E
QUILIBRIUM
Qua e ly Jou nal o Economics and Economic Policy
Volume 13 Issue 2 June 2018
p-ISSN 1689-765X, e-ISSN 2353-3293
www.economic-policy.pl
ORIGINAL PAPER
Ci a ion: Melecký, L. (2018). The main achie emen s o he EU s uc u al unds 2007–
2013 in he EU membe s a es: e iciency analysis o anspo sec o . Equilib ium. Qua e -
ly Jou nal o Economics and Economic Policy, 13(2), 285–306. doi: 10.24136/eq.2018.015
Con ac : lukas.me[email p o ec ed], Depa men o Eu opean In eg a ion, Facul y o Econom-
ics, VŠB-Technical Uni e si y o Os a a, Sokolská řída 33, 702 00 Os a a 1, Czech
Republic
Recei ed: 24 Ap il 2017; Re ised: 5 Decembe 2017; Accep ed: 8 Janua y 2018
Lukáš Melecký
VŠB-Technical Uni e si y o Os a a, Czech Republic
The main achie emen s o he EU s uc u al unds 2007–2013 in he
EU membe s a es: e iciency analysis o anspo sec o
JEL Classi ica ion: C67; O11; O52; R11; R12
Keywo ds: DEA; e iciency; Eu opean Regional De elopmen Fund, ex-pos e alua ion;
Cohesion Fund
Abs ac
Resea ch backg ound: The Eu opean Union cu en ly p o ides inancial suppo o he
Membe S a es h ough a ious inancial ools om Eu opean S uc u al and In es men
Funds 2014–2020, and p e iously om he EU S uc u al Funds. In bo h e minologies, he
unds ep esen he main ins umen o EU Cohesion Policy o sus ain e i o ial de elop-
men , o inc ease compe i i eness and o elimina e egional dispa i ies. The o e all impac
o EU Funds depends on he s uc u e o unding and abso p ion capaci y o he coun y.
Pu pose o he a icle: The e iciency o unding ac oss he EU Membe S a es is a unda-
men al issue o EU de elopmen as a whole. The Au ho conside s de e -mining he e i-
ciency o EU Funds as an issue o high impo ance, and he e o e his pape p o ides a
con ibu ion o he deba e on he ole o EU Cohesion Policy in he Membe S a es. The
pape ocuses on e i o ial e ec s o ele an EU Funds in p og amming pe iod 2007–2013
in in as uc u e h ough e iciency analysis.
Me hods: E iciency analysis is based on da a a he coun y le el, o igina ing om ex-pos
e alua ion o Cohesion Policy p og ammes 2007–2013 and ep esen ing he inpu and ou -
pu a iables o analyse whe he he goal o os e ing g ow h in he a ge coun ies ha e
been achie ed wi h he unds p o ided, and whe he o no mo e esou ces gene a ed s ong-
e g ow h e ec s in anspo accessibili y. The pape deals wi h compa a i e c oss-coun y
analysis, desc ip i e analysis o da ase and mul iple-c i e ia app oach o Da a En elopmen
Equilib ium. Qua e ly Jou nal o Economics and Economic Policy, 13(2), 285–306
286
Analysis (DEA) in he o m o ou pu -o ien ed BCC VRS model o e iciency and ou pu -
o ien ed APM VRS subsequen ly model o supe -e iciency.
Findings & Value added: The pape aims o es he ac o s o wo inpu s and i e ou pu s,
ying o elucida e he di e ences ob ained by he Membe S a es in e ec i e use o he
Eu opean Regional De elopmen Fund and he Cohesion Fund in he anspo sec o . The
pape de e mines i he coun ies ha e been mo e e icien in inc easing hei le els o com-
pe i i e ad an ages linked wi h anspo . P elimina y esul s e eal ha mos coun ies wi h
a lowe amoun o unding achie e highe e iciency, especially coun ies in a g oup o so-
called “old EU Membe S a es”, i.e. g oup EU15.
In oduc ion
The es ablishmen o he EU ma ke a he beginning o new a ea; he Eu-
opean Union (EU) Membe S a es cu en ly enjoy many bene i s in his
espec : a ee ma ke , e ec i e ading, enhanced secu i y, economic cohe-
sion, sus ainable de elopmen , p o ec ion o human igh s, c ea ion o jobs
e c. The main goals o he EU a e o boos economic and social p og ess
and elimina e he exis ing di e ences be ween he s anda ds o li ing o
Membe S a es and in hei egions. The Eu opean S uc u al and In es -
men Funds (ESIF) a e basic ins umen s o he EU Cohesion Policy o
p omo e he o e all ha monious de elopmen o he EU, o educe dispa i-
ies be ween he le els o de elopmen o he a ious egions, and o
s eng hen i s economic, social and e i o ial cohesion. ESIF consis o he
ollowing i e unds, i.e. Eu opean egional de elopmen und (ERDF),
Eu opean social und (ESF), and Cohesion Fund (CF), Eu opean ag icul-
u al und o u al de elopmen (EAFRD) and Eu opean ma i ime and
ishe ies und (EMFF). The EU de o es an impo an pa o i s esou ces o
inancing egional de elopmen p ojec s h ough ESIF, which p o ide sub-
sidy aid o he Membe S a es and hei egions based on hei economic
si ua ion, mainly based on he pa icula egion's GDP. The EU de ines
subsidies as "any aid g an ed by he S a e o h ough S a e esou ces in any
o m wha soe e " based on Rubini's analysis (Rubini, 2010). How e i-
cien ly he Membe S a es apply he Eu opean unds is a basic and pi o al
opic o success and con inui y o implemen a ion o he EU Cohesion
Policy, and especially so in he con ex o he economic c isis and he
g owing numbe o egions wi h low le els o de elopmen ha he inco -
po a ion o so-called new coun ies in o he EU has assumed. Such ci cum-
s ances ha e o ced he EU o make huge economic e o s o main ain and
inc ease he esou ces o he unds, and so i is i al o he Eu opean au-
ho i ies o know how e ec i e he unds a e being applied (Enguix e al.,
2012). The e iciency o he EU unds is an issue o high impo ance, and
Equilib ium. Qua e ly Jou nal o Economics and Economic Policy, 13(2), 285–306
287
his pape p o ides a con ibu ion o deba e on he ole o he EU Cohesion
Policy in he EU Membe S a es.
