligible link between elderly retirement and activity among the young and prime-age populations. The nature of youth unemployment in Belgium is rather the result of structural weaknesses in the areas of education, unemployment compensation and wage formation. A limitation of their research is the lack of attention for large regional differences and their causes.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 08 Feb 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/early-retirement-does-not-create-jobs-for-younger-workers/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/early-retirement-does-not-create-jobs-for-younger-workers/</guid>
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<title>Gender gaps in the European labour market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Women are continuing to drive employment growth in Europe, but remain disadvantaged on the labour market in relation to men, says a report adopted by the European Commission.  More than half of the new jobs created in the EU since 2000 have been taken by women, yet several aspects of the quality of women&#8217;s work remain problematic. The report does not examine the causes of gender segregation (discrimination or different choices?), which is unfortunate as equality is not about outcomes but about opportunities.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 07 Feb 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gender-gaps-in-the-european-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gender-gaps-in-the-european-labour-market/</guid>
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<title>Immigrant workers and temporary work: a front united?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos reflects on the recent improvement of the jobless rate for young immigrants in Flanders and connects it to the proposal to restrict the duration of temporary work. He defends temporary work limitations but warns that less temporary work also means less work opportunities for the weakest groups as long as the regular labour market stays rigid.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 07 Feb 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/immigrant-workers-and-temporary-work-a-front-united/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/immigrant-workers-and-temporary-work-a-front-united/</guid>
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<title>Technological change expands health care capabilities at a budgetary cost</title>
<description><![CDATA[ As in Belgium, health care costs in the United States have grown substantially for decades and are expected to continue to grow in the future. For the US federal government, rising health care costs constitute the primary challenge of fiscal policy. But also private payers have experienced similar growth in costs. This Congressional Budget Office (CBO) paper describes the historical growth in spending on health care in the United States. It examines the factors that determine this evolution and gives special emphasis to the largest single factor driving spending growth &#8212;the greatly expanded capabilities of medicine brought about by technological advances in medical science over the past several decades. Finally, the paper discusses the implications of continued technological change for future growth of health care spending.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 06 Feb 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/technological-change-expands-health-care-capabilities-at-a-budgetary-cost/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/technological-change-expands-health-care-capabilities-at-a-budgetary-cost/</guid>
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<title>Unequal (un)healthy: Not all Belgians are equal in health</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Health inequality in Belgium is much larger than generally perceived. For example, a low-skilled person dies on average three to five years earlier than a high-skilled and can even expect 18 to 25 years less healthy years than a high-skilled. Whereas a number of European countries recently developed strategic and action-oriented plans to reduce health inequalities, an integrated policy strategy is lacking in Belgium. In this report the King Baudouin Foundation gives recommendations to all governments in Belgium to realise a fairer division of chances on health. The authors plead for example for more resources for first line care, for more attention for a healthy life style and a healthy environment, and for the establishment of an action-oriented policy co-ordination centre for equality in health.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 06 Feb 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unequal-unhealthy-not-all-belgians-are-equal-in-health/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unequal-unhealthy-not-all-belgians-are-equal-in-health/</guid>
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<title>The challenge of population ageing in Ireland</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Also the European growth champion faces the challenge of an ageing population. This IMF publication recommends a small fiscal surplus to prepare for long-term spending challenges. Otherwise, Ireland risks an escalating public debt after 2035. The cost of ageing will be slightly lower in Belgium but our country still has a high public debt. As to Belgium, this publication suggests that our country has no other option that building up a fiscal surplus.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 04 Feb 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-challenge-of-population-ageing-in-ireland/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-challenge-of-population-ageing-in-ireland/</guid>
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<title>Flexibility: also in a strongly regulated labour market?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In order to promote prosperity and employment, labour markets must adapt to the dynamics of the economy. This study shows that strongly regulated labour markets such as the Belgian labour market can acquire the necessary flexibility by allowing it at the margin in atypical forms of employment. However, the aggregate result will obviously differ from countries with fully dynamic labour markets.  Flexibility at the margin leads to a dual labour market, diminishes productivity, slows down career development and marginalises the weak of the society.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 01 Feb 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/flexibility-also-in-a-strongly-regulated-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/flexibility-also-in-a-strongly-regulated-labour-market/</guid>
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<title>Taxes shift incomes</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Between 1985 and today, the average corporate tax rate in Europe fell from nearly 50% to nearly 30%. This evolution came along with rising corporate tax-to-GDP ratios (from about 2% to about 3%). In this paper, de Mooij en Nicod&#232;me explore to what extent income shifting from the personal to the corporate tax base can explain these diverging developments. The authors demonstrate that the revenue effects of lower corporate tax rates partly show up in lower personal tax revenues rather than lower corporate tax revenues. Simulations suggest that between 12% and 21% of corporate tax revenue can be attributed to income shifting.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 01 Feb 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/taxes-shift-income/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/taxes-shift-income/</guid>
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<title>The Future of the Belgian Welfare State: Pensions and Health Care</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Belgian social security system is more and more submitted to budgetary constraints. At a conference on the future of the welfare state, Marc De Vos offers reflections and perspectives on the past, present, and evolution of pensions and healthcare in Belgium. Change to improve is for him the motto of the future.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 31 Jan 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-of-the-belgian-welfare-state-pensions-and-health-care/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-of-the-belgian-welfare-state-pensions-and-health-care/</guid>
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<title>The International Monetary Fund rings the alarm bell for Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In its yearly report on Belgium the International Monetary Fund (IMF) urges policymakers to take serious budgetary and socio-economic measures. With a slowing economy and lack of budgetary margin Belgium needs restrictions on government expenditures as well as structural reforms. The IMF recommends making sure that health care costs do not grow more rapidly than the economy, continuing wage moderation efforts in spite of a rising cost of life, eliminating certain subsidies, reforming unemployment insurance with time limitations on unemployment benefits and making collective wage bargaining more flexible.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 31 Jan 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-international-monetary-fund-rings-the-alarm-bell-for-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-international-monetary-fund-rings-the-alarm-bell-for-belgium/</guid>
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<title>The International Monetary Fund sounds a wake-up call for Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos gives perspectives on the recent report from the International Monetary Fund on Belgium. He concludes that the institutional crisis is blocking structural socioeconomic reforms that are both urgent and necessary.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 31 Jan 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-international-monetary-fund-sounds-wake-up-call-for-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-international-monetary-fund-sounds-wake-up-call-for-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Regions immune for ageing?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The prospect of ageing is a frequently cited argument to underpin the necessity of a new state reform in Belgium. This report of the social and economic council of Flanders (SERV) shows that, in the current institutional context, ageing is a problem for the Belgian federal government, not for the Flemish government. The SERV calculations suggest that the ageing costs for the Flemish government only slightly increase towards 2050, while the budgetary pressure of the federal ageing costs becomes ponderous towards that date. The SERV believes that the federal government cannot build up the necessary reserves on its own and suggests that Flanders can give a hand to the federal government with additional budgetary means.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Jan 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/regions-immune-for-ageing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/regions-immune-for-ageing/</guid>
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<title>'My car, my fiscal contribution'</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not only visitors of the European Motor Show in Brussels but also the Belgian fisc is fond of cars. At the occasion of this two-yearly mass for car lovers, critics point towards unnecessarily powerful engines, the SUV-hype or the 'green propaganda' of the car industry. As a symbol of consumer society, cars are indeed important vehicles of fiscal solidarity. This explains why a radical reform of automobile taxation based upon use instead of power is not on the agenda.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 25 Jan 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/my-car-my-fiscal-contribution/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/my-car-my-fiscal-contribution/</guid>
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<title>'My car, my fiscal contribution'</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Not only visitors of the European Motor Show in Brussels but also the Belgian fisc is fond of cars. At the occasion of this two-yearly mass for car lovers, critics point towards unnecessarily powerful engines, the SUV-hype or the 'green propaganda' of the car industry. As a symbol of consumer society, cars are indeed important vehicles of fiscal solidarity. This explains why a radical reform of automobile taxation based upon use instead of power is not on the agenda.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 25 Jan 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/my-car-my-fiscal-contribution/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/my-car-my-fiscal-contribution/</guid>
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<title>The Belgian economy in 2008: growth in slow motion and inflation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Is the Belgian economy declining? According to the Belgian Federal Planning Bureau the Belgian growth will only reach 1.9% in 2008 against 2.7% in 2007. Inflation will also rise by more than 1%. Even if the Planning Bureau finds that the number of unemployed will decline, there are still severe problems on the Belgian labor market. Regional differences of unemployment rate are rising. Reforms are necessary if Belgium wants to improve this situation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 18 Jan 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/2008-growth-in-slow-motion-and-inflation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/2008-growth-in-slow-motion-and-inflation/</guid>
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<title>Does migration to Belgium reach record heights?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In 2005, more than 90,000 foreigners migrated to our country, a historical peak. This official number exceeds to a great extent the figure in periods when immigration was actively encouraged by the government. In this study Nicolas Perrin (UCL) observes a &#8220;statistical magical trick&#8221;: Belgian official migration statistics do not take into account the (since 1989 exploding) number of asylum seekers. The researcher stresses the discrepancy between the official numbers and reality. He also believes that official statistics suggesting a stable &#8220;foreign population&#8221; in Belgium are flawed. More specifically, the &#8220;foreign population&#8221; is underestimated since the number of Belgians born as a foreigner is not taken into account.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 16 Jan 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-migration-to-belgium-reach-record-heights/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/does-migration-to-belgium-reach-record-heights/</guid>
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<title>France modernises labour market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With the publication of an agreement on the modernisation of the labour market in mid-January 2008, France is on the reform path. Already approved by three labour unions as well as by the employers&#8217; association, the agreement includes an easing of the probation period, a more flexible employment protection legislation and the creation of a new and flexible employment contract for executives. The French example can inspire Belgium also to opt for reform.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 16 Jan 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/france-modernises-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/france-modernises-labour-market/</guid>
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<title>Belgium is the world&#8217;s globalisation champion</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to researchers of the KOF Swiss Economic Institute, Belgium is the world&#8217;s most globalised country. The KOF Index of Globalisation measures the economic, social and political dimensions of globalisation. Whereas Belgium does not rank first on any of these sub-indices, the country ranks among the top ten on all three, which results in the top position of the overall globalisation index.. The most recent index also shows that globalisation is still on the rise, driven by increased economic and political globalisation, while social globalisation stagnates.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 11 Jan 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-is-the-worlds-globalisation-champion/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-is-the-worlds-globalisation-champion/</guid>
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<title>Combining working and living: a necessary challenge</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The European Union needs to increase employment rates to ensure continued economic growth and promote social inclusion. To do so, however, it needs to make it easier for people to reconcile work and family life to facilitate labour market entry. This Eurofound paper addresses this dilemma. The authors find that resolving conflicting demands of paid employment and domestic responsibilities is especially difficult for disadvantaged groups such as lone parents and women. They argue that working time flexibility is key to facilitate employees&#8217; work-life balance. As the European population ages, also childcare and elderly care have an important contribution to make.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 10 Jan 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/combining-working-and-living-a-necessary-challenge/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/combining-working-and-living-a-necessary-challenge/</guid>
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<title>Globalisation has only limited impact on wages in advanced economies</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The declining share of income accruing to labour in advanced economies is often portrayed as an unwelcome side effect from international competition through globalisation. This IMF Working Paper however explains that globalisation is only one of several factors that have affected the declining labour income share. Rapid technological change has had a bigger impact, especially on the wages of unskilled workers. To maximize the benefits from labour globalisation and technological change while also addressing the distributional impact, policies should seek to improve the functioning of labour markets, strengthen access to education and training and ensure adequate social safety nets that cushion the impact on those adversely affected.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 10 Jan 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/globalisation-has-only-limited-impact-on-wages-in-advanced-economies/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/globalisation-has-only-limited-impact-on-wages-in-advanced-economies/</guid>
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<title>Ageing is not a fatality</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In our country ageing is seen as a threat for our pensions and health system. According to the Institut Montaigne ageing is not a fatality. Another approach more offensive is possible. As far as this is concerned, Japan might be a good example. Following the Japanese example, Montaigne gives 8 concrete propositions in order to transform ageing into a potential source of growth. Among others, Montaigne proposes to develop a more dynamic labour market for young seniors by abolishing the age limit and all the early retirement mechanisms. According to the authors the healthcare system must also change. A possible solution is to act in favor of cheaper solutions such as home care.  
Transforming ageing into an opportunity is necessary in order to face tomorrow&#8217;s challenges.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Jan 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-is-not-a-fatality/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-is-not-a-fatality/</guid>
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<title>New Universities for Old Europe?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ On January 8, 2008 the Itinera Institute and Dexia hosted the renowned Lawrence Summers for a stimulating reflection on universities in the 21st century. Discover here the presentation given by Marc De Vos and Johan Albrecht.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Jan 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/new-universities-for-old-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/new-universities-for-old-europe/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/20080108%20New%20Universities%20for%20Old%20Europe.pdf" length="1210684" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>Universities in the European knowledge economy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the debate on the competitive knowledge economy, universities are more than ever expected to directly support national innovation systems. Spectacular technological developments in the private sector however suggest that universities should rather be selective in their R&amp;D strategy and strive for the integration of research in education. Delivering qualitative human capital remains the most important social and economic contribution of universities.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Jan 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/universities-in-the-european-knowledge-economy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/universities-in-the-european-knowledge-economy/</guid>
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<title>New Universities for Old Europe?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Itinera Institute is proud to invite you to an exceptional event with Lawrence Summers (Harvard Charles W. Eliot University Professor, former Chief Economist of the World Bank, former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and former president of Harvard University).]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 08 Jan 2008 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/new-universities-for-old-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/new-universities-for-old-europe/</guid>
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<title>Healthcare spending under pressure</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ageing is putting an extra pressure on healthcare spending. U.S. health spending is projected to increase of 25 % between 2006 and 2016 (from 16 percent of GDP to 20 percent). This Commonwealth Fund Commission on a High Performance Health System paper examines federal policy options that have the potential to lower health spending relative to projected trends. They include policies that would: produce and use better information for health care decision-making, promote health and enhance disease prevention, align financial incentives with quality and efficiency, and correct price signals in health care markets.
