Taking Stock of Research Projects on the European Neighbourhood Policy

Abstract

This paper offers an overview of the key research projects that have examined the various impacts of the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP). The paper focuses on the impact of the ENP on trade, migration, innovation and institutional and cultural diversity, and social capital. The majority of empirical literature concerning the ENP has focused on trade. Migration has received attention to a lesser extent. There are a few studies on innovation in the ENP countries, and no studies explicitly examine the role of the ENP on the institutional environment, cultural diversity and social capital on innovation. In all these research projects, three key gaps can be identified which are most relevant for the SEARCH project. Firstly, most projects do not examine the effect of specific policy measures, but only give an overall analysis of the impact of all policies that have been implemented in a time period. Secondly, almost all studies focus on a national level in their analysis. Rarely is the subnational level considered. Thirdly, most of the reforms carried out due to the ENP are very recent, and most studies do not have data that is recent enough to evaluate the impact of these reforms. The specific gaps as identified in this paper can inform further empirical studies of the SEARCH project.