The pape ocuses on he e i o ial e ec s o he EU Funds in p og am-
ming pe iod 2007–2013 in in as uc u e h ough anspo e iciency anal-
ysis. E iciency analysis is based on na ional da a o igina ing om he ex-
pos e alua ion o Cohesion Policy p og ammes 2007–2013 ep esen ing
he inpu and ou pu a iables o analyse whe he he goal o os e ing
g ow h in he e alua ed coun ies ha e been achie ed wi h he Eu opean
unds p o ided and whe he o no mo e sou ces c ea ed s onge g ow h
e ec s and impac s in anspo accessibili y. By analysing he amoun s
g an ed o each Membe S a e, he e iciency le el o using unds is ob-
se ed. The pape deals wi h compa a i e c oss-coun y analysis, desc ip-
i e da a analysis and mul iple-c i e ia app oach o Da a En elopmen
Analysis (DEA) in he o m o ou pu -o ien ed BCC VRS model. The pape
aims o es se e al ac o s in he o m o wo inpu s and i e ou pu s, ying
o elucida e he di e ences ob ained by he EU Membe S a es in e ec i e
use o ERDF and CF in he anspo sec o . The pape de e mines i he
coun ies ha e been mo e e icien in inc easing hei le els o compe i i e
ad an ages linked wi h anspo . Addi ionally, de elopmen challenges a e
discussed o imp o emen o he e iciency e ec o he EU S uc u al
Funds on he na ional pe o mance in he anspo sec o .
The pape is s uc u ed as ollows. Sec ion 2 b ie ly in oduces he EU
Cohesion Policy, e iews he me hods o e alua ion o he EU unds and
highligh s he impo ance o anspo o de elopmen . Sec ion 3 b ie ly
in oduces his o y and backg ound o DEA me hodology and p oposes he
e iciency and supe -e iciency app oaches. Sec ion 3 desc ibes he empi i-
cal backg ound, i.e. inpu s, ou pu , e alua ed uni s (DMUs), and da a
sou ce. Sec ion 4 p esen s and discusses he main and impo an empi ical
esul s. Sec ion 5 compa es he indings in he pape wi h he indings o
o he au ho s. Conclusions a e summa ised in he las sec ion.
Theo e ical backg ound
The goals o he EU Cohesion Policy lied in he pe cep ion o ac ha
a common ma ke o in e nal ma ke equi es a ce ain deg ee o homoge-
nei y in economic de elopmen o coun ies, which is no necessa ily an
au oma ic ou come o he Eu opean in eg a ion p ocess bu , e en ually, has
o be assis ed by ac i e policy in e en ions (bo h Eu opean o /and na ional
in e en ions). The e o e, he EU Cohesion Policy aims a inc easing com-
pe i i eness and he le el o de elopmen and educing economic and so-
Equilib ium. Qua e ly Jou nal o Economics and Economic Policy, 13(2), 285–306
288
cial dispa i ies be ween he di e en egions in ol ed. The means by which
his goal can be supposedly eached a e he EU Funds ( o me ly S uc u al
Funds, and now ESI Funds o ESIF). Gi en hei imp essi e amoun , hei
impac has been analysed om se e al di e en pe spec i es. Theo e ical
app oaches analysing he impac o economic in eg a ion and he EU Cohe-
sion Policy can be classi ied as g ow h heo ies and ade heo ies, dis in-
guishing be ween classical and new app oaches. In pa , hese app oaches
ha e diame ic poli ical implica ions (Mohl & Hagen, 2010). I is no pos-
sible o iden i y he co ec heo y o he e alua ion o he EU Cohesion
Policy. I is s iking ha almos all empi ical s udies in es iga ing he im-
pac o he EU unds on egional economic g ow h a e based on a neoclas-
sical g ow h model, whe e unds mainly co espond o in es men s, which
a e endogenous in he neoclassical g ow h amewo k.
As he EU budge and inancial pe spec i e o each p og amming pe iod
become igh e and majo ecipien s o Eu opean egional ans e s s uggle
wi h inancial and economic c ises, ques ions and discussions abou he
p ope u iliza ion and e ec i eness o inancial ans e s om he cen al
EU budge o EU’s poo es coun ies and subsequen ly egions a e ho op-
ics o policy deba ed. Spending he money alloca ed h ough unds was
placed a he op o he lis o mos na ional go e nmen s. In o de o boos
he abso p ion a e, Eu opean ins i u ions implemen ed a se o measu es
(Healy & B is ow, 2013; Ka sa o a, 2013). In es iga ing he impac o he
EU unds on he economic g ow h and con e gence p ocess is hus a b oad
esea ch opic ( o a summa y o he newes esea ch see Table 1). Al -
hough s udies on he e iciency o he EU Cohesion Policy h ough unds
ha e no p o ided conclusi e indings (see o e iew in Mohl & Hagen,
2010; Rogalska e al., 2017), i is use ul o de e mine whe he he huge
amoun s o esou ces employed could ha e gi en be e esul s.
