Sustainable Development in the Central and Eastern European Countries (CEECs): Challenges and Opportunities

The purpose of the study was to analyze and present the position of the Central and Eastern European Countries (CEECs) in terms of levels of sustainable development concept implementation in the years 2010-2016. The second purpose and the added value of the conducted research was to identify the selected opportunities and challenges related to sustainable development in the CEE countries. The research was based on 66 indicators that monitored the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) from the global perspective. Eurostat (database: sustainable development indicators) was the source of data in terms of their availability and integrity. Implementation of the concept of sustainable development was assessed using the synthetic measure of development (SMD). The past and current socioeconomic situation in the group of CEE countries is presented in the introduction. The theoretical aspects of sustainable development are discussed, taking into account social, economic, environmental, spatial, as well as institutional and political areas. The concept of integrated order is also considered. The core part of the study presents the research results showing the position of the CEE countries regarding the implementation levels of the sustainable development concept. The value of SMD in individual years is specified for each of the analyzed countries. It was concluded that the situation of all countries improved over the analyzed period of time. Nevertheless, the current situation is not favorable in any of the analyzed countries: However, the Czech Republic and Slovenia are very close to achieving such status. Apart from the aforementioned two countries, in 2016 a moderate situation was observed in Estonia, Hungary, Slovakia, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, and Croatia. Bulgaria and Romania still remain at a disadvantage, despite having made noticeable progress.