A new interactive
Convergence Dashboard provides, for the first time, a comprehensive picture of how living standards in the six Western Balkan countries compare with those in the European Union — and estimates how long it could take for the region to converge with the EU standard of living.
The dashboard covers
Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia, allowing users to explore the region’s progress across key dimensions of economic and social development.
Rather than looking only at economic growth, the
Convergence Dashboard takes a broader approach to measuring convergence. It provides a comparative picture of the conditions people experience in the Western Balkans and tracks the gap between the region and the EU.
The interactive tool is designed to make complex data accessible and to provide policymakers, researchers, civil society and the wider public with a clearer understanding of where the Western Balkans currently stand — and what the road towards EU-level living standards could look like.
Measuring the path towards convergence
The dashboard brings together data across a range of areas that shape quality of life and long-term development. By comparing the six Western Balkan economies with EU benchmarks, it highlights both areas of progress and persistent gaps.
An important feature of the dashboard is its focus on
the time needed to close these gaps. Based on current trends, users can explore how long it could take individual countries to reach EU levels in different areas of development.
This provides a different perspective on the EU integration process: beyond accession dates and formal milestones, it asks a fundamental question —
how quickly are people in the Western Balkans catching up with living standards in the EU?
A regional initiative
The Convergence Dashboard was developed as a joint initiative involving
Think Europe and the
Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies (wiiw), together with partners from all six Western Balkan countries.
The initiative is supported by the
Open Society Foundations – Western Balkans.
By bringing together comparable data from across the region, the project aims to contribute to a better-informed discussion about the future of the Western Balkans, economic and social convergence, and the European integration process.
Explore the interactive Convergence Dashboard:
www.converge2.eu