T anspo , esp. in as uc u e as a whole can be seen as a baseline o
Eu opean in eg a ion p ocess om i s beginning. This p oblem is one o he
i s and key- opicali y issues o be lis ed o he EU common policy ac i i-
ies. The T ea y o Rome om 1957 (EUR-Lex, 1957) included he s a e-
men ha anspo o widely pe cei ed in as uc u e will ha e a big im-
pac on secu ing h ee ( ee mo emen o goods, ee mo emen o se ices
and ee mo emen o people) o ou eedoms which in e nal ma ke con-
s i u es and ensu es. Implemen a ion o eedom could esul in an e ec-
i ely unc ioning anspo ne wo k, i.e. one baseline o he whole in a-
s uc u e sys em. The key objec i es: deepe common o in e nal ma ke
in eg a ion be ween he EU coun ies, he cons uc ion o e icien and big
anspo in as uc u es, we e seen as a needed assump ion owa ds ul il-
men o his goal. A he end o he 1990s, he EU has chosen a p io i y lis
Equilib ium. Qua e ly Jou nal o Economics and Economic Policy, 13(2), 285–306
289
o key in es men s in anspo , so-called he T ans Eu opean Ne wo k
(TEN) in es men s. The EU anspo policy ensu es wo key objec i es,
i.e. o dec ease ade cos s (in line wi h he aim o build he EU in e nal
ma ke ; and o p omo e he socio-economic de elopmen and s uc u al
adjus men o lagging egions and less-de eloped egions. In es men s in
in as uc u e cause economic g ow h, suppo s bo h in e nal and ex e nal
ade, highe employmen a e and globally in he Eu opean con ex —
inc ease he quali y o li e o Eu opean inhabi an s and o he a ou able
aspec s. The e o e, he a ac i eness o e i o y can be boos ed by upda -
ing and upg ading he equipmen in echnical and social in as uc u e,
especially anspo in as uc u e — he e o e i can ge lowe when dis-
ance, ime and cos a e aken in o conside a ion. Wi h espec o hose
ac s, e i o ies which can be cha ac e ized as hose wi h highly de eloped
anspo in as uc u e, a e mo e a ac i e o in es o s, and in his can be
seen as hei compe i i e ad an age oo (see Gó niak, 2016; Sucháček,
2013). The app op ia e le el in e ms o he quali y and he scope o
anspo in as uc u e in he o med oad, ailway, ai and wa e connec-
ions esul in cons an and be e -inc easing mo emen o people and
goods and ac ually end o imp o e he quali y o li e h ough he
a ailabili y o anspo se ices.
Resea ch me hodology
The e iciency o he EU Cohesion Policy elemen s is an issue o high ele-
ance, and i is he main aim o his pape which p o ides a con ibu ion o
he deba e on he ole o he EU Cohesion Policy in he EU Membe S a es.
The EU Cohesion Policy should be e ec i e, as is he case o anspo
policy. The economic pe o mance o anspo in as uc u e can be im-
p o ed by in es ing in anspo in as uc u e, by selec ing in es men s
mo e ca e ully, and by using he exis ing in as uc u e be e . Whe he
in e egional anspo in as uc u e is bene icial in e ms o wel a e and
whe he i gene a es economic g ow h a he mac oeconomic le el a e wo
di e en issues. Assessing he bene i s o anspo in es men s ex-an e, bu
also ex-pos is di icul . The e is a numbe o po en ial p oblems wi h e al-
ua ions which mos ly ela e o he limi ed a ailabili y o su icien da a in
he c oss-sec ional as well as he ime dimensions, and o he me hods ap-
plied. Cu en ly, he end in e iciency s udies e ol es a ound he applica-
ion o non-pa ame ic models, since hey allow o conside a mul iplici y
o ou pu s and inpu s in he analysis, and hus make less se e e demands on
he whole and he on ie o p oduc ion. E iciency measu emen has been

Equilib ium. Qua e ly Jou nal o Economics and Economic Policy, 13(2), 285–306
290
he challenge o many en i ies in e es ed in imp o ing hei p oduc i i y. In
1957, Fa ell in his s udy in es iga ed he issue o measu ing e iciency and
suppo ed he ele ance o e iciency e alua ion o economic policy-
make s (Fa ell, 1957). One o he easons ha all a emp s o sol e he
p oblem ha e ailed is he ailu e o combine he measu emen o mul iple
inpu s in o any desi able ou pu s (Cook & Sei o d, 2009; Ca es e al.,
1982). Du ing subsequen yea s, me hods, ools and echniques o e i-
ciency measu ing ha e become mo e equen , popula and imp o ed, as
men ioned Melecký (2017).
Be ween he non-pa ame ic echniques, Da a En elopmen Analysis
(DEA) is he mos accep ed me hod. DEA is he da a-o ien ed app oach o
p o iding a ela i e e iciency assessmen and e alua ing he pe o mance
o a se o pee en i ies called Decision Making Uni s (DMUs). DEA p o-
ides a single measu e and in a simple way deals wi h mul iple inpu s and
mul iple ou pu s, and i s goal is o di ide DMU in o an e icien g oup o
ine icien g oup, based on size and quan i y o consumed inpu s and p o-
duced ou pu s. In ecen yea s, we ha e seen a g ea a ie y o applica ions
o DEA o e alua ing he pe o mances o many di e en kinds o en i ies
engaged in many di e en ac i i ies (such as banks, hospi als, uni e si ies,
ci ies, cou s, business i ms, and o he s, including he pe o mance o
coun ies, egions, e c.), o mo e in o ma ion see he la es examples o
sec o al applica ions DEA me hodology; e.g. G mano á and Pukala (2018)
o Balce zak e al. (2017). E alua ion o e i o ial uni s is a opic o in e -
es in his pape , o mo e DEA wo ks abou na ional o egional e iciency
(see S aníčko á, 2017, 2014); o p e ious wo ks o he au ho , e.g. Meleck
(2013); Melecký and S aníčko á (2014). Fu he , DEA has p o ed especial-
ly aluable in cases whe e we ha e non-ma ke ed inpu s o ou pu s and/o
canno be de i ed o ag eed upon be ween di e en DMUs. Va ious ypes
o DEA models can be used, depending upon he p oblem a hand. Used
DEA model can be dis inguished by he scale and o ien a ion o he model.
