DISCUSSING THE ROLE OF MIGRATION AND EDUCATION IN FIGHTING ECONOMIC VULNERABILITY IN SOUTH-EASTERN EUROPE

Abstract

This paper aims to examine the effects of the net migration rate and higher education on a set of economic vulnerability indicators in the South-Eastern EU countries, when controlling inter alia for other explanatory variables. These relationships are explored by panel data regression models, using macroeconomic variables collected over 10 years from the Eurostat dataset. The random effects Generalized Least Squares (GLS) and the system Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) estimators are comparatively examined. The paper finds that the tertiary education attainments do not represent a significant determinant of income inequality and subjective well-being, while the net migration rate and lifelong learning exert a significant and powerful impact on most our measures of economic vulnerability over the period of analysis.