SITE receives Swedish Institute funding to strengthen the FREE Network
The Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics (SITE) at the Stockholm School of Economics has received funding from the Swedish Institute for a project strengthening economic analysis and policy expertise related to future EU accession. The project will support research cooperation, policy analysis, and knowledge exchange across the region.
The project “The FREE Network – Building analytical competence for future EU accession” will run from September 2025 through August 2027. It aims to strengthen participating research institutions’ capacity to analyze reforms needed for future EU membership and provide decision-makers with credible, research-based policy advice.
“EU accession is a demanding process that requires both strong institutions and access to credible, independent analysis. This funding gives us an important opportunity to strengthen cooperation between researchers across the region and bring research-based insights into the policy debate,” says Anders Olofsgård, Deputy Director of SITE.
Research and policy expertise across borders
The funding will support research seminars, conferences, policy analysis, and collaboration between institutions in the FREE Network across Eastern Europe and the Caucasus. An important part of the project is knowledge exchange between researchers in countries aspiring to EU membership and colleagues in Poland and Latvia who can contribute perspectives from their countries’ accession experiences.
The project will also support the publication of FREE Policy Briefs, which translate academic research into accessible analysis for policymakers, businesses, researchers, and other stakeholders, with a particular focus on the EU accession process.
Contact
Anders Olofsgård
Deputy Director, Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics (SITE); Associate Professor, Stockholm School of Economics
Email: Anders.Olofsgård@hhs.se