Wi h espec o he o ien a ion o economic policy and decisions o
policymake s o achie e be e e iciency o ac i i ies, go e nmen s' p io i-
ies a e o adjus hei ou pu s a he han inpu s, he e o e an ou pu -
o ien ed (OO) DEA model, a he han an inpu -o ien ed (IO) one, is con-
enien and also used in he pape . F om his poin o iew, he e i is neces-
sa y o no e ha mos o he s udies men ioned abo e used only one com-
mon ype o DEA model — an ou pu -o ien ed model, which is conside ed
sui able o measu ing he e iciency o e i o ies in he case o links be-
ween compe i i eness and e iciency. The nex s ep is Re u ns o Scale
(RTS) es ima ion and based on RTS es ima ion and classi ica ions o coun-
ies in o RTS, hen DEA model choice will is cha ac e ized, i.e. in mos o
Equilib ium. Qua e ly Jou nal o Economics and Economic Policy, 13(2), 285–306
291
he coun ies a iable e u ns o scale (VRS) we e es ima ed and hus used
in his pape . Fo calcula ions o e iciency, i is used o ou pu -o ien ed
BCC Banke -Cha nes-Coope ) model wi h VRS. The p inciple o calcula -
ing he e iciency sco es can be explained b ie ly using he ma hema ical
o mula o he model (1) (Cook & Sei o d, 2009):
max
g
ε( ),
q
φ
= +
T + T -
e s + e s
subjec o
,
q
=
-
X
λ+ s x
,
q q
φ
=
+
Y
λ- s y
1,
=
T
eλ
,
≥
+ -
λ,s ,s 0
whe e g is he coe icien o e iciency o uni U
q
; ϕ
q
is adial a iable indi-
ca es equi ed a e o inc ease o ou pu ;
ε
is in ini esimal cons an ; e
T
λ is
con exi y condi ion; s
+
, and s
−
a e ec o s o slack a iables o inpu s and
ou pu s; λ ep esen ec o o weigh s assigned o indi idual uni s; x
q
means
ec o o inpu o uni U
q
; y
q
means ec o o ou pu o uni U
q
; X is inpu
ma ix; Y is ou pu ma ix. In OO BCC model, he coe icien o e icien
DMU equals 1, bu he coe icien o ine icien DMU is g ea e han 1.
In BCC model, he coe icien s o e icien uni s a e equal o 1. Wi h e-
spec o he selec ed DEA model and he ela ionship be ween he numbe
o uni s and he numbe o inpu s and ou pu s in esul s — a numbe o
e icien uni s can be ela i ely la ge. Due o he possibili y o e alua ed
DMUs' classi ica ion, i is used in Ande sen-Pe e sen's model (APM) o
supe -e iciency. Following OO VRS model is a dual e sion o APM (2)
(Ande sen & Pe e sen, 1993):
max
q i i
g
ε( ),
φ
+ −
= +
T T
e s + e s
subjec o
1
,
n-
ij j i iq
j
x
λs x
=
+ =

1
,
n+
kj j i q kq
j
y
λs y
φ
=
− =

1,
=
T
eλ
(1)
(2)
Equilib ium. Qua e ly Jou nal o Economics and Economic Policy, 13(2), 285–306
292
0,
q
λ
=
, , 0,
+ -
j k i
s s
λ
≥
1,2,..., , ; 1,2,..., ; 1,2,..., .
j n j q k i m
= ≠ = =
whe e x
ij
and y
j
a e i- h inpu s and - h ou pu s o DMUj; ϕ
k
is e iciency
coe icien o obse ed DMU
k
; λ
j
is he dual weigh which shows DMU
j
signi icance in he de ini ion o an inpu -ou pu mix o he hypo he ical
composi e uni , DMU
k
di ec ly compa ing wi h. The a e o he e iciency
o ine icien uni s (ϕ
k
>1) is iden ical o model (1); o uni s iden i ied as
e icien in he model (1), p o ides OO APM (2) a e o supe -e iciency
lowe han 1, i.e. ϕ
k
≤1.
Based on he men ioned in o ma ion, i is conside ed as app op ia e o
apply DEA ma hema ical echnique, which allows calcula ing he echnical
e iciency and ine iciency o using he unds o enhancing anspo ac-
cessibili y and anspo sec o as a whole in he EU Membe S a es. This
pape co e ed 27 Membe S a es o he EU d awing money om he EU
du ing he p og amming pe iod 2007–2013. Wi h he aim o analyse and
e alua e di e ences in e ms o anspo in as uc u e, he pape u ilized
da a om epo s E alua ions o he 2007–2013 p og amming pe iod: Ex
Pos E alua ion o he ERDF and CF: Key ou comes o Cohesion Policy in
2007–2013 (Eu opean Commission, 2016). The e iciency analysis is based
on da a a he coun y le el o igina ing om ex-pos e alua ion o he EU
Cohesion Policy p og ammes 2007–2013, ep esen ing he inpu and ou pu
a iables o analyse whe he he goal o os e ing g ow h in he a ge coun-
ies ha e been achie ed wi h he unds p o ided, and whe he o no mo e
esou ces gene a ed s onge g ow h e ec s in anspo accessibili y. In-
pu s ep esen wo a iables Road (in billion EUR, I1) and Rail (in billion
EUR, I2); ou pu s ep esen i e a iables km o new oads (O1), km o
new TEN oads (O2), km o econs uc ed oads (O3), km o TEN ail oads
(O4) and km o econs uc ed ail oads (O5). In Table 2, da a o 27 Mem-
be S a es (DMUs) wi h wo inpu s and i e ou pu s a e demons a ed in he
nume ical example. Wi h espec o da a a ailabili y and he need o ele-
ancy o gained esul s, da a o 23 Membe S a es come in o e iciency
analysis h ough DEA me hod, i.e. wi hou AT, DK and LU wi h ze o al-
ues o indica o s, and also wi hou BE only wi h he one-known alue o
indica o s. Fo o he coun ies, he alues a e a ailable o all o he indica-
o s, o some indica o s show missing da a and he e o e epo ze o alues.
