The Lisbon Process in the European Union: Lessons for Croatia CONCLUSIONS FOR CROATIA Trying to summarise all that has been written above and to draw conclusions for EU accession countries like Croatia we have to stress that the Lisbon Process should be taken into account, as it is a reform programme that is expected to improve the functioning of markets in the European Union(i.e. labour and product markets) as well as to improve the effectiveness of market institutions and the effectiveness of the growth supporting economic policies. Several reforms stipulated in the strategy clearly show the direction the European economic model is evolving in. An even more important lesson can be drawn from the analysis of causes that made the EU prepare, accept and try to implement the Lisbon reforms. Such an analysis shows that regulatory environments present in several EU member states, even those most economically developed, are not friendly enough to support the effective functioning of markets. Moreover, several economic policies developed in these countries, for example social policies, also inhibit economic growth and draw people out of employment and, as a result, undermine social cohesion. Due to the above, countries in transition from communism to the market economy, such as Croatia, while adjusting their economies to the requirements of membership in the EU, should aim at economic models and solutions that have to be implemented in current EU member states in order to restore the vitality of their economies. This, however, means that Croatia should avoid simply imitating economic policy solutions still present in many EU member states. Moreover, it should rather follow the examples of those brave European societies that decided to implement deep reforms that were often difficult at the beginning but fruitful in the long run. Such examples can be found in both the old and the new EU member states, that is. Ireland(after 1986), Slovakia(after Meciar) or the Baltic countries. These states, while being in the EU or aiming towards membership, decided to create flexible and entrepreneurship friendly economies with a limited role for the government. The Lisbon Process, while not ideal in its essence and method, can be used as a stimulus for such a policy and as a panacea for falling into the trap of Eurosclerosis. However, the effectiveness of the Lisbon Strategy cannot be overestimated, because the most important economic reforms have to be accepted and implemented at national level, not the EU one. 87