Some of these options are also useful for Belgium. Indeed, according the Belgian Commission on Ageing, the percentage of Belgian public spending allocated to healthcare will increase of more than 15% between 2004 and 2020.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 26 Dec 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/healthcare-spending-under-pressure/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/healthcare-spending-under-pressure/</guid>
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<title>Belgium did not take advantage of the real estate boom</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Over the last years, real estate prices strongly rose in many European countries and in the United States. The effect of this boom on the employment in the construction sector is not the same in all the countries. According to this IZA working paper, Belgium did not take advantage of this boom while other countries such as Spain, Sweden or the United States raised their employment rate.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 20 Dec 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-did-not-take-advantage-of-the-real-estate-boom/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-did-not-take-advantage-of-the-real-estate-boom/</guid>
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<title>Taxes in Belgium: too many and too complex</title>
<description><![CDATA[ On the occasion of the launch of the edition 2008 of the Trends Top 100.000, Trends analyses the Belgian Economy in collaboration with VKW Metena. Together, the 30.000 biggest Belgian companies pay 8.3 billion euros on corporate taxes, i.e. 2.45 billion more in comparison with companies in other countries of the Eurozone. The study stresses the Laffer effect of a reduction of the corporate tax rate and gives survey results that indicate increasing fiscal complexity. Finally it discusses fundamental macro-economic questions for 2008, such as the subprime crisis, Chinese growth and the inflation issue.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 20 Dec 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/taxes-in-belgium-too-many-and-too-complex/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/taxes-in-belgium-too-many-and-too-complex/</guid>
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<title>The Belgian productivity in slow-motion</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The launch of the Lisbon strategy in 2000 was strongly motivated by the observation of a declining trend in European labour productivity growth over the preceding decade. This Federal Planning Bureau paper compares the labour productivity growth of three small open European countries: Austria, Belgium and the Netherlands. This comparison shows that, while Austria and Belgium recorded a decrease in their productivity growth between 1995 and 2004, the Netherlands followed the American pattern and has recorded an increase in their growth rate since 1995. Belgium could learn from the Netherlands where productivity growth is driven by key factors such as ICT, R&amp;D and innovation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 18 Dec 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-belgian-productivity-in-slow-motion/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-belgian-productivity-in-slow-motion/</guid>
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<title>All the Belgians are not equal as far as pensions are concerned</title>
<description><![CDATA[ One Belgian out of five is retired but his or her condition strongly depends on status and gender. This is the result of this new study by the KULeuven and the Federal Public Service Social Security. For example, a woman who used to be self-employed receives almost 11 times less than a past civil servant. Together with ageing, the huge difference between the pension&#8217;s regimes is an additional factor arming the implementation of a pension&#8217;s system affordable, fair and sufficient for the 21st century.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 14 Dec 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/all-the-belgians-are-not-equal-as-far-as-pensions-are-concerned/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/all-the-belgians-are-not-equal-as-far-as-pensions-are-concerned/</guid>
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<title>Belgians assess their healthcare system</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How do the Belgians perceive their Healthcare system? The insurance company DKV answers this question in its National Health Survey. This report shows that most of the Belgians consider that the healthcare system is under pressure due to ageing. Almost half of the population also thinks that complementary insurance should be promoted. Policy makers could draw interesting lessons from this overview of the perception of healthcare by the population.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 14 Dec 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgians-assess-their-healthcare-system/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgians-assess-their-healthcare-system/</guid>
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<title>The challenges of patients' participation in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This King Baudouin Foundation report aims to drawn a map of patients&#8217; participation into the Healthcare system in Belgium and abroad. In Belgium, patients are often organized according to a specific pathology. Most of the time, they are not well represented in advisory boards. According to the KBF, these organizations will face two mains challenges on their way to professionalisation: gaining more technocratic expertise and gathering enough financial means while remaining independent.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 14 Dec 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-challenges-of-patients-participation-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-challenges-of-patients-participation-in-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Unemployed despite increasing shortage</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Slowly but surely, the combination of ungreening and ageing transforms the labour market. What does increasing shortage on the labour market imply for the evolution of unemployment? Without ambitious reforms unemployment in the future is rather threatened. As long as labour does not pay off, the low-skilled remain outsiders. But also the high-skilled can suffer.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 12 Dec 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unemployed-despite-increasing-shortage/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unemployed-despite-increasing-shortage/</guid>
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<title>Women and young people: outside the labour force</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What are the main determinants of inactivity in Europe? This Eurostat publication analyses the inactive population in the European Union. The study concludes that inactivity in the labour market is very gender and age specific. The main reason for young people not being in the labour market is their enrolment in formal education, while retirement is the main reason for inactivity of older persons. Increasing our activity rate is crucial in order to cope with ageing. In Belgium more than 60% of the young persons (15-24) are inactive. This is above the UE-27 average. Policy makers should take this into account.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 12 Dec 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/women-and-young-people-outside-the-labour-force/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/women-and-young-people-outside-the-labour-force/</guid>
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<title>Climate Relativism: On Salvation Through Fossil Shortage</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p>On&nbsp;11&nbsp;December 2007, you can attend the second public&nbsp;presentation of &ldquo;Climate relativism Itinera Institute Monography number 2)&rdquo;. Participation is free of charge and the Itinera Institute will provide you with a free copy of &ldquo;Climate relativism&rdquo;.</p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 11 Dec 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/climate-relativism-december/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/climate-relativism-december/</guid>
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<title>Belgian teaching: to be improved</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The new PISA survey on education was recently released. This OECD study aims to give a comprehensive picture of science learning today. Some countries such as Finland succeed in providing both high quality education and equitable learning outcomes. This is not the case for Belgium which is characterised by a high level of inequality and by major regional disparities in terms of student's performances. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 10 Dec 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgian-teaching-to-be-improved/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgian-teaching-to-be-improved/</guid>
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<title>Will generics rescue the budget?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With the aim of controlling health care spending, public authorities in several countries increasingly recommend the use of &#8220;generic&#8221; drugs or of therapeutic substitutes. Doctors are putted under pressure to replace some medicines with cheaper alternatives. According to this study of the Molinari Institute, this policy involves a bureaucratization of drug use that presents risks for the health of the insured and a potential increase in other health care expenses.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 10 Dec 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/will-generics-rescue-the-budget/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/will-generics-rescue-the-budget/</guid>
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<title>Getting the rich to pay taxes in France: abolish the French wealth tax</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The symbolic importance of the French ISF (Solidarity Tax on Wealth) far outweighs its tiny (0.5%) share of the compulsory contributions paid in France. Economic analysis moreover shows that it costs the State at least twice as much as it brings in.  In this paper of the Montaigne Institute, it is shown that the ISF is responsible for a substantial volume of capital outflow, has a significant adverse impact on the potential for economic growth and, in reality, makes only a very small contribution to the redistribution of wealth and the reduction of inequality. Recommended reading for Belgian advocates that plead for a wealth tax in Belgium.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 06 Dec 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/getting-the-rich-to-pay-taxes-in-france-abolish-the-french-wealth-tax/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/getting-the-rich-to-pay-taxes-in-france-abolish-the-french-wealth-tax/</guid>
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<title>How to make Belgium and Europe more carbon competitive?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ When considering the export mix, Belgium and Europe are more vulnerable to carbon pricing schemes than other countries and regions. More than their main competitors, Europe and Belgium specialises in industries with relatively high carbon emissions (such as minerals and chemicals) rather than in high-tech industries and services. This Policy Brief of Bruegel gives three recommendations for policy development in the area of cutting carbon emissions: ensure that policies allow emissions to be cut at the lowest cost, reduce competitive distortions by pushing for widespread use of carbon pricing schemes and avoid trade-skewing sectoral &#8220;carve-outs&#8221; from such schemes at national level.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 04 Dec 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-make-belgium-and-europe-more-carbon-competitive/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-to-make-belgium-and-europe-more-carbon-competitive/</guid>
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<title>International students: assets or liabilities?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Do international students benefit or harm an economy? This paper of the Higher Education Policy Institute examines the (purely economic) impact of the presence of both EU and non-EU international students in the UK. Detailed calculations underpin the conclusion that each FTE EU student in the UK annually brings net cash benefits of about &#163;10,000 to the UK economy, whereas a FTE non-EU student annually brings net cash benefits of about &#163;17,900. Even if all EU students would default on the repayment of their subsidised loans the overall economic impact is substantial. This suggests that also Belgium, with its heavily subsidised higher education system, could benefit from attracting more international students.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 04 Dec 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/international-students-assets-or-liabilities/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/international-students-assets-or-liabilities/</guid>
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<title>More and better use of ICT for a more prosperous Europe</title>
<description><![CDATA[ For most of the post-war period, productivity was growing faster in Europe than in the United States. Yet, after 1995, the trends reversed. Robert Atkinson from the Information Technology &amp; Innovation Foundation (ITIF) observes that the ICT revolution was responsible for the lion&#8217;s share of U.S. productivity growth and discusses why a productivity turnaround is critical for the future of Europe. Policy recommendations include the use of tax incentives and tariff reductions to spur ICT investment as well as the active encouragement of universal digital literacy and digital technology adoption. In terms of benefits from ICT investments Belgium belongs to the top students of the EU. Nevertheless there is still significant scope for productivity improvements in our country, as also confirmed by a study of the Federal Planning Bureau that can be found elsewhere on our website.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 04 Dec 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-and-better-use-of-ict-for-a-more-prosperous-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-and-better-use-of-ict-for-a-more-prosperous-europe/</guid>
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<title>More for less? Efficiency of education and health care in the Group of Seven</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This IMF paper addresses the efficiency of public spending on education and health in the G7 countries. The authors find that policies and institutions are clearly associated with differences in efficiency. Public spending is less efficient in countries where budgets for education and health largely consist of wages and salaries. Lower student-teacher ratios and more autonomy of schools enhance efficiency in the education sector. With cost-increasing technological progress and ageing driving up the cost of health care, reducing inefficiencies in the health sector will be key for achieving sustainable fiscal policies and overcoming obstacles to international competition in G7 countries. Belgium is not included in the analysis, but can definitely learn on the performance of educational and healthcare systems from this cross-country study on the Group of Seven.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 29 Nov 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-for-less-efficiency-of-education-and-health-care-in-the-group-of-seven/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-for-less-efficiency-of-education-and-health-care-in-the-group-of-seven/</guid>
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<title>Climate Relativism: On Salvation Through Fossil Shortage</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p>On 27 november 2007, you can attend the public&nbsp; presentation of &ldquo;Climate relativism Itinera Institute Monography number 2&rdquo;. Participation is free of charge and the Itinera Institute will provide you with a free copy of &ldquo;Climate relativism&rdquo;.</p><p><strong>This event is fully booked. The Itinera Institute organises a second public presentation on 11 December 2007.</strong></p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 27 Nov 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/climate-relativism/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/climate-relativism/</guid>
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<title>Innovation and adaptation: how companies and countries stay wealthy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The challenge for Belgium and other wealthy countries is to stay wealthy in a rapidly evolving global economy. Companies and countries face an ever more volatile market place. As the &#8220;sweet spots&#8221; for corporate success are constantly changing, successful entrepreneurs have a social capacity for flexibility and adaptation. To policymakers, successful adjustment has often been posed as a choice between social protection and market flexibility. This study of the Berkeley Roundtable on the International Economy (BRIE) recasts this all too common framing and emphasises instead that a strong social protection system could be leveraged to a unique advantage in the emerging digital era.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 27 Nov 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/innovation-and-adaptation-how-companies-and-countries-stay-wealthy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/innovation-and-adaptation-how-companies-and-countries-stay-wealthy/</guid>
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<title>Ten recommendations for a truly innovative Europe</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Innovation is crucial to achieving the Lisbon Agenda goals and while it cannot be &#8216;invented&#8217; in Brussels, a strategic policy framework which allows it to thrive can only be created at the European level. This Policy Brief of the European Policy Centre sets out a ten-point plan for making Europe truly innovative. Member States supported by the EU need to ensure that the right conditions for innovation are in place. This is the key to unlocking the EU&#8217;s potential for sustainable high growth, competitive world-class companies, high-performing public services and an international reputation for innovation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 27 Nov 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ten-recommendations-for-a-truly-innovative-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ten-recommendations-for-a-truly-innovative-europe/</guid>
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<title>IPCC denies the climate problem!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In 2100, the average temperature could be from 1.8 to 4&#176;C higher than today. This is the conclusion of the climate models developed by the IPCC. These models are based on 4 pictures of the future for the 21st century (the SRES story lines: A1, A2, B1 and B2). This publication shows that these 4 pictures of the future are mainly worst-cases scenarios with limited representativeness. None of these scenarios takes into account any climate policy, the fossil shortage or a clean tech environment. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 23 Nov 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ipcc-negates-the-climate-problem/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ipcc-negates-the-climate-problem/</guid>
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<title>Labour migration to the EU is a win-win</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Also in the EU labour migration constitutes a massive win-win: total remittance flows fade the transfers for Official Development Aid (ODA). In this study, the European Commission for the first time completely mapped these remittance flows. It turns out that migrants in the EU sent about 20 billions euro to third countries in 2006. In the same year 200 millions euro flowed back from Belgium to countries of origin outside the EU, mainly in North Africa.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 21 Nov 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-migration-to-the-eu-is-a-win-win/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-migration-to-the-eu-is-a-win-win/</guid>
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<title>Insufficient competition on the energy market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This paper of the consulting firm Capgemini analyses the European energy market. According to the authors, the European energy market lacks some freedom and competition. The authors underline the lack of secured supply and the need for a strong and binding CO2 quotas framework. In addition, more competition would benefit consumers and foster the development of novel energy technologies. By gradually liberalizing its energy market Belgium made a first step but the journey is still long.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 20 Nov 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/insufficient-competition-on-the-energy-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/insufficient-competition-on-the-energy-market/</guid>
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<title>The happy few &#8211; internationalised European firms</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This Bruegel study reveals that only a handful of top exporters account for the bulk of aggregate exports and foreign direct investment (FDI). This finding is consistent across the countries researched. In Belgium, the top 1% exporters account for almost half of total Belgian exports while the top 10% exporters account for 84% of total Belgian exports. The authors show that trade missions do not necessarily improve trade and that policies to increase the number of firms competing internationally (by lowering barriers to export and fostering performance in terms of employment and productivity) are more important. Policy recommendations include promotion of intra-industry competition and broadening of the export base. Policymakers should forget about the incumbent superstars and rather nurture the superstars of the future.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 20 Nov 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-happy-few-internationalised-european-firms/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-happy-few-internationalised-european-firms/</guid>
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<title>The keys for labour market success in Europe</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The combination of active labour market policy and less rigidity in labour and product markets are the explanatory factors of a successful labour market policy in Europe. This is the lesson of the first EU-wide cross-country study on labour market performance in the EU.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 20 Nov 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-keys-for-labour-market-success-in-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-keys-for-labour-market-success-in-europe/</guid>
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<title>Ageing does not rime with innovation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The effects of ageing on our economy go beyond a &#8220;simple&#8221; retirement financing problem. Innovation is also an issue. This CESifo working paper demonstrates that there is a positive link between the working age population and the number of startups. Less innovation and creativity, this is certainly not good news for the future economics growth in an ageing Belgium.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 Nov 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-does-not-rime-with-innovation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-does-not-rime-with-innovation/</guid>
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<title>Also Denmark grapples with the efficiency of activation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Experiment Denmark proves that active labour market policy works. The achievement of low and stable unemployment in the country is often attributed to the so-called &#8220;flexicurity&#8221; model. But effectiveness does not equal efficiency: activation demands scarce resources. Policymakers pleading for more activation should not only look at results but also at the resources required for results. So far, the focus in Belgium is insufficiently on the (in)efficiency of certain types of activation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 Nov 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/also-denmark-grapples-with-the-efficiency-of-activation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/also-denmark-grapples-with-the-efficiency-of-activation/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Energy transition: the Future Is Slow and Swedish</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The fossil shortage necessitates an energy transition . In some pioneer countries technological dynamics are already on track. What are the options for policy makers?]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 07 Nov 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-is-slow-and-swedish/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-is-slow-and-swedish/</guid>
</item>
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<title>A New Deal for labour in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The yearly congress of Human Resources Magazine is devoted to the Itinera Monography on labour market reform.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 06 Nov 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/a-new-deal-for-labour-in-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/a-new-deal-for-labour-in-belgium/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Climate  Relativism</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The popular climate story neglects the end of the fossil energy era. An energy transition is therefore necessary. This challenge requires a consistent policy answer. In the long run, it offers the potential for important future wealth creation. In order to make this possible, a framework allowing for research networking and for entrepreneurship around smart energy technology is crucial.
 ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 06 Nov 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/climate-/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/climate-/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Climate relativism</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The future climate change seems the ultimate international theme today. This is the result of a succesful but selective communication strategy. Selectivity however comes at a price. The popular climate story neglects for example the end of the era of cheap fossile energy. A radical change of our energy system - an energy transition - is unavoidable. This transition can generate economic growth and ecological benefits if the government creates a stimulating environment for entrepreneurship in the field of intelligent energy technologies.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 05 Nov 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/climate-relativism/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/climate-relativism/</guid>
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<title>Can migration save ageing?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Immigration raises the population of a country. But what is its impact on ageing and its financing? Almost zero according to the Center for Immigration Studies who raised the question for the United States. Even if migrants are young, they get older and do not reverse the age pyramid. As ageing will not be compensated by increased immigration, genuine policy reforms will be needed to address its budgetary implications. The study demonstrates how raising the retirement age can be a very effective measure.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 29 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-migration-save-ageing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-migration-save-ageing/</guid>
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<title>More diversification for migration policies</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With a labour market more and more global and more and more qualified, the French migration policy does not promote enough the work migration and favors to much the &#8216;family&#8217; migration. This is the result of this OECD study which recommends to France to diversify its migration policy introducing a dose of selected, temporary and qualified migration. Belgium should pay attention as it shares common migration characteristics with France, such as a dominance of lowly qualified migration and workforce shortage in key sectors.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 29 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-diversification-for-migration-policies/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-diversification-for-migration-policies/</guid>
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<title>The need for a targeted labour migration policy in a welfare state</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Just like Belgium, the Netherlands are attractive for low-skill migrants but less attractive for highly-qualified migrants. This study of the Dutch Centraal Planbureau (CPB) explains this observation by pointing to the welfare state with a relatively high degree of income distribution. Extensive welfare steeds need to put an extra effort to be attractive (financially or otherwise) for highly-qualified migrants. Possible efforts include more fiscal advantages during the first years of stay or simplified procedures for this group of migrants. It furthermore seems wise to only carefully admit low-skill migrants on a temporary basis.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 29 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-need-for-a-targeted-labour-migration-policy-in-a-welfare-state/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-need-for-a-targeted-labour-migration-policy-in-a-welfare-state/</guid>
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<title>Globalisation: panacea or pandemic?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Globalisation is a real phenomenon that both enraptures and divides public opinion. At the occasion of an international forum, Marc De Vos offers general perspectives on the components, the consequences, the challenges and the future of globalisation. Globalisation is neither panacea nor pandemic but at the bottom line a force for better health.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/globalisation-panacea-or-pandemic/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/globalisation-panacea-or-pandemic/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Globalisation%2020-10-07.pdf" length="10538696" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>Is the Belgian healthcare system declining?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium looses 3 places at the Euro Health Consumer Index published by Health Consumer Powerhouse, dropping from rank 7 to rank 10. This barometer compares the relative performance of 29 European countries with respect to 5 criteria&#8217;s: patient rights and information, waiting time for treatment, outcomes and generosity, pharmaceuticals. This is an interesting comparative report showing that Belgium &#8220;champions at accessibility but suffers on outcome quality&#8221;. Together with a reflexion on necessary reforms, this report from the Health Consumer Powerhouse is a good benchmark.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/is-the-belgian-healthcare-system-declining/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/is-the-belgian-healthcare-system-declining/</guid>
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<title>Planet&#8217;s Tougher Problems Persist according the UN latest report</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Climate change, growing population, etc. are still hot issues according to the latest Global Environment Outlook published by the United Nations Environment Programme. The report underlines some improvements such as the rising number of environmental policies but, according to the authors, the journey is not over. They even claim that, if these problems are not solved, they could put humanity at risk.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/planets-tougher-problems-persist-according-the-un-latest-report/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/planets-tougher-problems-persist-according-the-un-latest-report/</guid>
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<title>Richer but less equal?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Revenues inequalities are rising in Belgium. This finding is frequently coupled to globalization and the evolution through a knowledge economy in popular media. Is everything said or are there alternative explanations possible?]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/richer-but-less-equal-is-the-recent-rise-in-revenue-inequalities-a-statistical-construction/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/richer-but-less-equal-is-the-recent-rise-in-revenue-inequalities-a-statistical-construction/</guid>
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<title>The digital gap does not exist</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Approximately 90% of the Flemish between 18 and 45 years old dispose of a computer and access to the internet. Whereas the digital gap in terms of ICT possession was only recently filled, a new form of digital inequality suddenly emerges. Research shows that not everybody uses ICT-technology in the same way. As if someone expected the opposite, it turns out that the highly-qualified use the internet in a different way than the low-skilled. Is the class struggle going digital or is the observed usage gap primarily an expression of an obsessive striving towards absolute consumption equality?
]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-digital-gap-does-not-exist/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-digital-gap-does-not-exist/</guid>
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<title>Belgium is missing the Lisbon train.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Federal Planning bureau is ringing the emergency bell. If Belgium does not undertake additional efforts, we will miss all the Lisbon strategy objectives from 2010. Improvement of public finances, diminution of the fiscal and social contribution pressure on labor, increases in the activity rate and shrinkage of greenhouse gas emissions require new reforms. These reforms are also necessary to improve the functioning of the labor market. The Planning Bureau notices that the diminution of the social contribution improves employment but only partially compensates for the fiscal loss of the government.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 25 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-is-missing-the-lisbon-train/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/belgium-is-missing-the-lisbon-train/</guid>
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<title>Richer but less equal? Is the recent rise in revenue inequalities a statistical construction?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Revenues inequalities are rising in Belgium. This finding is frequently coupled to globalization and the evolution through a knowledge economy in popular media. Is everything said or are there alternative explanations possible?<p>The report “Richer but less equal. Is the recent raise in revenue inequalities a statistical construction?” concludes that the rise in revenues inequalities seems mainly due to a strong social and fiscal dynamic. Given that the number of fiscal declaration continues rising in Belgium, revenues inequalities based on the Gini coefficient will continue rising without taking into account the classical corrections such as activation programs, bigger benefits or more fiscal progressiveness.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 25 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/richer_but_less_equal/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/richer_but_less_equal/</guid>
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<title>Philanthropy: what&#8217;s in it for Belgium?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Philanthropy is a booming but controversial global activity with wide-spread policy implications, both nationally and internationally. Where does Belgium stand on the global philanthropy scale? This lecture gives an introduction to the global philanthropy phenomenon. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 24 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/philanthropy-whats-in-it-for-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/philanthropy-whats-in-it-for-belgium/</guid>
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<title>Philanthropy: What&#8217;s in it for Belgium?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marieke Huysentruyt gives an introduction to the global philanthropy phenomenon and shows how one can draw lessons from it on creativity and innovation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 24 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/philanthropy-whats-in-it-for-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/philanthropy-whats-in-it-for-belgium/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Presentation%20Philanthropy.pdf" length="763158" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>No everybody is equal with respect to poverty</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Non-European inhabitants have a 30% chance to live in poverty here in Belgium. This is the result of a King Baudouin Foundation report which is the first one to draw a systematic picture of poverty among foreigners in Belgium. So far traditional stakeholders in poverty alleviation policy did not adequately take into account the growing relation between migration and poverty. We face an important challenge: how to prevent the emergence of a &#8220;poverty generation&#8221; and to improve relations between the different communities in Belgium.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 23 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-everybody-is-equal-with-respect-to-poverty/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/no-everybody-is-equal-with-respect-to-poverty/</guid>
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<title>The war for talent is open.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgians live longer and have fewer children, this is a fact. In order to compensate for the foretell shortage of qualified workforce we will have to compete with other OECD countries for qualified and employable migrants. According to this publication of the Hamburg Institute of International Economics, we should compare our migration policies with those of countries with a tradition of economic immigration such as the United States, Canada or Australia.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-competition-for-talent-is-open/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-competition-for-talent-is-open/</guid>
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<title>Belgium needs budget surpluses to finance ageing.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Also the European growth champion faces the challenge of an aging population. This IMF publication recommends a small fiscal surplus to prepare for long-term spending challenges. Otherwise, Ireland risks an escalating public debt after 2035. The cost of aging will be slightly lower in Belgium but our country still has a high public debt. This publication suggests that Belgium has no other option that building up a fiscal surplus.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 15 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-challenge-of-population-aging-in-ireland/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-challenge-of-population-aging-in-ireland/</guid>
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<title>Final Call for Belgium?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos gives a critical and constructive appraisal of the ongoing Belgian political crisis for international readers. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 10 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/final-call-for-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/final-call-for-belgium/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/en/doc/Nota%2019%20-%202007%20final%20call%20for%20belgium.pdf" length="294342" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>Are the Belgian universities threatened? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The start of the academic year was characterized by the publication of many universities ranking across the world underlying the weak position of Belgian universities. What is the real meaning of these rankings? Jean Hindriks and the Itinera Institute comment on the existing rankings and give perspectives in favour of an investment policy into Belgian universities.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 09 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/are-the-belgian-universities-threatened/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/are-the-belgian-universities-threatened/</guid>
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<title>Are the Belgian universities threatened? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ The start of the academic year was characterized by the publication of many universities ranking across the world underlying the weak position of Belgian universities. What is the real meaning of these rankings? Jean Hindriks and the Itinera Institute comment on the existing rankings and give perspectives in favour of an investment policy into Belgian universities.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 09 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/are-the-belgian-universities-threatened/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/are-the-belgian-universities-threatened/</guid>
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<title>Belgian healthcare policy is not adapted to grey migration.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Migration and ageing are no isolated phenomena: immigrants/foreigners are increasingly part of the collective ageing of our society, causing new integration problems. This study of the King Baudouin Foundation investigates the impact of this evolution on both the host community and people of foreign origin. In terms of social assistance, health care and social protection, host country Belgium has not always carried out the adaptations which the migrant population considers as crucial. The study warns for &#8220;copy-pasting&#8221; our own model of elderly care. Autonomy is an important value for elderly of foreign origin, whereas indigenous elderly rather consider the feeling of familial &#8220;dependence&#8221; as vital.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/grey-migration/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/grey-migration/</guid>
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<title>The richer you are, the longer you live!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The more people earn, the longer they are likely to live. Analysing a broad swathe of data on several million pensioners, the authors of this study find large differentials in remaining life expectancy at age 65 across classes of lifetime earnings in Germany. More specifically, they put a lower bound of fifty percent (six years) on the difference from the lowest to the highest income group. Between the two extremes, life expectancy rises linearly in earnings. Despite lower overall mortality in West Germany than in East Germany, life expectancies are similar within income groups. The authors establish the relationship between higher income and higher life expectancy, but do not investigate the real causes of this relationship.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Oct 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/high-income-pensioners-live-longer/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/high-income-pensioners-live-longer/</guid>
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<title>Climate change and linguistic repertoires</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The climate is changing &#8211; and so is the way that people talk about it in the UK. British researchers explore the changes in the language that people use in relation to the phenomenon. They recommend to capitalize on the move towards a culture of environmental responsibility but also warn that climate change rapidly could become yesterday&#8217;s issue.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 28 Sep 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/climate-change-and-linguistic-repertoires/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/climate-change-and-linguistic-repertoires/</guid>