In he case when he numbe o inpu s and ou pu s oge he is ela i ely
high wi h espec o a numbe o e alua ed uni s, as a esul , mos o he
e alua ed uni s will esul e icien ly, i.e. uni s beha e e icien ly. Thus, he
Equilib ium. Qua e ly Jou nal o Economics and Economic Policy, 13(2), 285–306
293
ge ing esul s a e no exp essed as ele an . The e is a ule o humb ex-
p essing he ela ionship be ween a numbe o DMUs and numbe o e i-
ciency measu es, ound by Toloo e al. (2015), ha in nea ly all o cases he
numbe o inpu s and ou pu s oge he does no exceed 6. Suppose he e a e
n DMUs consuming m inpu s o p oduce s ou pu s. A simple calcula ion
exp esses ha when m ≤ 6 and s ≤ 6, hen 3 (m + s) ≥ m × s. As a esul , in
his pape o mula (3) is applied:
3( ).
n m s
≥ +
(3)
In he pape , DMUs numbe is h ee imes highe han he sum o inpu
and ou pu s oge he , i.e. 23
≥
3 (2 + 5), 23
≥
3 (7), 23
≥
21, hus he ule
has been p o ed o he DEA applica ion in he pape . DEA F on ie so -
wa e ool o calcula ing issues o linea p og amming is applied in he
pape .
Resul s
In he i s s ep, OO BCC VRS model o e iciency should be sol ed o he
EU23 Membe S a es. In his way, e icien and ine icien coun ies can be
de e mined. In he second s ep, OO APM model o supe -e iciency should
be sol ed o all he EU23 Membe S a es. Based on he esul s o Ande -
sen-Pe e sen's model, e icien and ine icien coun ies can be de e mined
and anked. Comple e esul s o e iciency analysis o he EU23 Membe
S a es a e ep esen ed in Table 3. The pape e eals ha only 12 coun ies
a e e icien in OO BCC VRS e iciency model, and all o he 11 coun ies
a e ine icien . Ou pu o ien ed BCC VRS model o e iciency and OO
Ande sen-Pe e sen's model o supe -e iciency singled ou p oduc i e uni s
which a e e icien ; among he coun ies o his g oup he e a e: Bulga ia
(BG), Spain (ES), F ance (FR), I aly (IT), Cyp us (CY), Mal a (MT), Ne h-
e lands (NL), Poland (PL), Po ugal (PT), Romani (RO), Finland (FI) and
Sweden (SE). E icien coun ies a e highligh ed in bold in Table 3. In his
case, he e iciency bounda y is a s aigh line cu ing h ough hese DMUs.
All o he uni s a e ine icien , i.e. hey all sho o he e iciency cu e.
Ine icien coun ies a e he Czech Republic (CZ), Ge many (DE), Es onia
(EE), I eland (IE), G eece (EL), La ia (LV), Li huania (LT), Hunga y
(HU), Slo enia (SI), Slo akia (SK) and Uni ed Kingdom (UK). Ine icien
coun ies a e highligh ed in i alics in Table 3. In Table 3, he inal esul s o
OO APM model o supe -e iciency a e highligh ed by he isual app oach
in he o m o a colou me hod called a ic ligh . The ange o colou s can
Equilib ium. Qua e ly Jou nal o Economics and Economic Policy, 13(2), 285–306
300
he p oduc ion possibili y on ie , i.e. echnical e iciency o supe -
e iciency. This canno be a posi i e ac , as i shows coun ies ge ing e i-
ciency based on shi s in sou ces o compe i i eness, i.e. quan i a i e ype
o compe i i e ad an ages. The cha ac e o echnical e iciency hus
con ibu es o he quan i a i e ype o economic g ow h ha ing limi s in
sou ces and hei u iliza ion. In he amewo k o he e alua ion, i is neces-
sa y o mo e om e iciency o e ec i eness, i.e. ins ead o conduc ing
economic policy ac i i ies o hei own se ing and objec i es, bu his can-
no be done by he DEA me hod. F om he poin o iew o u u e esea ch,
i is necessa y o ely on he e alua ion o he ela ionship be ween ou pu -
ou come (e ec i eness) and no inpu -ou pu (e iciency), which he DEA
me hod e alua es. No only he econs uc ed o newly buil echnical and
anspo in as uc u e, i.e. i s ac ual o physical exis ence bu , abo e all,
he possibili ies o i s p ope use in ac i i ies gene a ing added alue o he
economy, i.e. quali a i e compe i i e ad an age, is he key o he
knowledge economy. This should be he opic o u u e esea ch, i.e. how
he ac o endowmen o he gi en economy con ibu es o i s g ow h and
how he economy can use no only i s quan i a i e bu especially quali a i e
compe i i e ad an ages. To his end, howe e , i is necessa y o ind sui a-
ble me hods used in he e alua ion o he e ec i eness o he Eu opean
S uc u al Funds o be e Eu opean S uc u al and in es men unds.
I is
necessa y o place co- inanced ac i i ies in a wide con ex , in eg a ing
Eu opean S uc u al and In es men Funds and domes ic policies also wi h
ega ds o e alua ion. The quali y and u ili y o e alua ion could be im-
p o ed u he by de eloping a mo e in eg a ed and on-going app oach o
e alua ion
Re e ences
Aiello, F., & Pupo, V. (2012). S uc u al unds and he economic di ide in I aly.
Jou nal o Policy Modeling, 34(3). doi: 10.1016/j.jpolmod.2011.10.006.
Ande sen, P., & Pe e sen, N.C. (1993). A p ocedu e o anking e icien uni s in
da a en elopmen analysis. Managemen Science, 39(10). doi: 10.1287/
mnsc.39.10.1261.
Annoni, P., & Dijks a, L. (2013). EU Regional Compe i i eness Index 2013. Lux-
embou g: Publica ion O ice o he Eu opean Union.
Bach le , J., Begg, I., Pol e a i, L., & Cha les, D. (2013). E alua ion o he main
achie emen s o Cohesion Policy p og ammes and p ojec s o e he longe
e m in 15 selec ed egions ( om 1989-1993 p og amme pe iod o he p esen ).
