Comparing Agencification in Central Eastern European and Western European Countries: Fundamentally Alike in Unimportant Respects?

Abstract

The trajectory of agencification in CEE countries is different from the trajectory in Western European countries in three respects: CEE countries have on average set up more agencies, with less variation in types of agencies, and in more recent times. However, there are also similarities, in particular with regard to the tasks that are being charged to agencies and the predominance of the type 1 agency (no legal independence). The main differences between CEE and Western European countries are therefore in the timing and variation, but not in the substance of agencification. Similarities between CEE countries appear to be related more to the timing of state reforms and EU accession requirements, than to the communist legacy of these countries. More indepth research should be used to reveal differences between agencification patterns in individual CEE countries, and the consequences thereof.