Has Twenty Years of Slovenia’s EU Membership Boosted Competitiveness and Foreign Direct Investments?

This article provides an overview of Slovenia’s competitiveness following 20 years of EU membership, focusing on foreign direct investment and participation in global value chains (GVCs). Although the first decade of European integration further boosted liberalization, competition, trade, and investment, leading to higher productivity and innovation, the second decade brought only modest progress in Slovenian competitiveness and FDI dynamics. The modest influence on EU policymaking, slow progress on improving the quality of domestic institutions, and delayed economic reforms (related to labour markets, e-administration, and taxes) made the current Slovenian business environment less attractive (as substantiated by Foreign Direct Investments data), with the initial expectations pinned on EU membership remaining unfulfilled. However, the strengthened trade and investment relations developed over the course of two decades of integration have ensured continuous and strong participation in GVCs, despite the disruptions brought on by recent crises.