Final Repo o he Eu opean Commission (DG Regio) —
(2011.CE.16.B.AT.015). Glasgow: Eu opean Policies Resea ch Cen e, Uni e -
si y o S a hclyde. London: London School o Economics

Equilib ium. Qua e ly Jou nal o Economics and Economic Policy, 13(2), 285–306
301
Balce zak, A. P., Klies ik, T., S eimikiene, D., & Sm čka L. (2017). Non-
pa ame ic app oach o measu ing he e iciency o banking sec o s in Eu ope-
an Union Coun- ies. Ac a Poly echnica Hunga ica, 14(7). doi:
10.12700/APH.14.7.2017.7.
Becke , S. O., Egge , P. H., & on Eh lich, M. (2010). Going NUTS: he e ec o
EU s uc u al unds on egional pe o mance. Jou nal o Public Economics,
94(9-10). doi: 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2010.06.006.
Becke , S. O., Egge , P. H., & on Eh lich, M. (2012). Too much o a good hing?
On he g ow h e ec s o he EU's egional policy. Eu opean Economic Re iew,
56(4). doi: 10.1016/j.eu oeco e .2012.03.001.
B zako a, K., & P idalo a, K. (2016). Compa ison o in es men cos s o compa-
nies using EU s uc u al unds and in es men incen i es.
P ocedia Economics
and Finance, 39(2016). doi: 10.1016/S2212-5671(16)30283-0.
Ca dene e, M. A., & Delgado, M.C. (2015). A simula ion o impac o wi hd awal
Eu opean unds on Andalusian economy using a dynamic CGE model: 2014–
20. Economic Modelling, 45(2015). doi: 10.1016/j.econmod.2014.09.021.
Ca es, D. W., Ch is ensen, L., & Diewe , E. W. (1982). The economic heo y o
index numbe s and he measu emen o inpu , ou pu , and p oduc i i y. Econo-
me ica, 50(6). doi: 10.2307/1913388.
Cook, W. D., & Sei o d, L. M. (2009). Da a en elopmen analysis (DEA)
—
hi y
yea s on. Eu opean Jou nal o Ope a ion Resea ch, 192(1). doi:
10.1016/j.ejo .2008.01.032.
Disjk a, L., Annoni, A., & Kozo ska, K. (2011). A new egional compe i i eness
index: heo y, me hods and indings. Eu opean Commission, Regional Policy
Wo king Pape , 2/2011.
D agan, G. (2012). EU S uc u al Ins umen s key componen in imp o ing he
Romanian mac oeconomic s abili y? P ocedia Economics and Finance,
3(2012). doi: 10.1016/S2212-5671(12)00294-8.
Enguix, M. R. M., Ga cía, J. G., & Gallego, J. C. G. (2012). An impac analysis o
he Eu opean s uc u al unds on he a ia ion o he a e o employmen and
p oduc i i y in objec i e 1 egions. Eu opean Planning S udies, 20(4). doi:
10.1080/09654313.2012.665038.
EUR-Lex (1957). T ea y o Rome (EEC). Re ie ed om h p://eu -
lex.eu opa.eu/legal-con en /EN/TXT/?u i=u ise %3Axy0023 (23.02.2017).
Eu opean Commission (2016). E alua ions o he 2007–2013 p og amming pe iod:
ex pos e alua ion o he ERDF and CF: key ou comes o cohesion policy in
2007-2013. Re ie ed om h p://ec.eu opa.eu/ egional_policy/en/in o ma ion/
publica ions/e alua ions? i le=Wo k+Package+1+& hemeId=0& Objec i eId
=ALL& ypeId=4&coun yId=0&pe iodId=2& undId=0&policyId=5&language
Code=en&sea ch=1 (20.02.2017).
Fa ell, M. J. (1957). The measu emen o p oduc i i y e iciency. Jou nal o he
Royal S a is ical Socie y, 120(3). doi: 10.2307/2343100.
Ghe man, M. G. (2014). An examina ion o he Romanian s a e budge ega ding
he Eu opean unds: co- inancing p o isions. P ocedia
—
Social and Beha -
io al Sciences, 116(2014). doi: 10.1016/j.sbsp o.2014.01.770.
Equilib ium. Qua e ly Jou nal o Economics and Economic Policy, 13(2), 285–306
302
Gó niak, J. (2016). The spa ial au oco ela ion analysis o anspo accessibili y
in selec ed egions o he Eu opean Union. Compa a i e Economic Resea ch,
19(5). doi: 10.1515/ce -2016-0036.
G mano á, E., & Pukala, R. (2018). E iciency o insu ance companies in he
Czech Republic and Poland. Oeconomia Cope nicana, 9(1). doi:
10.24136/oc.2018.004.
Hapenciuc, C. V., Mo osan, A. A., & A ionesei, G. (2013). Abso p ion o
s uc u al unds in e na ional compa isons and co ela ions. P ocedia
Economics and Finance, 6(2013). doi: 10.1016/S2212-5671(13)00139-1.
Healy, A., & B is ow, G. (2013). Economic c isis and he s uc u al unds.
Re ie ed om h p://www.espon.eu/expo /si es/de aul /Documen s/P ess/
P essReleases/2013-A icle/OD-ECR2-a icle_Economic-C isis-and- he-S uc
u al-Funds.pd (22.02.2017).
Ka sa o a, I. (2013). The (low) abso p ion o EU s uc u al unds. Lib a y
B ie ing: Lib a y o he Eu opean Pa liamen , 130544REV1.
Lucian, P. (2014). Abso p ion o Eu opean unds by Romania. P ocedia
Economics and Finance, 16(2014). doi: 10.1016/S2212-5671(14)00838-7.
Melecký, L. (2017). E iciency analysis o ERDF and CF co- inanced p og ammes
ocusing on he anspo in membe s a es o he Eu opean Union. In A. P.
Balce zak, M. B. Pie zak (Eds.). P oceedings o he 9 h in e na ional
con e ence on applied economics con empo a y issues in economy:
quan i a i e me hods. To uň: Ins i u e o Economic Resea ch & Polish
Economic Socie y.
Melecký, L. (2013). Use o DEA app oach o measu ing e iciency end in old EU
membe s a es. In A. Kocou ek (Ed.). P oceedings o he 11 h in e na ional
con e ence on Libe ec Economic Fo um. Libe ec: Technical Uni e si y
Libe ec.
