The Baltic States and international development cooperation: how can they best share their transition experience with less advanced transition countries?

In spite of many challenges faced by the Baltic States during the recent economic and nancial crisis, their progress since independence in 1991 has been remarkable. In about two decades those countries have been transformed from being centrally planned economies and part of the former Soviet Union, into modern countries that are rmly integrated into the global economy. Since the independence they have become members of the European Union (EU), NATO and the World Trade Organization (WTO). €ey are also members of international nancial institutions like the World Bank Group (WBG) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). According to World Bank classications Latvia and Lithuania are upper middle income countries and Estonia has achieved a high income status (World Bank, 2012a). Nordic countries like Denmark, Norway and Sweden have also been aected by the economic and nancial crisis but in spite of being relatively small countries they remain among donor countries that could be classied as leaders in development cooperation and are among few countries in the world who contribute more than 0.7% of their GDP to international development cooperation. In addition to large bilateral development programs they are active members in international nancial institutions such as the WBG, EBRD as well as in all the regional development banks. When reconsidering and developing their foreign aid programs it can be useful for the Baltic States to review the experience of these neighbouring countries to see what lessons can be learned from their experience. Multilaterally the Nordic Countries and the Baltic States already cooperate extensively. At the World Bank Group the Baltic States share an Executive Director’s O‚ce with the Nordic Countries. €is Nordic-Baltic cooperation also extends to the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). At the EBRD Iceland shares an o‚ce with Estonia and Sweden, Latvia works with Norway and Finland, and Hilmar THOR HILMARSSON