23
Content
3Mission and vision of Itinera
4
Foreword by the President
6Foreword by the CEO
8
Board
9 Financial Partners
10
Itinera 2019 in figures
12
Books and reports
21 Itinera Talks Podcast
22 Press & Social media
28 Events
32
Impact
37
Team
43Contact
Mission and vision
Our mission is the advancement of good governance by Belgian authorities, in order to ensure prosperity for the next generations
This mission was formulated in 2006, when entrepreneurs and families inspired the start of an independent think tank that works for the common good and with a long-term perspective.
The basic idea is to make scientific knowledge available for decision makers in the form of qualitative and independent research reports that translate the relevant facts and figures into concrete recommendations for better policies, for the benefit of society as a whole.
In order to be effective, the focus is on major societal issues that are relevant for citizens and Belgian authorities, and for value creation in the Belgian economy:• Creation of prosperity: growth, entrepreneurship and enterprises;• Good Governance: government, taxation and budgeting;• Democratic inclusion: education, employment, protection, integration
of migrants.
The modus operandi is to design pathways from expertise to impact. We work with a highly qualified team of recognised experts from across Belgium and abroad. Itinera generates books and reports that appear on our website, in the media, at public debates, events and activities. Itinera fellows participate in an intensive manner in the societal debates. Itinera is a think tank and a do tank. It makes the results of its studies known to the outside world, tests proposals and recommendations with all societal stakeholders, and is in continuous dialogue with all actors and social forces that are active in policymaking, administration and civil society.
The vision of itinera rests on three values.Itinera starts from the dominant role and responsibility of entrepreneurs and enterprises in the value creation in society. We need robust value creation for a sustainable welfare state, and this requires solid economic activity.Itinera pleads for an inclusive society that cares for all people, and in which people are also willing to contribute to the public good in accordance with their talents and possibilities, with a perspective on the role of all the actors in society: authorities, enterprises and markets, civil society and individual persons.Itinera stresses each and everyone’s role as a good citizen in society, implying duties and responsibilities.
2 | CONTENT MISSION AND VISION | 3
Belgium must, again, find the way forward. Other countries started performing better, whilst Belgium is complacent and stalls. Belgium needs a policy-reboot. Such priorities demand results from political leaders that need to refocus on the longer term and to reprioritize the common good and the longer view. Our society will need more economic growth in order to finance the sustainability of the welfare state that works for all, and to re-invent an economic and social system that will be able to tackle the major issues that are now on the agenda.
It is with pride that I present the Annual Report of Itinera in 2019. It shows the dedication of the team and its financial partners to this long term-perspective for the next generation and enables the actual and future authorities to deliver a better job in challenging times.
Bart Verhaeghechairman of the itinera institute
Foreword BART
Entrepreneurs are well aware that they need to invest if they want to see the results they strive for. They see the longer term-perspective, and care about the welfare of the next generation. Welfare rests on the creation of value by sound entrepreneurial initiative in concordance with good governance by authorities.
This explains our dedication to Itinera, the independent think tank that our financial partners facilitate since 2006. Itinera’s remit is to make top-notch analyses of the facts and figures, with scientific rigor, and to translate these in recommendations for better governance. Since 2006, Itinera is a recognised provider of high-quality analyses and insights, and the political world and civil society is open to its suggestions and pathways. Itinera delivers evidence-based opinions on almost all items that require attention if we want to ensure welfare to our children and grandchildren.
BART VERHAEGHE
Belgium must, again, find the way forward. Belgium needs a policyreboot.
Priorities demand results from political leaders that need to refocus on the longer term.
4 | FOREWORD BART FOREWORD BART | 5
The Belgian welfare state is unstable, since it needs higher economic growth for its funding, and a higher employment rate than we have. We don’t lack the insight, we lack the political cold-bloodedness and courage to tackle these issues, and to quit the mediocrity of our performance.