Melecký, L., & S aníčko á, M. (2014). Regional e iciency e alua ion by DEA
app oach: compa ison o selec ed EU15 and EU13 coun ies. In I. Hono á
(Ed.). P oceedings o he 2nd in e na ional con e ence on Eu opean
in eg a ion. Os a a: VŠB-Technical Uni e si y Os a a.
Mohl, P., & Hagen, T. (2010). Do EU s uc u al unds p omo e egional g ow h?
New e idence om a ious panel da a app oaches. Regional Science and
U ban Economics, 40(5). doi: 10.1016/j. egsciu beco.2010.03.005.
Rogalska, E. R., Pie zak, M. B., & Balce zak, A. P. (2017). Do Eu opean unds
o sus ainable g ow h policy suppo con e gence p ocess?. In T. Los e & T.
Pa elka (Eds.). The 11 h in e na ional days o s a is ics and economics. Con e -
ence p oceedings. P ague: Meland ium.
Rubini, L. (2010). The de ini ion o subsidy and s a e aid: WTO and EC in
compa a i e pe spec i e. Ox o d: Ox o d Uni e si y P ess.
S aníčko á, M. (2017). Can he implemen a ion o he Eu ope 2020 s a egy goals
be e icien ? The challenge o achie ing social equali y in he Eu opean
Union. Equilib ium. Qua e ly Jou nal o Economics and Economic Policy,
12(3). doi: 10.24136/eq. 12i3.20.
Equilib ium. Qua e ly Jou nal o Economics and Economic Policy, 13(2), 285–306
303
S aníčko á, M. (2014). Measu ing he e iciency o EU13 NUTS 2 egions based
on RCI app oach. In V. Klímo á & Ží ek, V. (Eds.). In 17 h in e na ional
colloquium on egional sciences. B no: Masa yk Uni e si y.
S aníčko á, M., & Melecký, L. (2016). Malmquis index app oach o e iciency
analysis in selec ed old and new EU membe s a es. ER-CEREI, 19(2016). doi:
10.7327/ce ei.2016.09.02.
Sucháček, J. (2013). In es men loca ion om he pe spec i e o u ban and
egional ac i i ies in he Czech Republic. In M. Čulík (Ed.). In 9 h
in e na ional scien i ic con e ence on inancial managemen o i ms and
inancial ins i u ions loca ion. Os a a: VŠB-TU Os a a.
Š eimikienė, D. (2016). Re iew o inancial suppo om EU s uc u al unds o
sus ainable ene gy in Bal ic S a es. Renewable and Sus ainable Ene gy
Re iews, 58(2016). doi: 10.1016/j. se .2015.12.306.
Ta ulescu, A., & Pa u i, A. (2014). S uc u al unds and economic c ises:
Romania’s abso p ion pa adox. P ocedia Economics and Finance, 16(2014).
doi: 10.1016/S2212-5671(14)00775-8.
Töd ling–Schönho e , H., Hamza, Ch., Resch, A., Pol e a i, L., & Bach le , J.
(2011). Impac and e ec i eness o he s uc u al unds and EU policies aimed
a SMEs in he egions. Eu opean Pa liamen , Wo king S udy
IP/B/REGI/FWC/2010-002/LOT1/C1/SC1.
Toloo, M., Ba a , M., & Masoumzadeh, A. (2015). Selec i e measu es in da a
en elopmen analysis. Annals o Ope a ions Resea ch, 226(1). doi:
10.1007/s10479-014-1714-3.
Acknowledgemen s
The pape is suppo ed by he Facul y o Economics, VŠB-TUO (p ojec no.
IP1003311) and he SGS p ojec (SP2017/111), and he Ope a ional P og amme
Educa ion o Compe i i eness – P ojec No. CZ.1.07/2.3.00/20.0296.
Annex
Table 1. Li e a u e e iew o he EU unds e alua ion
Ti le o he pape Au ho (s) Yea
Compa ison o in es men cos s o companies using EU
S uc u al Funds and in es men incen i es B zako a, K. & P idalo a, K. 2016
Re iew o inancial suppo om EU S uc u al Funds o
sus ainable ene gy in he Bal ic S a es Š eimikienė, D. 2016
S uc u al Funds And Economic C ises: Romania’s
Abso p ion Pa adox Ta ulescu, A. & Pa u i, A. 2014
A simula ion o he impac o wi hd awal Eu opean unds on
Andalusian economy using a dynamic CGE model: 2014–20 Ca dene e, M.A. & Delgado,
M.C. 2014
Abso p ion o Eu opean Funds by Romania Lucian, P. 2014
An Examina ion o he Romanian S a e Budge Rega ding
he Eu opean Funds: Co-Financing P o isions Ghe man, M.G. 2013
Abso p ion o S uc u al Funds In e na ional Compa isons
and Co ela ions Hapenciuc, C.V., Mo osan, A.A.