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<title>The EU and its internal market have a far-reaching social dimension.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The European Union is often criticized for its focus on free market efficiency. A &#8216;more social&#8217; project should complement the &#8216;neo-liberal agenda&#8217; of the EU. Jacques Pelkmans shows that there is nothing &#8216;a-social&#8217; about the internal market or the EU at large. He concludes that the social dimension of the EU is actually going quite far and even accepting considerable fragmentation of the internal market.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 28 Sep 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-social-is-european-integration/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-social-is-european-integration/</guid>
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<title>Age discrimination deeply rooted on the labour market.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Legislation prohibits age discrimination on the labour market. However, the (often implicit) use of age could well be the most widely spread of all prejudices on the labour market. This is the lesson of a study for the United Kingdom. A curious detail: depending upon the function, a higher age can either favour or damage a candidate's chances.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 25 Sep 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/age-discrimination-deeply-rooted-on-the-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/age-discrimination-deeply-rooted-on-the-labour-market/</guid>
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<title>Can marketing help in the design of Belgian anti-poverty policy?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This article illustrates how apparently minor situational factors determine economic decision making of the poor (but no only of the poor) and how the for-profit sector often and effectively (ab)uses these mechanisms. Examples include advertisements for expensive loans, supplementary warrants for TV and high interest credit cards. Whereas the private sector spends great amounts of money and attention on marketing, government and non-for-profits typically do not. The authors suggest that the public sector could stimulate positive options such as health diets, pension saving or prime-rate loans relatively low costs by using marketing tools of the private sector. The upshot is that substantial welfare changes may result from relatively minor policy interventions, and that insightful marketing might help in the design of such interventions.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 24 Sep 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/marketing-in-aid-of-decision-making-among-the-poor/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/marketing-in-aid-of-decision-making-among-the-poor/</guid>
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<title>Regionalisation of wages without regional wage setting?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Should collective wage bargaining be regionalised to better reflect different economic developments in the Belgian regions? In other words: are the Walloon wages too high for the Walloon economy and labour market, impeding Wallonia to catch up? And are Flemish wages suppressed to too low a level for the Flemish productivity and labour market? Research of the ULB focuses on existing wage differentials between regions, sectors and joint committees, which are partly the result differing profits at company level. In their conclusion, the authors tread on thin ice when they deduce from existing wage differentials that regionalisation of wage setting would only slightly affect wage levels in the regions.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 24 Sep 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/regionalisation-of-wages-without-regional-wage-setting/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/regionalisation-of-wages-without-regional-wage-setting/</guid>
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<title>Successful activation is more than the carrot</title>
<description><![CDATA[ To stimulate the exit rate from unemployment one can use the carrot or the stick. This IZA study looks at the effects of sanctions of unemployment insurance benefits for a sample of Danish unemployed. For both males and females the exit rate increases by more than 50% following imposition of a sanction. The harder the sanction, the larger it&#8217;s effects. The analysis furthermore suggests that sanctions wear out after around 3 months, that particular groups of unemployed are more responsive to sanctions than others, and that men react ex ante to the risk of being sanctioned in the sense that men who face a higher risk of sanction leave unemployment faster.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 24 Sep 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/successful-activation-is-more-than-the-carrot/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/successful-activation-is-more-than-the-carrot/</guid>
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<title>The economic value of entrepreneurship is not to be underestimated.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The interest in entrepreneurship in Belgium substantially increased during the past two decades. It is often claimed that entrepreneurs create important economic value in comparison to non-entrepreneurs. This paper examines to what extent recent empirical evidence can collectively and systematically substantiate this claim. Based on 57 studies the authors conclude that entrepreneurship has indeed a very important - but specific - role in the economy. They further discuss the impact of entrepreneurship on employment creation, innovation, productivity and growth vis-&#224;-vis for example large and old firms.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 24 Sep 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-is-the-economic-value-of-entrepreneurship/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-is-the-economic-value-of-entrepreneurship/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Muslims integrate less and more slowly than non-Muslims.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A study for the UK finds that Muslims integrate less and more slowly than non-Muslims. A Muslim born in the UK and having spent there more than 50 years shows a comparable level of probability of having a strong religious identity than a non-Muslim just arrived in the country. Specifically, high levels of income as well as high on-the-job qualifications increase the Muslims&#8217; sense of identity. Economic integration and cultural integration apparently are not a spontaneous couple. There is also no evidence that segregated neighbourhoods breed intense religious and cultural identities for ethnic minorities. This result equally casts doubts on the foundations of the integration policies in Europe.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 21 Sep 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/muslim-immigrants-and-the-integration-conundrum/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/muslim-immigrants-and-the-integration-conundrum/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Can competition improve healthcare performance?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Could market mechanisms be used to improve health care systems efficiency without threatening equity or quality? This report makes several propositions of reforms, mainly based on the implementation of tougher competition between health suppliers in order to give them incentives to deliver their services at a lower cost. Among these propositions, the authors suggest a better integration between health insurers and providers of health care. This question is of particular interest in Belgium where experts often point out the lack of means of control of insurers over health providers.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 20 Sep 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/competition-and-choice-in-health-care-delivery/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/competition-and-choice-in-health-care-delivery/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>No energy security without technological breakthrough.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Verrastro and Ladislaw argue that calls for energy independence absent technological breakthroughs ring hollow and are both unrealistic and unachievable in the near term.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 18 Sep 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/energy-security-in-an-interdependent-world/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/energy-security-in-an-interdependent-world/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Tax revenue trends and challenges in the European Union</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The impact of ageing, globalization and the desire to shift taxes away from labour poses significant challenges for European governments. This paper by economists of the European Commission reviews the most recent taxation trends in the EU and discusses several tax policy issues in the light of the main challenges.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 18 Sep 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tax-revenue-trends-and-challenges-in-the-european-union/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/tax-revenue-trends-and-challenges-in-the-european-union/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Betting on bio fuels can have very severe negative ecological consequences.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A recent OECD report concludes that betting on biofuels can have very severe negative ecological consequences. EU countries should consider more sustainable alternative approaches.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 14 Sep 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/biofuels-is-the-cure-worser-than-the-disease/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/biofuels-is-the-cure-worser-than-the-disease/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The strong Euro and Europe&#8217;s competitiveness</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The European Commission published very detailed information on Europe&#8217;s price and cost competitiveness (including Q2 2007) to assess the impact of the strong Euro.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 14 Sep 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-strong-euro-and-europes-competitiveness/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-strong-euro-and-europes-competitiveness/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Migration is no One Way Street.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In a globalising labour market, migrants no longer make once and for all migratory decisions. Global workers return, move on, or become circular movers. In Germany, more than 60% of migrants from guest worker countries are indeed repeat migrants. The global circulation of the migrant labour force is often under exposed. The result of its dynamics can be a win-win-win for the migrant, the host country and the origin country.
]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 11 Sep 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migration-is-no-one-way-street/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/migration-is-no-one-way-street/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Europe is becoming an old lady.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Even today Europe is already the &#8220;oldest continent&#8221; on the planet, according to the United Nations 2007 report on world population ageing. Almost a quarter of the population in Western and Southern Europe is 60 years or older. The other parts of Europe are barely younger. The worldwide top twenty of countries with the highest percentage of the population aged 60 or older is exclusively European, with the sole exception of Japan. In Belgium nearly 23% of the population today is aged 60 or over. This makes Belgium officially the eights oldest country in the world. Ageing, needless to say, is scheduled to spread ever more rapidly in the upcoming decades.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 30 Aug 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/old-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/old-europe/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Old is less out?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The employment rate of workers over 50 on the Belgian labour market has increased with 8,4% in one year, according to the most recent figures of the Department of Economy. Almost 48% of those over 50 are currently employed, as compared to 39% in 1999. An important part of this evolution is linked to economic growth and the gradual ageing of the workforce in a tighter labour market. There is little evidence that non-active seniors over 50 are reintegrating the labour market. In any event Belgium remains far behind the European target of 70% overall employment rate.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 30 Aug 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/old-is-less-out/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/old-is-less-out/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Activation is more than monitoring</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A study of the Belgian activation policy shows the importance of personal counselling for the activation of the unemployed. The threat of monitoring the job search behaviour of the unemployed has only a limited positive effect on employability, moreover at the expense of accepting lower quality jobs. Personal counselling is more effective and does a better job in steering the unemployed towards a suitable employment. Not monitoring but counselling should therefore be the credo of Belgium&#8217;s activation policy.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 28 Aug 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/activation-is-more-than-monitoring/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/activation-is-more-than-monitoring/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How poor are America&#8217;s poor?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In 2005, the US Census Bureau counted 37 million &#8216;poor&#8217; Americans. Very few of this heterogeneous group face material hardship. Official figures  learn that 43% of the US poor own their own three-bedroom homes, 80% have airconditioning, 75% has one car and 31% even owns two cars.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 27 Aug 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-poor-are-americas-poor/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-poor-are-americas-poor/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Wanted: globalisation fear vaccine</title>
<description><![CDATA[ We live in a platinum age of global economic growth. The European Union takes also profit of globalisation. A recent opinion survey shows that the European public opinion does not trust globalisation. There is therefore need for change directed protection that does not stifle the dynamics of change itself. Globalisation is a success formula but it is nothing without democratic and political support.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 22 Aug 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wanted-globalisation-fear-vaccine/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wanted-globalisation-fear-vaccine/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Estonia: a new European growth miracle?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 16 Aug 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/estonia-a-new-european-growth-miracle/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/estonia-a-new-european-growth-miracle/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Given Regional Disparities, Should we Promote Mobility or Regionalise Wages?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Given regional disparities in the European Union and in Belgium in particular, policymakers must choose either for more mobility on the labour market or for more wage flexibility. Promoting mobility in Belgium implies a significant reduction of real estate taxes, just as in the United Kingdom.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 16 Aug 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/given-regional-disparities-should-we-promote-mobility-or-regionalise-wages/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/given-regional-disparities-should-we-promote-mobility-or-regionalise-wages/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Healthcare and mobility: two priorities for the next federal government</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 16 Aug 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/healthcare-and-mobility/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/healthcare-and-mobility/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Oldie but Goodie. Pensions in the US</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Center for American Progress on pensions for low income groups in the United States and the role of social security.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 16 Aug 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/oldie-but-goodie-pensions-in-the-us/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/oldie-but-goodie-pensions-in-the-us/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Toward a more substantial disease prevention policy&#8230;</title>
<description><![CDATA[ There is a substantial difference between the financial resources allocated to disease prevention and treatments in Belgium. The Communities, responsible in the matter of disease prevention, have indeed few incentives to implement programs which benefits are only apparent in the long run and which are mainly profitable to the federal government, in charge of health care reimbursements. Some financing policies could however lead to an improved public investment in the matter of disease prevention.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 16 Aug 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/toward-a-more-substantial-disease-prevention-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/toward-a-more-substantial-disease-prevention-policy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>More proof of the dual labour market in the European Union</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Temporary term work of fixed duration is overrepresented among the young and the low skilled, who often have no other option than a fixed-term employment contract.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 14 Aug 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-proof-of-the-dual-labour-market-in-the-european-union/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/more-proof-of-the-dual-labour-market-in-the-european-union/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Can Belgium be inspired by the French reforms?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In May 2007, the French elected a new president: Nicolas Sarkozy. In June 2007, his political party, the UMP, won the legislative elections. During  these two political campaings, Nicolas Sarkozy and his Prime Minister promoted a broad reform programme linked to many social and economical issues (pensions, labour market, migration, taxation,...). Could Belgium find some inspiration in the French reforms?
