This collection of ten essays, originally published in 1989, by leading scholars of the time from five countries brings together some of the most important economic contributions to the Third World Congress for Soviet and East European Studies. First published at a time when the eastern bloc in general was confronting major economic problems, the essays in this volume combine both topicality and detailed scholarly analysis, addressing such significant topics as energy conservation, regional development and technological innovation. Although written primarily from an economic standpoint, both the approach and language used should be accessible to scholars in the related fields of politics and development studies, for whom the questions raised in this volume are likewise of great importance.