& A ionesei, G. 2013
An Impac Analysis o he Eu opean S uc u al Funds on he
Va ia ion o he Ra e o Employmen and P oduc i i y in
Objec i e 1 Regions
Enguix, M.R.M., Ga cía, J.G. &
Gallego, J.C.G. 2012
EU S uc u al Ins umen s key componen in imp o ing he
Romanian mac oeconomic s abili y? D agan, G. 2012
Too much o a good hing? On he g ow h e ec s o he EU’s
egional policy Becke , S.O., Egge , P.H. & on
Eh lich, M. 2012
S uc u al unds and he economic di ide in I aly Aiello, F. & Pupo, V. 2011
Do EU s uc u al unds p omo e egional g ow h? New
e idence om a ious panel da a app oaches Mohl, P., & Hagen, T. 2010
Going NUTS: The e ec o EU S uc u al Funds on egional
pe o mance Becke , S.O., Egge , P.H. & on
Eh lich, M. 2010
Table 2. Nume ical alues o inpu (I) and ou pu (O) indica o s o DEA analysis:
ini ial alues
Coun y I1 I2 O1 O2 O3 O4 O5
BE 14.210
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
BG 1078.845
341.391
175.000
173.000
1040.480
234.000
234.000
CZ 3796.887
2900.935
311.770
110.750
2017.880
294.000
369.060
DK 0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
DE 2082.771
766.349
293.520
100.700
769.900
158.800
248.600
EE 290.406
185.308
69.740
0.000
205.000
0.000
0.000
IE 63.500
16.750
0.000
0.000
33.000
0.000
0.000
EL 4602.952
530.576
144.400
144.400
2645.900
11.400
60.300
ES 2296.862
4139.081
509.750
124.720
2458.100
0.000
1.210
FR 171.837
202.326
28.000
0.000
0.000
57.000
549.870
IT 835.378
2185.181
94.270
0.000
188.070
733.190
1034.960
CY 33.209
0.000
2.900
3.000
3.420
0.000
0.000
LV 483.041
256.300
0.000
0.000
636.570
0.000
0.000
LT 681.253
580.370
0.000
0.000
1473.440
0.000
0.000
LU 0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
Table 2. Con inued
Coun y I1 I2 O1 O2 O3 O4 O5
HU 3276.672
1720.107
501.980
135.200
2521.170
20.000
216.000
MT 103.432
0.000
0.000
0.000
13.290
0.000
0.000
NL 8.450
0.424
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
AT 0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
PL 15910.620
5479.094
1886.270
1056.010
7216.230
123.650
482.060
PT 813.206
375.641
300.410
138.220
2996.660
47.550
385.500
RO 3377.417
1692.047
367.900
313.600
1892.820
21.800
122.260
SI 404.809
434.568
59.980
52.420
10.650
89.460
89.460
SK 1888.527
1028.793
79.500
40.570
1625.690
64.310
64.310
FI 14.776
10.198
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
SE 9.272
11.605
36.000
0.000
14.000
0.000
81.000
UK 253.055
65.432
13.000
7.000
11.000
2.000
2.000
No e: I-1: Road (mld. EUR), I-2: Rail (mld. EUR), O-1: km o new oads,
O-2: km o new
TEN oads, O-3: km o econs uc ed oads, O-4: km o TEN ail oads, O-5: km o
econs uc ed ail oads
Sou ce: own elabo a ion based on Eu opean Commission (2016).
Table 3. Rela i e he EU coun ies' DEA e iciency
DMU E iciency model Supe -e iciency model
Final o de based on esul s
o supe -e iciency model
EU OO BCC VRS OO APM VRS
Rank o coun ies
No. EU
OO APM VRS
BG 1.000 0.347
1 FI 0.007
CZ 1.267 1.267
2 SE 0.008
DE 1.143 1.143
3 NL 0.015
EE 1.842 1.842
4 CY
0.214
IE 4.112 4.112
5 PL 0.223
EL 1.159 1.159
6 IT 0.254
ES 1.000 0.895
7 MT
0.257
FR 1.000 0.335
8 FR 0.335
IT 1.000 0.254
9 PT 0.345
CY 1.000 0.214
10 BG
0.347
LV 2.783 2.783
11 ES 0.895
LT 1.702 1.702
12 RO
0.988
HU 1.131 1.131
13 HU
1.131
MT 1.000 0.257
14 DE 1.143
NL 1.000 0.015
15 SI 1.148
PL 1.000 0.223
16 EL 1.159
PT 1.000 0.345
17 CZ 1.267
RO 1.000 0.988
18 LT 1.702
SI 1.148 1.148
19 EE 1.842
SK 1.860 1.860
20 SK 1.860
FI 1.000 0.007
21 LV 2.783
SE 1.000 0.008
22 IE 4.112
UK 4.214 4.214
23 UK
4.214

Table 4. Nume ical alues o inpu (I) and ou pu (O) indica o s o DEA analysis:
e icien a ge s
Coun y I1 I2 O1 O2 O3 O4 O5
BG 1078.845
341.391
175.000
173.000
1040.480
234.000
234.000
CZ 3796.887
2199.226
519.539
256.480
2557.546
372.628
698.245
DE 2082.771
766.349
335.564
223.901
2049.805
181.547
313.335
EE 290.406
138.908
128.464
48.335
1057.030
16.628
187.483
IE 63.500
16.750
15.600
8.477
135.700
2.111
17.113
EL 1282.721
530.576
345.060
167.330
3066.051
55.554
383.837
ES 2296.862
4139.081
509.750
124.720
2458.100
0.000
1.210
FR 171.837
202.326
28.000
0.000
0.000
57.000
549.870
IT 835.378
2185.181
94.270
0.000
188.070
733.190
1034.960
CY 33.209
0.000
2.900
3.000
3.420
0.000
0.000
LV 483.041
226.137
191.820
81.455
1771.721
28.022
260.446
LT 681.253
315.890
257.011
115.533
2507.102
39.745
335.521
HU 3276.672
1720.107
567.569
271.710
3535.631
51.334
339.480
MT 103.432
0.000
0.000
0.000
13.290
0.000
0.000
NL 8.450
0.424
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
PL 15910.622
5479.094
1886.270
1056.010
7216.230
123.650
482.060
PT 813.206
375.641
300.410
138.220
2996.660
47.550
385.500
RO 3377.417
1692.047
367.900
313.600
1892.820
21.800
122.260
SI 404.809
184.079
68.835
60.159
369.320
102.668
123.229
SK 1888.527
914.309
393.099
190.023
3023.583
119.609
455.496
FI 9.169
10.198
31.469
0.000
12.238
0.000
70.806
SE 9.272
11.605
36.000
0.000
14.000
0.000
81.000
UK 192.377
65.432
54.778
29.496
185.078
39.334
95.493
No e: I-1: Road (mld. EUR), I-2: Rail (mld. EUR), O-1: km o new oads,
O-2: km o new
TEN oads, O-3: km o econs uc ed oads, O-4: km o TEN ail oads, O-5: km o
econs uc ed ail oads
Sou ce: own elabo a ion based on Eu opean Commission (2016).