Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem gives speech at the Keio university in Japan
“Europe needs to modernize its economies to achieve sustainable growth,” said Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem today (13 January) in a speech which he gave at Keio University in Tokyo, Japan.
© European Union, 2014
“In Europe we are facing a new reality which forces us to re-evaluate our institutions, our welfare state and our expectations,” said the President.
J.Dijsselbloem underlined the importance of a comprehensive growth strategy for the eurozone, with strong monetary and fiscal policy, high-quality investments and ambitious structural reforms. Such a growth strategy, however, requires that these different policy strands are connected.
To this end, the euro area can do more to integrate reforms and budgetary efforts into the European governance. “Because growth is picking up, but it is weaker and slower than we would like. The peak in unemployment is over, but in many countries too many people have been left without a job. Inflation remains subdued and in some euro area economies prices have fallen,” said the President.
With a growth strategy wherein the policies of the eurozone are connected, structural reforms can increase economic activity, encourage potential growth and have a positive impact on public finances as well.