The basic foundations for effective financial consumer protection are in place in Lithuania. The State Consumer Rights Protection Authority (SCRPA) has been established and its authority includes the sphere of financial services and products.
... See More + The key financial supervisory agencies are also in place and have established basic rules of market conduct for business with retail customers. In addition, Lithuania's Strategy for Consumer Protection 2007-10 has as primary objectives to: guarantee protection of consumer rights, harmonize Lithuanian laws with EU legislation related to consumer rights protection, and surveillance of market activities. In this context, EU Directives related to financial services have largely been implemented and a Consumer Credit Law is under preparation. Measures to improve consumer protection and financial literacy should be pragmatic and effective and empower consumers. The review recommends six main measures: strengthen the capacity of SCRPA to enforce key financial consumer protection laws, strengthen the effectiveness of the consumer associations, improve the quality of consumer information regarding financial services, take measures to strengthen market practices in retail financial services, improve the process for resolving consumer disputes and analyzing consumer inquiries and complaints, and focus financial education on measurable improvements in financial literacy and consumer behavior.
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The basic foundations for effective financial consumer protection are in place in Lithuania. The State Consumer Rights Protection Authority (SCRPA) has been established and its authority includes the sphere of financial services and products.
... See More + The key financial supervisory agencies are also in place and have established basic rules of market conduct for business with retail customers. In addition, Lithuania's Strategy for Consumer Protection 2007-10 has as primary objectives to: guarantee protection of consumer rights, harmonize Lithuanian laws with EU legislation related to consumer rights protection, and surveillance of market activities. In this context, EU Directives related to financial services have largely been implemented and a Consumer Credit Law is under preparation. Measures to improve consumer protection and financial literacy should be pragmatic and effective and empower consumers. The review recommends six main measures: strengthen the capacity of SCRPA to enforce key financial consumer protection laws, strengthen the effectiveness of the consumer associations, improve the quality of consumer information regarding financial services, take measures to strengthen market practices in retail financial services, improve the process for resolving consumer disputes and analyzing consumer inquiries and complaints, and focus financial education on measurable improvements in financial literacy and consumer behavior.
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Since the establishment of Lithuania's independence, the country achieved substantial progress in transforming its local governments into independent units of Government: structural reforms to prod intergovernmental relations were made in 1994 and 1997, and will continue in 2002.
... See More + Nevertheless, several issues remain, requiring particular attention from the Government. First, revenue and expenditure assignment between levels of government, and the degree of central regulation over local finance, needs to be reviewed. Local governments face fiscal constraints, for revenues are centrally collected, and distributed at centrally determined rates. And, although local governments have nominal authority over their expenditures, major items (salaries and welfare payments) are subject to Government control, resulting in local governments being faced with running arrears, or borrowing from the Government or private lenders. Although high per capita jurisdictions are required to share revenues with poorer counterparts, it is not clear that distribution mechanisms actually allocate revenues as needed. Upcoming reforms are likely to change this, but a greater change in the revenue distribution criteria, would be by funding delegated functions, but distributing according to sector-specific indicators of need, as well as budgeting financial availability. Second, financing capital investment may be improved by a greater fiscal autonomy to local governments, and mostly, by improving the quality of financial information, with reforms that include the separation of current, and capital accounts, and the adoption of accrual accounting for expenditures.
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Pre-2003 Economic or Sector Report 23716 MAY 01, 2002
Knowledge is increasingly crucial for productivity, competitiveness, and growth. While Lithuania has a well-established culture of valuing knowledge, it is using its knowledge assets-human resources, education systems, researchers and entrepreneurs, and so on-below capacity, and so forgoing opportunities to compete internationally as well as potential growth and income.
... See More + In recent years Lithuania has made progress in a few areas of the knowledge-based economy, particularly in terms of improving the economic and institutional regime and developing infrastructure for information and communications technology. But less progress has been made on improving education systems, and Lithuania has performed poorly in advancing its systems for innovation. The challenge for Lithuania is to develop new engines of growth and to diversify economic activities. Key to improving competitiveness are the systematic generation, use, and communication of knowledge throughout the economy and society-not just in high-tech sectors but also in areas such as textiles, wood processing, and agribusiness. And not just among the educated elite, but among the general population. The ability to network within and outside Lithuania, supported by Internet access, will become increasingly important to accessing and using knowledge.
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