Publication

This article provides a theoretical framework for the assessment of democracy, market economy and political management in order to derive criteria and questions that are used for the Bertelsmann Transformation Index (BTI). This is followed by a section explaining the methodology of the BTI. The author argues that EU accession and international agreements on questions of contested statehood are important for Southeastern Europe but should not distract attention from the quality of democracy and market economy in each country of the region.