Institutional quality and economic growth in the non-EU post-Soviet countries: Does energy abundance matter?

Abstract

ABSTRACT. After regaining independence, most of the post-Soviet countries encountered socio-economic difficulties during the transition period. These challenges were also accompanied by low institutional quality. Some of the post-Soviet countries, such as Russia, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, can be categorized as energy-rich, while the remaining countries are non-rich in terms of energy. Thereby, the aim of this study is twofold: first, to analyze the impact of institutional quality on economic growth in the case of non-EU post-Soviet countries, and second, to determine whether there is any difference in the link of institutional quality and economic growth between the energy-rich and non-rich sample countries. Two-Stage Least Squares reveal a U-shaped association between institutional environment and economic growth. Furthermore, the results suggest that this impact is lower in the energy-rich countries compared with their non-rich counterparts. With regards to the control variables, the findings indicate a positive and statistically significant impact of openness on economic growth. Finally, there is a negative association between the remaining control variables, such as inflation, population growth rate and the dependent variable.

The role of institutional quality in reducing environmental degradation in Canada

“…To deal with environmental degradation issues, strong institutional quality is highly important. This is because better institutional quality can ensure effective enforcement of environmental laws, influence policy implementation, and promote transparency and accountability (Gasimov et al 2023). All of these will be remarkable support for long-term planning for sustainable development (Danish & Ulucak, 2020).…”