An Analysis of the Performance of European Union Countries in the Light of Europe 2020 Strategy Indicators

In this paper, an analysis of the Europe 2020 strategy indicators has been carried out. The strategy defined three priorities for European countries: Smart, Inclusive and Sustainable growth. These goals (developing an economy based on knowledge and innovation, fostering high employment levels, and promoting a more resource-efficient and greener economy) were measured by eight headline indicators, related to employment, research and innovation, renewables and energy, education and poverty. For each indicator, a target has been set, and the eight indicators are subject to regular statistical monitoring and reporting. Europe 2020 is perhaps not a complete set of indicators for measuring the progress of societies and the quality of life of their citizens, but it is a very important recognition of European institutions that GDP alone is not enough and that it must necessarily be integrated with measures that take into account equity and sustainability. The paper analyses the trends of the Europe 2020 indicators, considering the target reached or not, synthesizing the results using an Alkire-Foster method and clustering the 27 European countries, in order to highlight convergence processes among the Member States (MSs) in the ten years taken into account by the Strategy. After almost10 years, the EU has not reached most of the targets set in 2010, and many MSs are well behind schedule.