]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 13 Aug 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-belgium-be-inspired-by-the-french-reforms/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-belgium-be-inspired-by-the-french-reforms/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>To protest is healthy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The prohibition of a protest rally against political Islamism is the wrong decision for the wrong reason, argues Marc De Vos. We should not evolve into a culture where every contestation of absolute tolerance is labeled as absolute intolerance.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 10 Aug 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/to-protest-is-healthy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/to-protest-is-healthy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Belgium lags behind in patent policy.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The new Eurostat publication 'Biotechnology in Europe; patents and R&amp;D investments' shows that Denmark is leading the patent race in this high-tech sector. Between 1998 an 2003, Belgium produced fewer patents. Table 5 refers to the time it took to implement the EU Biotechnological Inventions Directive of July 1998; two years in Denmark and seven years in Belgium.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 09 Aug 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/biotech-in-europe-denmark-is-leading/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/biotech-in-europe-denmark-is-leading/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Dark clouds above Finland?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The recent IMF Country report on Finland shows that the most competitive European economy faces several urgent challenges. Special concerns relate to the deterioration of public finances, the limited anticipation on the consequences of ageing, the sluggish productivity in protected sectors, the persistence of excessive fiscal pressure and the lack of more flexible labour market institutions.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 07 Aug 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/dark-clouds-above-finland/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/dark-clouds-above-finland/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Economics for a climate minister</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The flow of good climate intentions is rarely based on a sound economic analysis. This publication by Proost and Van Regemorter defends a pragmatic Belgian climate policy in a European context.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 07 Aug 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economics-for-a-climate-minister/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economics-for-a-climate-minister/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The American Dream is still alive</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The USA remains an example of successful immigration policy. While American politics are in turmoil over limiting immigration, the figures for upward economic mobility of immigrants in the US remain striking. A country that absorbs more than one and a half million of immigrants per year is still able to provide economic integration and strong upward mobility between generations. However, the growing number of low skilled immigrants presents a challenge to upward mobility.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 01 Aug 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-american-dream-is-still-alive/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-american-dream-is-still-alive/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Early retirement: a question of supply and of demand</title>
<description><![CDATA[ More evidence of collusion in early retirement. Early retirement decisions are not only the result of rational choices by the retiring workers (supply side). In many cases, firms organize early retirement as a cost effective way to address change (demand side). The pension system then acts as a kind of unemployment insurance which reduces the dismissal costs for the firms. While both parties are served, society pays and the labour market looses often valuable human capital.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Jul 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/early-retirement-a-question-of-supply-and-of-demand/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/early-retirement-a-question-of-supply-and-of-demand/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How profit sharing enhances training investments at firm level</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The link between profit sharing and training is seldom made. This paper shows how profit sharing can indirectly boost employee training in two ways. First, profit sharing provides an effort incentive to the worker, thereby increasing the returns to training. Second, profit sharing makes labor costs partly adjustable to economic circumstances, with a positive impact on the expected tenure of the employee. Both effects make investment in training more attractive for the firm. A useful reminder for Belgium, where profit sharing remains marginal and training investments remain below par.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Jul 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-profit-sharing-enhances-training-investments-at-firm-level/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-profit-sharing-enhances-training-investments-at-firm-level/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Moesen and De Witte plead for an explicit limit for public expenditures.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Belgian public sector is oversized by some 3 to 4% of BDP. Moesen and De Witte defend an explicit growth constraint for future public expenditures.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Jul 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/explicit-growth-constraint-for-public-expenditures/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/explicit-growth-constraint-for-public-expenditures/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Inclusion on a labour market in permanent transition</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The modern transitional and dynamic labour market requires a policy that enables change for the employers while guaranteeing its success for workers and job seekers. Without change work becomes a dead-end street. On the other hand, change by itself is no guarantee for inclusion. The Netherlands are often seen as an example for transition without exclusion. However, the position of immigrants on the Dutch labour market is less successful, but not uniformly negative either.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 23 Jul 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/inclusion-on-a-labour-market-in-permanent-transition/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/inclusion-on-a-labour-market-in-permanent-transition/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Is the brain drain driven by female ambition?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Female migration to OECD countries has been increasing significantly in recent decades. A more surprising result is that this is also true for the highly skilled. This actually means that women are over represented, given their relative under representation in tertiary education in many less developed countries. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 23 Jul 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/is-the-brain-drain-driven-by-female-ambition/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/is-the-brain-drain-driven-by-female-ambition/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Ageing but healthy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ageing hangs as the Sword of Damocles over the current governmental negotiations. Marc De Vos explains that the impact of ageing is also caused by the ageing of the working-age population, which is not beneficial to future innovation and productivity. On the other hand, the ageing workforce is ever healthier and better trained. We need to grasp that opportunity to capitalize on the benefits of ageing.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 17 Jul 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-but-healthy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-but-healthy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>And the Winners of Globalisation are... the German SMEs</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In 2007, the share of Germany in world exports increased to 10%. The &#8216;sick man of Europe&#8217; still leads before China. German multinational companies flourish and 2300 German SMEs developed market leadership in global niches. SMEs with mainly family ownership account for 40% of German exports or 4% of global exports. Is Familienkapitalismus the best answer to globalization?]]></description>
<pubDate>Sat, 07 Jul 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/en-de-winnaar-van-de-globalisering-is-de-duitse-kmo/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/en-de-winnaar-van-de-globalisering-is-de-duitse-kmo/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Evidence Based inhoud van geschreven informatie vanuit de farmaceutische industrie aan huisartsen</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Physicians have a crucial role to play in the definition of medical treatments financed by health authorities. It is therefore essential to give them a correct information. A study realized by the Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre suggests that the information provided to physicians by the pharmaceutical sector is rather commercial than scientific and call thus for a better practice.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 04 Jul 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/evidence-based-inhoud-van-geschreven-informatie/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/evidence-based-inhoud-van-geschreven-informatie/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Community Innovation Statistics</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Innovative enterprises in Europe do hardly benefit from public R&amp;D-expenditures. A recent report by Eurostat concludes that innovative enterprises most and for all consult the private market for information on innovation. Public investments in R&amp;D &#8211; at universities and public research organizations &#8211; do provide only 5% of information flows to innovative enterprises.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 03 Jul 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/community-innovation-statistics/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/community-innovation-statistics/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Dismissal is More than a Redundancy Payment</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The social plan accompanying restructuring at Opel Antwerp is the subject of controversy. To some it is a cynical and immoral example of profiteering at the expense of the taxpayer. To others it as a freely negotiated contract that reflects the extent of the drama. Marc De Vos claims that is more important to notice that, in spite of the generation pact, the basis redundancy philosophy is one of loads of money and spontaneous early retirement. We need to develop a different approach where dismissal becomes the jump board to new employment.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 03 Jul 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/dismissal-is-more-than-redundancy-payment/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/dismissal-is-more-than-redundancy-payment/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Health in Europe: A Strategic Approach. Discussion Document for a Health Strategy.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ At the end of 2006, the European Commission launched a consultation process from all European Countries. This consultation was to enable stakeholders to provide input into how a new health strategy should be developed and implemented. The consultation ended in February 2007. This document gives us the very interesting results for the new strategy: priorities, objectives, implementation, involvement of member states and other stakeholders.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 29 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/health-in-europe-a-strategic-approach-document-for-health-strategy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/health-in-europe-a-strategic-approach-document-for-health-strategy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Unemployment Insurance in Welfare States: Soft Constraints and Mild Sanctions</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Activity-oriented unemployment insurance regimes with a high likelihood of required participation in active labour market programmes, high sanction probabilities and duration limitations on unconditional unemployment insurance entitlements deliver shorter unemployment spells than pure income insurance regimes. But which types of activation yield the highest return? A recent study of the Institute for the Study of Labor suggests that a rapid start of activation measures is more important than their harshness. Limited activation measures can be very effective if they are quickly implemented at the beginning of the unemployment spell.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 29 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unemployment-insurance-in-welfare-states-soft-constraints-and-mild-sanctions/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unemployment-insurance-in-welfare-states-soft-constraints-and-mild-sanctions/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>From Job Security to Employment Security on the Belgian labour Market</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 26 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-job-security-to-employment-security-on-the-belgian-labour-market-2/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-job-security-to-employment-security-on-the-belgian-labour-market-2/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>From Job Security to Employment Security on the Belgian labour Market.</title>
<description><![CDATA[ ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 26 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/from-job-security-to-employment-security-on-the-belgian-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/from-job-security-to-employment-security-on-the-belgian-labour-market/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>From Job Security to Employment Security on the Belgian labour Market. Ideas for a New Deal for Labour in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ &lt;p&gt;Where is our labour market going in the 21st century? How do we handle ageing and globalisation successfully? Can we finally push back mass unemployment? Can we combine more flexibility with more security? Can we make older people work more? Can we finally include foreigners in the labour force? This book provides new ideas to adjust the organisation of the Belgian labour market to a new era. It calls for broad and deep reforms for the long term, beyond the convulsive short-term reflex of acquired rights.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 26 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-job-security-to-employment-security-on-the-belgian-labour-market/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-job-security-to-employment-security-on-the-belgian-labour-market/</guid>
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<title>Nuclear: no Brake on Renewable Energy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Johan Albrecht argues that the longer use of nuclear plants in Belgium will not block investments in renewable energy technologies.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 22 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/nuclear-no-brake-on-renewable-energy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/nuclear-no-brake-on-renewable-energy/</guid>
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<title>Ageing Revisited</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A recent working paper by the Belgian National Bank argues for more and immediate budgetary measures in the face of ageing. Marc De Vos points out that the ageing costs&#8217; estimations by the Belgian Commission on Ageing each require a fundamental improvement of Belgium&#8217;s socio-economic performance. Belgium&#8217;s preparation for the impending ageing of its population therefore still has to start and will require structural policy reform.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 21 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-revisited/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-revisited/</guid>
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<title>Immigration's Economic Impact</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Economic immigration can be a win-win game for the immigrant and the economy of the host country. But is an inflow of low-wage labour bad for the income of the native population? Controversial and contradictory data abound on this issue. For the U.S., the presidential Council of Economic Advisers now offers a positive verdict. In general immigrants are not competitors; rather they promote the development and income of the indigenous labour force.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/immigrations-economic-impact/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/immigrations-economic-impact/</guid>
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<title>Final Report Commission on Energy 2030</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The final report of the Commission Energy 2030 depicts the energy future of Belgium until 2030. The economic and environmental consequences of the planned nuclear phase-out from 2015 onwards have been studied in detail. The nuclear phase-out will strongly increase the cost of post-Kyoto climate policies.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 19 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/final-report-commission-on-energy-2030/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/final-report-commission-on-energy-2030/</guid>
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<title>Welfare isn't Working. The New Deal for Young People</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Can Blair&#8217;s Third Way inspire Belgium how not to fight youth unemployment? The British think tank Reform assesses the achievements of the Labour party in the fight against youth unemployment since 1997 and deals another blow to the record of employment programmes. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 18 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/welfare-isn-t-working-the-new-deal-for-young-people/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/welfare-isn-t-working-the-new-deal-for-young-people/</guid>
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<title>Are there perverse asocial effects to ethnic diversity?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Immigration and growing ethnic diversity are facts of life that force many countries to adopting deliberate integration policies. A thought-provoking empirical study for the USA shows how ethnic diversity generates noticeable short term asocial effects within the local community. Trust is lower, altruism and community cooperation rarer, friends fewer. In the long run, however, the famous American melting pot has so far succeeded in overcoming fragmentation by creating new and more encompassing identities. Does Belgium have the short term problems without a long term solution?]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 17 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/are-there-perverse-asocial-effects-to-ethnic-diversity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/are-there-perverse-asocial-effects-to-ethnic-diversity/</guid>
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<title>A Cost Curve for Greenhouse Gas Reduction</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The debate about global warming is heating up. In this paper, McKinsey evaluates the costs of the environmental policies that will have to be settled. Be warned, the cost will be high. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 15 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-cost-curve-for-greenhouse-gas-reduction/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/a-cost-curve-for-greenhouse-gas-reduction/</guid>
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<title>Earnings Prospects for People with Migration Background in Germany</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Are new nationals only half-nationals on the labour market? How the colour of your skin can determine earnings prospects on the labour market, irrespective of your nationality. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 15 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/earnings-prospects-people-with-migration-background-germany/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/earnings-prospects-people-with-migration-background-germany/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Fraude Sociale et Travail au Noir en Belgique: Situation anno 2006</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Fiscal and social fraud is bad thing for the economy, the workers and the state coffers alike. How important is fiscal and social fraud in Belgium? The Hoger Instituut voor Arbeid and the KUL make an estimate for 2006. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 15 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fraude-sociale-travail-noir-belgique-situation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fraude-sociale-travail-noir-belgique-situation/</guid>
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<title>Jaarlijks verslag - Studiecommissie voor de Vergrijzing</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The yearly report of the Study Commission on Ageing once more adjusted the estimated cost of ageing upwardly. The growth of the second pension pillar of occupational pensions moreover turns out to be problematic. The need to accelerate the expansion of occupational pensions is therefore again accentuated.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 15 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/jaarlijks-verslag---studiecommissie-voor-de-vergrijzing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/jaarlijks-verslag---studiecommissie-voor-de-vergrijzing/</guid>
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<title>Making the Most of Globalization</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Has Globalization locked the world in a destructive tax-rate race to the bottom? Is free trade a zero-sum game where every winner necessarily creates a loser? Is offshoring threatening jobs in Western Europe and beyond? In &#8220;Making the Most of Globalization&#8221; the OECD answers each of these questions with a resounding &#8220;no&#8221; based on empirical evidence.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 15 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/making-most-globalization/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/making-most-globalization/</guid>
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<title>The New Agenda for an Older Workforce</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The impending retirement of the baby-boom generation requires a shift in labour market policies, in particular for human resources. Manpower claims that it is crucial for our economy and for companies to provide incentives for older workers to stay on the labour market.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 15 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-new-agenda-for-an-older-workforce/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-new-agenda-for-an-older-workforce/</guid>
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<title>Performance, incitation et gestion publique en France</title>
