Economic and Monetary Union

Teacher(s)

Fontan Clément; Lang Dany;

Language

English

Prerequisites

The prerequisite(s) for this Teaching Unit (Unité d’enseignement – UE) for the programmes/courses that offer this Teaching Unit are specified at the end of this sheet.

Main themes

This course offers an analysis of the build-up and the functioning of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) from two distinct disciplinary perspectives: economics and political sciences. The course content is divided in two equal parts between Dany Lang (economics) and Clément Fontan (political sciences). This interdisciplinary perspective allows to shed light on both the power struggles between the Eurozone actors and the economic constraints and challenges they are facing.

Aims

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :
1	- Identify and understand the main economic concepts underlying the build-up and functioning of the  EMU - Explain the power and institutional dynamics shaping the Eurozone governance - Apply economic and political sciences concepts when analyzing contemporary EMU debates and reforms. - Understand and replicate the strategical behavior of Eurozone actors.

The contribution of this Teaching Unit to the development and command of the skills and learning outcomes of the programme(s) can be accessed at the end of this sheet, in the section entitled “Programmes/courses offering this Teaching Unit”.

Content

Economics:

• Analysis of the costs and benefits of monetary integration
• Analysis of the stages of European monetary integration.
• Analysis of the specific issues related to the functioning of EMU: centralized monetary policy combined with decentralized fiscal policies; stability and growth pact constraints; differences in economic circumstances and asymmetric shocks.

Political sciences:

• Political history of the EMU creation and the buildup of Eurozone imbalances
• Analysis of the Eurozone governance (institutions, ideas and political struggles)
• Analysis of the Eurozone crisis framing and resolution process (why the crisis was framed as a fiscal crisis, why austerity policies were chosen as the main political answer to the crisis)

During the 5 political sciences classes, students have to read the compulsory reading material (one academic article or book chapter/class) and will perform collective “roleplay” exercises in which they will replicate key events of the Eurozone creation and the Eurozone crisis. Students will have to handle a “screenplay”, which outline the main protagonists and events, one week in advance to the professor.

Evaluation methods

Written exam for both July and August exam sessions. In class oral exercises (roleplay) for the political sciences section of the course.

Faculty or entity

EURO