Economic freedom as driver of growth in transition

This paper reviews the political economy of economic growth in post-communist economies making the transition to free markets, focusing on the role of economic policy and institutions. We test the hypothesis that better institutions, measured in terms of economic freedom, contribute to growth. To begin with, the empirical results from the cross-section of transition economies confirm this hypothesis. Yet the question is deeper than that since there is an interactive effect between economic freedom and investment. The paper concludes that non-linearities are present in the growth model.