<description><![CDATA[ France has recently adopted a major reform of its public administration through the LOLF (Lois Organiques sur les Lois de Finances). This reform aims to improve efficiency of public expenditures and activities. The report of the Conseil d&#8217;Analyse Economique bridges the gap between performance evaluation methods and incentive methods.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 11 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/performance-incitation-et-gestion-publique-en-france/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/performance-incitation-et-gestion-publique-en-france/</guid>
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<title>Climate Change: Caps vs. Taxes</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Economists at the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research defend a fiscal greening as the most cost-effective &#8216;no regrets&#8217; option for US climate policy. Revenues from energy taxes offer an attractive potential to lower existing taxes on labor and corporate profits. In contrast, the European system for CO2-emissions trading is strongly criticized.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 01 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/climate-change-caps-vs-taxes/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/climate-change-caps-vs-taxes/</guid>
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<title>Economic Survey of France 2007</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the recent OECD Economic Survey of France, the authors focus strongly on poverty, social exclusion and duality in the labour market. The impact of the education system on equity and growth is critically assessed. Several observations in this report are very relevant for Belgium.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 01 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economic-survey-of-france-2007/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economic-survey-of-france-2007/</guid>
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<title>Le principe de responsabilit&#233; dans la gestion publique</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This article explains how to solve in practice the crisis of public governance in Belgium. Beyond the mere respect of the rules, the article singles out the key issue of the performance of public services and  thus necessarily the inevitable issue of accountability in public management. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 01 Jun 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/le-principe-de-responsabilite-dans-la-gestion-publique/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/le-principe-de-responsabilite-dans-la-gestion-publique/</guid>
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<title>Climate change as a spatial challenge in the Netherlands</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The changing climate requires structural spatial adaptations. The Dutch VROM-council sees this necessity as the start of a new, pro-active spatial policy that can meet  other challenges as well.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 May 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/climate-change-as-a-spatial-challenge-in-the-netherlands/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/climate-change-as-a-spatial-challenge-in-the-netherlands/</guid>
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<title>Labor's Liquidity Service and Firing Costs (WP/07/120)</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Are dismissals a useful tool to ensure the future development of companies that are temporarily short of cash? In other words: does dismissal restriction reduce future employment opportunities? An IMF Working Paper analyses the interaction between employment protection regulation and liquidity needs. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 May 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labors-liquidity-service-firing-costs/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labors-liquidity-service-firing-costs/</guid>
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<title>What did All the Money do? On the General Ineffectiveness of Recent West German Labour Market Programmes (IZA DP no. 2800)</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Belgian labour market is densely populated with employment programmes. Do they really work? In West-Germany similar programmes are found not to improve employment opportunities for their participants. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 May 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-did-all-money-do-on-general-ineffectiveness-recent-west-german-labour-market-programmes/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/what-did-all-money-do-on-general-ineffectiveness-recent-west-german-labour-market-programmes/</guid>
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<title>Wages, Profits and Income Inequality: an Infernal Combination?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos nuances the recent controversy on wages, profits and income inequality.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 08 May 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wages-profits-income-inequality-an-infernal-combination/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/wages-profits-income-inequality-an-infernal-combination/</guid>
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<title>Lessons from Successful Labor Market Reformers in Europe</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The new Belgian government can learn from successful experiences in labour market reform in other countries. These experiences show that success requires an internally consistent package of reforms&#8230;]]></description>
<pubDate>Sat, 05 May 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/lessons-from-successful-labor-market-reformers-in-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/lessons-from-successful-labor-market-reformers-in-europe/</guid>
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<title>Changes in the Economic Resources of Low-Income Households with Children</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The prevailing stereotype of the U.S. economy in the media is that the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. Do we observe this &#8220;richer-take-all&#8221; effect in reality? A new study of the U.S. Congressional Budget Office rebuts some of the popular claims on poverty in the U.S. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 May 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/changes-in-the-economic-resources-low-income-households-children/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/changes-in-the-economic-resources-low-income-households-children/</guid>
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<title>The Fiscal Cost of Low-Skill Immigrants to the U.S. Taxpayer</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Should we side for good immigration only? What is the cost of low-skill (legal and illegal) immigrant households? The authors of this Heritage Foundation Special Report argue that government should limit immigration to those who will be net fiscal contributors. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 May 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fiscal-cost-low-skill-immigrants-to-the-us-taxpayer/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fiscal-cost-low-skill-immigrants-to-the-us-taxpayer/</guid>
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<title>The Future of Retirement: The New Old Age &#8211; Global report</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The ageing of the world&#8217;s population over the next half-century will bring profound changes to societies. This HSBC Future of Retirement report surveys 21,000 people aged 40 to 79 in 21 countries, making it the most comprehensive study into attitudes towards later life, longevity and retirement across the globe. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 May 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-retirement-the-new-old-age-global-report/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-retirement-the-new-old-age-global-report/</guid>
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<title>Labour, Ageing and Globalisation: Towards a New Social Pact?!</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos offers thoughts and perspectives on the labour dimensions of ageing and globalisation at the launch of the New Compass foundation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 26 Apr 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-ageing-and-globalisation-towards-a-new-social-pact/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/labour-ageing-and-globalisation-towards-a-new-social-pact/</guid>
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<title>Asset Meltdown in Europe: a Probability Assessment</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Koen De Leus offers a technical assessment of the probability that the retirement of the baby boom generation will lead to asset meltdown on the European financial markets because of changes in saving patterns. The conclusion is reassuring, if Europe indeed continues to develop its relatively untapped sources for a second pension pillar.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Apr 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/asset-meltdown-in-europe-a-probability-assessment/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/asset-meltdown-in-europe-a-probability-assessment/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Memo4_07.pdf" length="687758" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>Can Pension Reform Save Ageing?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos and Koen De Leus analyze the interaction between the development of pension saving and ageing for Belgium. Second pillar retirement saving is necessary but does not solve the acute social shortcomings of the Belgian pension landscape. Moreover, it is not a magical solution for financing ageing. Accelerated retirement saving is therefore necessary, also to reduce the risk of the famous &#8220;asset meltdown&#8221; when ageing disturbs the equilibrium between savers and spenders on the financial markets. The paradoxical conclusion therefore is that more retirement saving not only helps to fund ageing but also to protect retirement capital against ageing.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Apr 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-pension-reform-save-ageing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/can-pension-reform-save-ageing/</guid>
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<title>From Globalisation to Inspiration for Belgium: How the Changing World Leads to New Opportunities and Challenges</title>
<description><![CDATA[ At the celebration of &#8220;One Year Itinera Institute&#8221;, Jim O&#8217;Neill paints both a realistic and optimistic future for Belgium under the continuing economic globalisation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Apr 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-globalisation-to-inspiration-for-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-globalisation-to-inspiration-for-belgium/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/slides_jim_oneill.pdf" length="199378" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>One Year Itinera Institute</title>
<description><![CDATA[ On the 18th of April 2007 the Itinera Institute celebrated its first anniversary at the Kasteel van Bever. About 70 people attended this exclusive lunch event, among which many prominent persons from government, business, professional organizations, and academics. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Apr 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/one-year-itinera-institute/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/one-year-itinera-institute/</guid>
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<title>How Oversized Is Government in the Netherlands?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Johan Albrecht assesses the quick transformation of public administrations in the Netherlands under Balkenende and concludes that Darwin&#8217;s law is very relevant for institutional processes.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 12 Apr 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-oversized-is-government-in-the-netherlands/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-oversized-is-government-in-the-netherlands/</guid>
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<title>Energy Alarmism. The Myths that Make Americans Worry about Oil</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Many people in the Western world have lost confidence in their country&#8217;s &#8220;energy security&#8221; over the past several years. Eugene Gholz and Daryl G. Press from Cato Institute argue that fears about oil supplies are exaggerated. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 01 Apr 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/energy-alarmism-the-myths-that-make-americans-worry-about-oil/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/energy-alarmism-the-myths-that-make-americans-worry-about-oil/</guid>
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<title>Innovations in Government: International Perspectives on Civil Service Reform</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Long-term societal trends are changing the context of government in the 21st century. Civil services must adapt themselves, but how? This IPPR study gives international examples of innovations in government. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 01 Apr 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/innovations-government-international-perspectives-civil-service-reform/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/innovations-government-international-perspectives-civil-service-reform/</guid>
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<title>Poverty Among Migrants in Europe</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The horror state of immigrants in Belgium: over half of non-EU migrants live under the poverty threshold. Orsolya Lelkes from the European Centre for Social Welfare Policy and Research quantifies poverty among migrants in Europe.]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 01 Apr 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/poverty-among-migrants-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/poverty-among-migrants-europe/</guid>
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<title>Retirement, Pensions, and Ageing</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What can be the effect of demographic shocks and changes in the pension system on the macroeconomic performance of a small open economy like Belgium? A study by CESifo concludes that pension reform must be drastic for it to have any effect on the retirement behaviour of workers.]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 01 Apr 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/retirement-pensions-and-ageing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/retirement-pensions-and-ageing/</guid>
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<title>The Future and Affordability of Belgian Health Care</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos reflects on the evolutions and the future of the Belgian health care system in a speech to medical students.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 30 Mar 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-and-affordability-of-belgian-health-care/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-and-affordability-of-belgian-health-care/</guid>
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<title>Regionalisation of Labour Market Policy Is No Panacea</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the run-up to the federal elections the debate on the regionalization of labour market policies is raging. Marc De Vos stresses that regionalization is no miracle solution. What matters is substantive reform of labour market policies. For that purpose regionalization serves more as a means than as an end.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 Mar 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/regionalisation-of-labour-market-policy-is-no-panacea/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/regionalisation-of-labour-market-policy-is-no-panacea/</guid>
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<title>Ageing Is Much More Than Public Expenditure</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium&#8217;s High Council for Public Finances predicts forty years of budgetary discipline in order to finance ageing. Marc De Vos argues for a proactive reform strategy to break the budgetary gridlock for the future generations.]]></description>
<pubDate>Sat, 17 Mar 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-is-much-more-than-public-expenditure/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/ageing-is-much-more-than-public-expenditure/</guid>
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<title>Dreamland Europe</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos reflects on the European Lisbon strategy and wonders whether it is compatible with the official discourse for more income equality.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 16 Mar 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/dreamland-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/dreamland-europe/</guid>
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<title>Growth and Productivity in Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How do we grow? The Federal Planning Bureau gives an overview of the main features of the economic growth in Belgium between 1970 and 2004. The importance of productivity is underscored. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 15 Mar 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/growth-productivity-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/growth-productivity-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Miracle on Kildarestreet: What Ireland&#8217;s Economic Revival Means for Arizona</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How did Ireland become the &#8216;Celtic Tiger&#8217;? If we want to apply to Irish recipe to other countries, we should not use the wrong ingredients. The Goldwater Institute identifies the key features of the Irish growth. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 15 Mar 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/miracle-kildarestreet-what-irelands-economic-revival-means-arizona/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/miracle-kildarestreet-what-irelands-economic-revival-means-arizona/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Energy: Choices for Europe</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Energy policy is a make-or-break challenge for Europe, and a litmus test for the usefulness of the European Union as an institution. Bruegel urges the EU and its Member States to confront hard choices.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Mar 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/energy-choices-for-europe/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/energy-choices-for-europe/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Getting Immigration Reform Right</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Can we organise and control the flows of immigration? Ray Marshall from the Economic Policy Institute analyses the consequences of the &#8220;Immigration Reform and Control Act&#8221; (IRCA) implemented in the United States in 1986. He offers potential solutions for a more efficient immigration policy. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Mar 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/getting-immigration-reform-right/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/getting-immigration-reform-right/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Quelle Politique de l&#8217;&#233;nergie pour l&#8217;Union europ&#233;enne ?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Europe lacks energy and energy lacks Europe. The Montaigne Institute agrees with Bruegel insofar as it sees the European institutions to be stuck in between market powers and Member States&#8217; authorities. Montaigne pleads for a renewal of Europe&#8217;s role in energy policy. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Mar 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/quelle-politique-de-lenergie-pout-lunion-europeenne/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/quelle-politique-de-lenergie-pout-lunion-europeenne/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Restructuring: a Necessary Evil</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos reflects on the referendum at Volkswagen Forest and concludes that the employees have chosen for the future. Restructurings are genuine dramas but are sometimes necessary to prepare the company or the economy for new opportunities.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 Feb 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/restructuring/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/restructuring/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Robert Cox on the Politics of Labour Market Reform</title>
<description><![CDATA[ On the 21st of February 2007 the Itinera Institute organized the first Itinera Institute Discussion. Robert H. Cox was invited as visiting fellow. He is associate professor and director of the School of International and Area Studies at the University of Oklahoma and published widely on the historical contemporary development of welfare states, especially in the smaller democracies of Europe. He also serves as the co-editor of <em>Governance: an International Journal of Policy, Administration and Institutions</em>.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 27 Feb 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/robert-cox-on-the-politics-of-labour-market-reform/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/robert-cox-on-the-politics-of-labour-market-reform/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Prosperity in Neo-Industrial Times: How Irrelevant Are Delocalisations?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Luc Rochtus and Johan Albrecht nuance the relevance of delocalisations for future wealth creation in neo-industrial times.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 21 Feb 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/prosperity-in-neo-industrial-times/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/prosperity-in-neo-industrial-times/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The politics of Labour Market Reform: How Belgium Can Learn From Successful European Precedents</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Robert Cox lays focuses on Belgium in his speech on labour market reform at the first Itinera Institute Discussion.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 21 Feb 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-politics-of-labour-market-reform-how-belgium-can-learn-from-successful-european-precedents/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-politics-of-labour-market-reform-how-belgium-can-learn-from-successful-european-precedents/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Nota%203%20-%202007%20-%20Robert%20Cox.pdf" length="1026262" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>The Ideas and Politics of Labour Market Reform</title>
