CENTROPE Regional Development Report. Focus and Stock Taking Report on Human Capital, Education and Labour Markets in the CENTROPE – Executive Summary

Despite the fact that all CENTROPE countries are members of the European Union, the labour market in the CENTROPE region is very heterogeneous. More than half of the CENTROPE labour force is located in Austrian regions, which are areas with significantly higher wages in comparison with regions in the three post-communist countries. Furthermore, there are substantial disparities between metropolitan areas of Vienna, Bratislava and Brno on the one hand and rural areas with relatively high share of agriculture on the other hand. These structural disparities are reflected in a dramatically varying rate of unemployment among the CENTROPE regions as well – from less than 4 percent in Lower Austria and Burgenland to 12 percent in the Trnava region. Concerning the quality of human capital the CENTROPE region disposes of a well developed education system. In particular there are a large number of institutions at the tertiary education level situated in the region. Here a survey on student mobility intentions shows high willingness of students to study abroad choosing Vienna as the most attractive place of study in CENTROPE.