<description><![CDATA[ &lt;p&gt;Robert Cox explains why some European countries fail in labour market reforms where others succeed.&lt;/p&gt;]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Feb 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-ideas-and-politics-of-labour-market-reform/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-ideas-and-politics-of-labour-market-reform/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Memo%202%20-%202007.pdf" length="1976453" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>Quand la Commission se soucie d&#8217;&#233;quit&#233;</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This article gives a critical assesment of the EC report on &#171; efficiency and equity of European education and training systems (2006) which discusses most controversial issues in reforming education and training programmes in europe: evaluation, selection, specialization, competition, flexibility and autonomy.]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 18 Feb 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/quand-la-commission-se-soucie-dequite/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/quand-la-commission-se-soucie-dequite/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Global Warming and Social Heating</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Jean Hindriks perceives a new class struggle between the highly qualified, for whom globalisation offers new opportunities, and the more vulnerable and less qualified.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 15 Feb 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/global-warming-and-social-heating/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/global-warming-and-social-heating/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Atlas Shrugged</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos reflects on the importance of entrepreneurship and concludes that the legitimate war on corporate fraud should not degenerate in a witch hunt.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 14 Feb 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/atlas-shrugged/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/atlas-shrugged/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>From Regional Labour Market To Regional Labour Market Policy</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos reflects on the nature and causes of regional labour market disparities in Belgium in a conference speech.]]></description>
<pubDate>Sat, 03 Feb 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-regional-labour-market-to-regional-labour-market-policy/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-regional-labour-market-to-regional-labour-market-policy/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>An Education Strategy to Promote Opportunity, Prosperity, and Growth</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Education is the key to both economic success and social integration. Belgium can learn from productive education reform elsewhere. A Brookings paper gives some clues for a successful education policy. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Feb 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/education-strategy-promote-opportunity-prosperity-growth/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/education-strategy-promote-opportunity-prosperity-growth/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How Immigrants Affect California Employment and Wages</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Do immigrants hurt the labour market options of native workers and steel local jobs? The Public Policy Institute of California gives a clear negative answer after analysing the effect of the immigration inflow on the employment, population, and wages of U.S. natives in California between 1960 and 2004. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Feb 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-immigrants-affect-california-employment-wages/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-immigrants-affect-california-employment-wages/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Misguided War against Medicines</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Is Big Pharma to blame for healthcare explosion? Can we blame the patent policy of the pharmaceutical sector for the failure of government health insurance to remain financially stable? Brett Skinner and Mark Rovere from the Fraser Institute address this question for Canada and come up with an alternative explanation.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Feb 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/misguided-war-against-medicines/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/misguided-war-against-medicines/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Updating the Debate on Intergenerational Fairness in Pension Reform</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Is it fair to burden the younger generations with paying the pensions for the elder generations? Kennet Howse from the Oxford Institute of Ageing examines existing claims about the fairness or unfairness of government policies that require current and future working generations to bear the full pension impact of their own lower fertility.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Feb 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/updating-debate-intergenerational-fairness-pension-reform/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/updating-debate-intergenerational-fairness-pension-reform/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How tuition fees motivate students to speed up graduation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ This study shows that tuition fees can induce students to graduate earlier, especially when university education is heavily subsidised as in Belgium. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 30 Jan 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-tuition-fees-motivate-students-to-speed-up-graduation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-tuition-fees-motivate-students-to-speed-up-graduation/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Sale of Government Buildings and the Lack of Policy Evaluation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Johan Albrecht explains how the annual sale of government buildings illustrates once more the lack of policy evaluation in the Belgian political culture.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 09 Jan 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-sale-of-government-buildings-and-the-lack-of-policy-evaluation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-sale-of-government-buildings-and-the-lack-of-policy-evaluation/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Annual economic report 2007 of Germany</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The German economy is growing again and further reform programs for 2007-2008 are announced by the government. The focus is on a better government, an enforcement of competitiveness, progress towards the knowledge society and securing bases for prosperity in the long term.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Jan 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/annual-economic-report-2007-of-germany/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/annual-economic-report-2007-of-germany/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Energy [R]Evolution</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The European Renewable Energy Council (EREC) and Greenpeace International advocate an energy revolution to address climate change, at the core of which should be a change in the way that energy is produced, distributed and consumed. They provide a practical blueprint for how to urgently meet CO2 reduction targets and secure affordable energy supply. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Jan 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/energy-r-evolution/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/energy-r-evolution/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Has U.S. Income Inequality Really Increased?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The media are rife with stories about rising income inequality. However, the public debate on poverty and inequality in the US highlights the difficulties to measure income inequality correctly. A correct societal debate does require a correct measurement of poverty and inequality. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Jan 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/has-us-income-inequality-really-increased/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/has-us-income-inequality-really-increased/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Future Hospital: The progressive Case for Change</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What role for hospitals in healthcare reform? Hospitals are local institutions and implementing changes can be politically difficult. Given the dynamics of healthcare, however, hospital change is inevitable. The Institute for Public Policy Research focuses on the objectives and the process of hospital change. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Jan 2007 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-hospital-the-progressive-case-for-change/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-future-hospital-the-progressive-case-for-change/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Good Advice From the Supreme Council</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The yearly report of the Supreme Council for Employment contains remarkable data on the dysfunctions of Belgium&amp;rsquo;s labour market. Marc De Vos explains that the Belgian labour market is still chronically ill. Labour market reform is therefore an essential theme for the upcoming federal elections.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 22 Dec 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/good-advice-from-the-supreme-council/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/good-advice-from-the-supreme-council/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Which Response to Delocalisation?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Fiscal advantages or vouchers for vocational training are insufficient to relieve the sentiment of insecurity that de-motivates workers. Jean Hindriks argues for an insurance against delocalisation in order to improve risk allocation between state, corporations and workers.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 Dec 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/which-response-to-delocalisation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/which-response-to-delocalisation/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Is Denmark the European Employment Champion?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ With an official unemployment rate of 4.2%, Denmark apparently performs better than European growth champion Ireland. The low Danish unemployment figure is an essential part of the hyped 'Scandinavian Model'. Johan Albrecht explains that the real unemployment or inactivity in Denmark increases to 15% when one includes the number of participants in labour market programmes as well as people in early retirement schemes.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 07 Dec 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/is-denmark-the-european-employment-champion/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/is-denmark-the-european-employment-champion/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Is Denmark the European Employment Champion? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p>With an official unemployment rate of 4.2%, Denmark apparently performs better than European growth champion Ireland. The low Danish unemployment figure is an essential part of the hyped 'Scandinavian Model'. When we however consider the number of participants in labour market programs as well as people in early retirement schemes, the real unemployment or inactivity in Denmark increases to 15%het &lsquo;Scandinavische model&rsquo;. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 07 Dec 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/is-denmark-the-european-employment-champion/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/is-denmark-the-european-employment-champion/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Economic Effects of Germany&#8217;s Reference Pricing Policy for Drugs</title>
<description><![CDATA[ More on the effects of price regulation for drugs. One of the main instruments used by the UK Health Department to control National Health Service (NHS) expenditure on branded drugs is the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS). The Office of Fair Trading now doubts the efficiency of the scheme and proposes value based price financing as the better alternative. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 01 Dec 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economic-effects-germanys-reference-pricing-policy-for-drugs/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/economic-effects-germanys-reference-pricing-policy-for-drugs/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Climate Relativity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The failure of international climate policy negotiations does not lead to disaster scenarios. Johan Albrecht explains that the spontaneous economic order helps to keep cool.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 24 Nov 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/climate-relativity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/climate-relativity/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How Healthy is Belgium&#8217;s Health Care?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgian's health care system is in transition. Marc De Vos identifies negative trends that may turn into gradual decline in the absence of genuine reform.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 24 Nov 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-healthy-is-belgium-s-health-care/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-healthy-is-belgium-s-health-care/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/Nota22_Health_Care.pdf" length="40479" type="application/pdf" />
</item>
<item>
<title>Hope Springs Eternal After Volkswagen &#8211; Forest</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium is shell-shocked by the dramatic downsizing of Volkswagen-Forest. Marc De Vos explains that the calamity at Forest is primarily the consequence of legislative, structural and human failures. The gradual decline of Belgian&#8217;s industrial base is not inevitable. Belgium must and can transform itself into a powerhouse of research, innovation and technology that also supports industrial production.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 23 Nov 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hope-springs-eternal-after-volkswagen-forest/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/hope-springs-eternal-after-volkswagen-forest/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Need for Policy Evaluation</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Jean Hindriks reveals the frivolousness of public policy evaluation in our country. Nowadays such research is too often carried out by established supporters of the adopted policy. He pleads for an independent and rigorous evaluation of public policy, following the Anglos-Saxon and Nordic example.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 21 Nov 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-need-for-policy-evaluation/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-need-for-policy-evaluation/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Fostering Mobility Through Competence Development</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Labour market adaptability is essential for success in an ever changing economic environment. The European Foundation for the Improvement of living and working conditions and the European Center for the development of vocational training offer recommendations. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 15 Nov 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fostering-mobility-through-competence-development/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/fostering-mobility-through-competence-development/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>How to Win the War on Poverty: An Analysis of State Poverty Trends</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Government is sometimes perceived as a modern-day Robin Hood, reducing poverty through spending while making everyone pay their fair share through taxation. Matthew Ladner from the Goldwater Institute empirically evaluates the effectiveness of state government as &#8220;Robin Hood&#8221;. He concludes that the best antipoverty programme is a four-letter word: jobs.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 01 Nov 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-win-war-poverty-an-analysis-state-poverty-trends/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/how-win-war-poverty-an-analysis-state-poverty-trends/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Skills for the Future - Competentieagenda 2015. De technologische industrie in Vlaanderen</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Successful innovation and economic growth require a workforce with the right skills. A survey of Agoria, the sector federation for the technological industry in Belgium, investigates the quantitative and qualitative challenges for the sector towards 2015. The federation advocates reform of both the educational system and the labour market. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 01 Nov 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/skills-future-competentieagenda-technologische-industrie-vlaanderen/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/skills-future-competentieagenda-technologische-industrie-vlaanderen/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Economic Cost of Obesity</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The analysis provided by Access Economics shows how obesity is weighting on society&#8217;s welfare and estimates to AU$21.0 billion (&#8364;13.05 billion) its total cost in Australia in 2005. This total cost includes the financial cost (loss productivity, health system cost, indirect costs,&#8230;) as well as and an estimation of the intangible cost (loss of wellbeing) associated to obesity. These data are particularly interesting for public authorities in charge of health policies in Belgium where the prevalence of obesity is growing: 20% to 30% of the Belgian population is now estimated to be obese. It could thus be useful to use this analysis to evaluate all the benefits associated to a program that would fight obesity and therefore assess whether such a program is worth implementing.]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 29 Oct 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-economic-cost-of-obesity/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-economic-cost-of-obesity/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>American Lesson for European Universities</title>
<description><![CDATA[ As the new academic year got underway, international rankings once again demonstrated the meagre performance of most European and Belgian universities. The situation is acute and critical, considering the crucial position of universities in the modern economy. Marc De Vos explains that Europe and Belgium can learn from the good sides of the American university model.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Oct 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/american-lesson-for-european-universities/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/american-lesson-for-european-universities/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>A Primer on Innovation and Growth</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Don&#8217;t let the current cyclical upswing in the EU fool you. European economic growth structurally lags behind that of the US. How can we diminish the growth gap between the United States and the European Union? Philippe Aghion from Bruegel recommends stimulating innovation in Europe. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 01 Oct 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/primer-innovation-growth/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/primer-innovation-growth/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>De Evolutie van de Uitgaven voor de Gezondheidszorg in Belgi&#235;. Een dynamisch evenwicht tussen de beheersing van de openbare uitgaven en de financi&#235;le bescherming van de pati&#235;nt</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How do health care expenditures in Belgium evolve? The Christian mutual fund (CM) seeks a dynamic equilibrium between public expenditure restraints and the financial protection of patients. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 01 Oct 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/evolutie-uitgaven-gezondheidszorg-belgie-dynamisch-evenwicht-tussen-beheersing-openbare-uitgaven-financiele-bescherming-patient/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/evolutie-uitgaven-gezondheidszorg-belgie-dynamisch-evenwicht-tussen-beheersing-openbare-uitgaven-financiele-bescherming-patient/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Gender Inequality, Growth and Global Ageing</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The fight against inequality makes also economic sense. As a recent Goldman Sachs study shows, further reduction in labour market inequality between women and men can be a powerful tool for economic growth and against ageing. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 01 Oct 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gender-inequality-growth-and-global-ageing/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/gender-inequality-growth-and-global-ageing/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Innovation at Work: The European Human Capital Index</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Despite the crucial importance of innovation for the future of Europe, we are still making painfully little efforts. The Lisbon council and Deutschland Denken! show the urgent need for reform. Belgium is ranked a disappointing 9th out of 13 countries in its performance on human capital, primarily because of underemployment. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 01 Oct 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/innovation-work-european-human-capital-index/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/innovation-work-european-human-capital-index/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Investeren in Belgi&#235;: De dingen zijn niet altijd wat ze lijken</title>
<description><![CDATA[ How can Belgium reap the benefits from foreign direct investment? How attractive are Belgium and Europe for investors? According to Ernst &amp; Young, in 2005 Belgium climbed from the 9th to the 4th place in the European top 20 countries in which to invest. But behind the statistics lie structural weaknesses. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 01 Oct 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/investeren-belgie-dingen-zijn-niet-altijd-wat-ze-lijken/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/investeren-belgie-dingen-zijn-niet-altijd-wat-ze-lijken/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Medicaid Makeover. Six Tough (and Unavoidable) Choices on the Road to Reform</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What can Belgium learn from cost containment programmes in other countries&#8217; healthcare systems? Deloitte formulates six questions for the Medicaid programme in the US. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 01 Oct 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/medicaid-makeover-six-tough-and-unavoidable-choices-road-reform/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/medicaid-makeover-six-tough-and-unavoidable-choices-road-reform/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Paying Taxes. The Global Picture</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Taxes are essential to finance public goods and services. There are however good and bad ways to collect them. The World Bank and PWC compare tax regimes and their economic impact. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 01 Oct 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/paying-taxes-global-picture/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/paying-taxes-global-picture/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Higher Minimum Wages or More Purchasing Power?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Belgian debate about higher minimum wages is very similar to the current American debate. Marc De Vos explains how American economists warn that an increased minimum wage may effect employment in the weakest segments of the labour market. A net increase of wages may therefore constitute a meaningful alternative.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 29 Sep 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/higher-minimum-wages-or-more-purchasing-power/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/higher-minimum-wages-or-more-purchasing-power/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>UK National Plan on Social Inclusion 2006-2008</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The UK succeeded in reducing poverty by making work pay. The introduction of the National Minimum Wage and tax credits have lifted 2.4 million people out of relative poverty. More efforts are however needed. The document provides key choices for the essential renewal of the welfare state.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 29 Sep 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/uk-national-plan-on-social-inclusion/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/uk-national-plan-on-social-inclusion/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Ranking of Local Government in Flanders and Wallonia </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium is on the eve of local elections. A citizen&rsquo;s vote is often influenced by subjective factors whilst not being influenced by all objective factors. Moreover, at local level it is often difficult for the electorate to compare the performances of different cities or towns. The Itinera Institute offers a ranking which compares the performances of cities and towns through a string of objective parameters.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 22 Sep 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-ranking-of-local-government-in-flanders-and-wallonia/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-ranking-of-local-government-in-flanders-and-wallonia/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Ranking of Local Government in Flanders and Wallonia</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgium is on the eve of local elections. A citizen&#8217;s vote is often influenced by subjective factors whilst not being influenced by all objective factors. Moreover, at local level it is often difficult for the electorate to compare the performances of different cities or towns. The Itinera Institute offers a ranking which compares the performances of cities and towns through a string of objective parameters.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 21 Sep 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-ranking-of-local-government-in-flanders-and-wallonia/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-ranking-of-local-government-in-flanders-and-wallonia/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Unemployment: a Shame</title>
<description><![CDATA[ After the Union of Independent Entrepreneurs (Unizo) and the Flemish liberal party (VLD), the Flemish socialist party (sp.a) has joined the debate on unemployment insurance reform with a proposal for an intense activation policy. However the question arises whether scarce resources should not be better used for a targeted reduction in labour taxes.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 11 Sep 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unemployment-a-shame/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/unemployment-a-shame/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>India: 10 times 10 %</title>
<description><![CDATA[ India experiences fast economic growth but the country is also a democracy struggling with appalling poverty, inequality and poor living conditions in megacities. Globalisation offers chances to accelerate economic development in India. Johan Albrecht explains that Western companies can equally benefit.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 04 Sep 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/india-10-times-10/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/india-10-times-10/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>De overheidsfinanciering van innovatie: Vergelijkende studie van Finland, Zweden en Belgi&#235;</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Should Belgium import Scandinavian innovation policy? The Federal Planning Bureau compares the public financing of innovation in Belgium with that in Finland and Sweden.  ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 01 Sep 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/overheidsfinanciering-innovatie-vergelijkende-studie-finland-zweden-belgie/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/overheidsfinanciering-innovatie-vergelijkende-studie-finland-zweden-belgie/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The &#8220;Flat Tax(es)&#8221;: Principles and Evidence (WP/06/218)</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A growing body of research advocates some form of flat tax as a method to ensure economic growth and state revenue. A number of developing countries have moved towards a flat tax regime. In a highly controversial study, the IMF critically reviews international flat tax experiences and doubts whether the tax will remain as popular as it was in recent years. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 01 Sep 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-flat-taxes-principles-evidence/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-flat-taxes-principles-evidence/</guid>
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<item>
<title>From Welfare to Workfare: Also for Belgium?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ A political debate is gathering whether Belgium&amp;rsquo;s unemployment insurance should limit the duration of its benefits and require the unemployed to work in return for their benefits. Marc De Vos explains that President Clinton&amp;rsquo;s decade old welfare reform introduced similar measures in the United States. Limiting the duration of benefits and requiring the beneficiaries to perform services in return has had a genuine activating effect in the US, but also because of their combination with other reforms.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Aug 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-welfare-to-workfare-also-for-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/from-welfare-to-workfare-also-for-belgium/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Welfare isn't working - the New Deal for Young People</title>
<description><![CDATA[ &lt;p align=&quot;left&quot;&gt;Germany and France are continental European welfare states with severe labour market problems. Low employment and high unemployment result from labour market institutions that inhibit labour market adaptability. This paper highlights recent labour market reforms in core areas such as active and passive labour market policies, employment protection and the funding of social policies through taxes and social contributions. To what extent can more favourable conditions for employment growth be created? The authors identify the limits of partial reforms as to the creation of more efficient labour market institutions although such reforms are highly plausible in politico-economic terms. The cumulative effect of marginal changes however leads to a gradual medium-term transformation of continental European labour markets. &lt;br/&gt;&lt;br/&gt;Read the full report at: &lt;a class=&quot;&quot; href=&quot;http://ftp.iza.org/dp2675.pdf&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;http://ftp.iza.org/dp2675.pdf &lt;/a&gt;&lt;br/&gt;&lt;/p&gt;]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Aug 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/welfare-isnt-working-new-deal-young-people/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/welfare-isnt-working-new-deal-young-people/</guid>
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<title>Doping, Rat Race and Sport Utopia</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The professional sports again received a serious blow as a result of new doping scandals. The dream of sports without doping is however a naive projection of soft goals from the civil society to the hard and meritocratic world of professional sports. The debate on doping should include the logics of the rat race concept as well as the vague boundaries between medical treatments and doping.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Aug 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/doping-rat-race-and-sport-utopia/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/doping-rat-race-and-sport-utopia/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Supreme Belgium? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgian public opinion has recently been bombarded with victory declarations on the Belgian economy and employment. Marc De Vos and Jean Hindriks explain that the current growth figures appear to be more cyclical than structural. They offer little guarantee for the future and therefore cannot be an alibi to postpone necessary structural reforms. Read press release in French or Dutch.<br/><br/>]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 04 Aug 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/supreme-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/supreme-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>Supreme Belgium</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Belgian public opinion has recently been bombarded with victory declarations on the Belgian economy and employment. Marc De Vos explains that the current growth figures appear to be more cyclical than structural. They offer little guarantee for the future and therefore cannot be an alibi to postpone necessary structural reforms.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 03 Aug 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/supreme-belgium/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/supreme-belgium/</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Gender Pay Gap &#8212; Origins and Policy Responses</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The gender pay gap persists and requires a multi-dimensional policy response. This report for the European Commission presents a unique comparative review for 30 countries.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 18 Jul 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-gender-pay-gap-origins-and-policy-responses/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-gender-pay-gap-origins-and-policy-responses/</guid>
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<title>Selective Flexibility And Dual Labour Market In Times Of Creative Destruction</title>
<description><![CDATA[ &lt;p&gt;The fight against unemployment is a priority for almost any government. However, the unemployment rate in Western Europe often remains unacceptably high, notwithstanding initial labour market reforms. Johan Albrecht analyses why selective labour market reform does not yield the desired outcome.&lt;/p&gt;]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 30 Jun 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/selective-flexibility-and-dual-labour-market-in-times-of-creative-destruction/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/selective-flexibility-and-dual-labour-market-in-times-of-creative-destruction/</guid>
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<title>Poor Ireland?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Ireland is widely known as the Celtic Tigre that has generated a true economic miracle. However, a recent report demonstrates that Ireland has the highest poverty rate in the entire European Union. Is the Irish miracle a myth? Marc De Vos analyses and nuances the diagnosis.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 27 Jun 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/poor-ireland/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/poor-ireland/</guid>
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<title>Scandinavia &#224; la Carte</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The president of the Flemish liberal party, Bart Somers, proposes to raise unemployment insurance payments while limiting their duration. The Flemish socialist party of Johan Vande Lanotte on the other hand wants to fight for employment by accompanying the unemployed, not by limiting their unemployment insurance. While their respective policy proposals differ, both parties invoke the so-called &amp;ldquo;Scandinavian model&amp;rdquo; to justify their position. Marc De Vos explains that this &amp;ldquo;Scandinavian model&amp;rdquo; in fact hides several models and that Belgium urgently requires a general strategy for employment.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 16 Jun 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/scandinavia-a-la-carte/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/scandinavia-a-la-carte/</guid>
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<title>French Hallucination</title>
<description><![CDATA[ In the run up to the 2007 presidential elections, the French socialist party has presented its &amp;ldquo;projet socialiste pour la France&amp;rdquo;. Entitled &amp;ldquo;r&amp;eacute;ussir ensemble le changement&amp;rdquo; (achieving change together), the project proposes inter alia a socio-economic programme aimed at full employment, real equality in a re-founded French republic. Marc De Vos observes that these honourable objectives are not translated into realistic analyses. An important part of the proposed reforms is rather of a reactionary or utopian nature.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 15 Jun 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/french-hallucination/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/french-hallucination/</guid>
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<title>A European Blue Card Proposal</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Is selective migration needed to salvage an ageing European Union? Bruegel research fellow Jakob von Weizs&#228;cker favours a selective migration policy and pleads for a European &#8220;blue card&#8221; analogous to the American &#8220;green card&#8221;. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Jun 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/european-blue-card-proposal/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/european-blue-card-proposal/</guid>
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<title>The National Lottery As a Redistribution Mechanism: Who Are the Real Winners?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p>The Belgian government seeks to reform the National Lottery to ensure that &ldquo;more people win more&rdquo;. This charm offensive is associated with the socalled social image of the Lotto. However, in reality the impact of a national lottery is far from social. This Nota examines the adverse and antisocial effects of national lotteries and gambling.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Jun 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-national-lottery-as-a-redistribution-mechanism-who-are-the-real-winners/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/the-national-lottery-as-a-redistribution-mechanism-who-are-the-real-winners/</guid>
</item>
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<title>The National Lottery as a Redistribution Mechanism: Who Are the Real Winners?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The Belgian government seeks to reform the National Lottery to ensure that &#8220;more people win more&#8221;. This charm offensive is associated with the so-called social image of the Lotto. However, in reality the impact of a national lottery is far from social. This paper examines the adverse and antisocial effects of national lotteries and gambling.]]></description>
<pubDate>Wed, 31 May 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-national-lottery-as-a-redistribution-mechanism-who-are-the-real-winners/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-national-lottery-as-a-redistribution-mechanism-who-are-the-real-winners/</guid>
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<title>Do All Belgians Face the Same Inflation Rate?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Inflation is not popular since it affects everyone. But are we all equally affected by inflation? This question matters in Belgium with the automatic indexation of wages and welfare benefits. Indeed if inflation turns out to affect poor households more than the rich, possibly due to different consumption patterns, indexation may offer unequal protection against inflation. In this paper, Jean Hindriks shows that, surprisingly enough, the inflation rate does not differ much across income groups.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 May 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/do-all-belgians-face-the-same-inflation-rate/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/do-all-belgians-face-the-same-inflation-rate/</guid>
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<title>Competitiveness: the Ultimate Economic Theme for 2006? </title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p>The competitiveness of the Belgian economy seems to be endangered. To safeguard our international competitiveness, the social partners want to elaborate control mechanisms securing that the evolution of the Belgian wage cost resembles the trends in our neighboring countries. This particular wage cost policy will probably not impact the Belgian unemployment rate of 12.3% because our fiscal system continues to price labor out of the market, and this observation also holds for labor that is not exposed to international competition. Our future welfare level will be determined by the successful integration in our economy of economically non-active groups and of the evolution of labor productivity. Therefore we need fundamental reforms. The focus on industrial wages in our neighboring countries risks crowding out concerns for essential reforms. </p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 19 May 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/competitiveness-the-ultimate-economic-theme-for-2006/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/competitiveness-the-ultimate-economic-theme-for-2006/</guid>
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<title>Competitiveness: the Ultimate Economic Theme for 2006?</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The competitiveness of the Belgian economy seems to be endangered. To safeguard our international competitiveness, the social partners want to elaborate control mechanisms securing that the evolution of the Belgian wage cost resembles the trends in our neighbouring countries. Johan Albrecht argues that wage cost policy will probably not impact the Belgian unemployment rate because our fiscal system continues to price labour out of the market, and this observation also holds for labour that is not exposed to international competition. Our future welfare level will be determined by the successful integration in our economy of economically non-active groups and of the evolution of labour productivity. Therefore we need fundamental reforms. The focus on industrial wages in our neighbouring countries risks crowding out concerns for essential reforms.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 09 May 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/competitiveness-the-ultimate-economic-theme-2006/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/competitiveness-the-ultimate-economic-theme-2006/</guid>
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<title>French Lesson</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Marc De Vos reflects on the French government&amp;rsquo;s surrender to the streets protests against the CPE.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 31 Mar 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/french-lesson/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/french-lesson/</guid>
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<title>Local Language and Social Housing: the Flemish Government is Right</title>
<description><![CDATA[ According to Jean Hindriks, requiring candidates for a government provided house learn the local language (Dutch or French) should be seen as a legitimate goal. The integration and emancipation of thousands of women of foreign origin should be a priority.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 31 Mar 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/local-language-and-social-housing-the-flemish-government-is-right/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/local-language-and-social-housing-the-flemish-government-is-right/</guid>
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<title>Launch of the Itinera Institute</title>
<description><![CDATA[ <p>The 13th of March 2006 will see the official launch of the Itinera Institute. <br/><br/>The Itinera Institute is a truly independent, professional and non-partisan think-tank that seeks to identify roads to policy reform that ensure sustained economic growth and social protection in this part of the world. </p>]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 13 Mar 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/launch-of-the-itinera-institute/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/press-room/_press/launch-of-the-itinera-institute/</guid>
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<title>Launching Event Itinera Institute</title>
<description><![CDATA[ On the 13th of March 2006 the Itinera Institute was officially launched in Brussels at the prestigious Concert Noble. Following a mailing to 17.000 persons, which was also intended for communication purposes, 271 people attended the evening. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 13 Mar 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/launching-event-itinera-institute/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/events/_event/launching-event-itinera-institute/</guid>
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<title>Policy Reform and the Price of Gradualism</title>
<description><![CDATA[ The challenges of ageing, migration and globalisation are often perceived as internal and external threats that eventually will transform our socio-economic system. From a dynamic perspective however, every change offers opportunities. Johan Albrecht explains that as societies and economies can adapt to new circumstances and conditions, policymakers need to decide on how to guide and steer the necessary adaptation processes. Without reforms, the unavoidable adaptation is only postponed and will eventually turn out to be much more expensive. In response to the current reform challenge, Belgian pragmatism has so far favoured gradualism. Several analyses from independent organisations not only highlight the risks from the soft and gradual approach; they show that ambitious reforms bring net-gains for all societal groups.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 13 Mar 2006 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/policy-reform-and-the-price-of-gradualism/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/policy-reform-and-the-price-of-gradualism/</guid>
<enclosure url="http://www.itinerainstitute.org/upl/1/default/doc/nota1.pdf" length="33192" type="application/pdf" />
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<title>Will More Choice Improve Outcomes in Education and Health Care? The Evidence from Economic Research</title>
<description><![CDATA[ Does (parental) freedom of choice of school matter? This survey suggests that the main impact of choice may come from the pressure of competition rather than the actual exercise of choice with empirical evidence suggesting that the competitive threat improves school productivity. The negative effect is that parental choice with lack of choice (shortage of good-quality schools) increases segregation. That is, exactly the opposite of the announced objective of the Arena Reform in Belgium&#8217;s French community. ]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Mar 2005 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/will-more-choice-improve-outcomes-in-education-and-health-care-the-evidence-from-economic-research/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/will-more-choice-improve-outcomes-in-education-and-health-care-the-evidence-from-economic-research/</guid>
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<title>The Expanding Pharmaceutical Arsenal in the War on Cancer</title>
<description><![CDATA[ What is the impact of pharmaceutical innovation on cancer survival? Frank Lichtenberg investigates U.S. and international evidence and demonstrates the importance of access to new treatments in advancing health.]]></description>
<pubDate>Fri, 01 Oct 2004 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
<link>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-expanding-pharmaceutical-arsenal-in-the-war-on-cancer/</link>
<guid>http://www.itinerainstitute.org/en/library/_paper/the-expanding-pharmaceutical-arsenal-in-the-war-on-cancer/</guid>
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