The Itinera-team, fellows and visiting fellows, will continue to feed the public debate with expertise and vision, in order to ensure the sustainability of the welfare state that works for all. That is what the Government Manifestos 2019-2024 of federal and regional authorities must translate. We don’t need new elections that focus on politics, we do need government manifesto’s that focus on policy.
Leo Neels, managing director of the itinera institute
Foreword LEO
Elections are seen as a symbol of democratic states, but the 2019 elections did rest on campaign rhetoric that did not end at election day. Unfortunately, we see that Belgium did not have a federal government with full authority during almost 1/3d of the period since 2010. This is unacceptable. Politicians are elected to take the lead and they must take their responsibility: good governance presupposes governance.
The inconvenient truth is that Belgium is performing well below its potential. In indexes that aggregate a broad number of indicators, we find ourselves lagging behind in comparison with neighbouring countries. We hold the 27th place in the IMD-Competitiveness Index, with Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Denmark ranking 4th, 6th and 8th. The poor qualification of Belgium is unacceptable: there is no objective reason why Belgium would not be able to find a place near Switzerland, the Netherlands or Denmark.
The secret of the outperforming countries is: good governance. Good governance demands long term vision, expertise and courage, the more so in disruptive times, when political decision making is a difficult job, as the definition of the common good needs to be done in a climate of disorientation, selfishness and short-termism.
Belgium is sliding down while other countries are actively reforming and improving. Belgium has now to move ahead robustly in order to prevent that we tumble down further. Belgium must formulate the ambition to guarantee the level of prosperity of its elder generation to its children and grandchildren. It is the responsibility of the leaders that we elected to deliver.
LEO NEELS
The Belgian welfare state is unstable, since it needs higher
economic growth for its funding, and a higher employment rate
than we have. We don’t lack the insight, we lack the political cold-bloodedness and courage
to tackle these issues.
6 | FOREWORD LEO FOREWORD LEO | 7
Financial Partners
The operation of Itinera is exclusively enabled by financial contributions from companies, entrepreneurs and families. These financial partners endorse the objectives and values of Itinera. They guarantee the complete intellectual independence of Itinera. Some of our partners preferred not to be listed publicly, and we respect their decision.
Board
PRESIDENT: BART VERHAEGHE
BERNARD DELVAUX
GAETAN HANNECART
WOUTER DE GEEST
LEO NEELSNICOLAS SAVERYS
Ackermans & van Haaren
Ageas
Ag Insurance
Axa
Baltisse
BASF
Carmeuse
Capital@work
Cordeel
Delcrinvest
Denys
Diepensteyn
P. Drion
Exmar
Federale Verzekeringen
Fimaco
Finn
Group M.A.M.
Inhu
Janssen Pharmaceutica
Koinon
Lakesprings
La Lorraine
Latexco
LHH
Locks
Maselis
Matexi
PSE Belgium
Saffelberg Investments
Stichting Libeert
Soudal
Van Breda Risk & Benefits
VPK Group
VT-Invest
Waterland
Xylos
Zebrastraat
Zeb
8 | BOARD FINANCIAL PARTNERS | 9
14.860 Number of subscribers
45Sent newsletters
36.884 Number of visitors website
14Number of books and reports
89 Number of opinions
62 Number of lectures
Itinera 2019 in figures
10 | ITINERA 2019 IN FIGURES ITINERA 2019 IN FIGURES | 11
Yellow Vests, globalisation and technology
Many European countries currently have historically high employment and low unemployment. 2017 and 2018 were certainly not bad years for the European economy. The actions of the ‘Yellow Vests’, however, make it clear that the link between employment and prosperity is under pressure.
A tax shift with lower taxes for the lowest incomes is essential. Those earning only 67% of the average income today face an average tax burden of 37.6% in the European Union. This percentage is surprisingly high because some of these workers are close to the statistical poverty line. In Belgium, however, the tax burden of 47.2% on low labour incomes is significantly higher.
Authors are Senior Fellow Johan Albrecht and Prof. Bruno Merlevede.
Private health care expenditure: the role of private health insurance
Social security is under pressure. Funding from social security contributions is no longer sufficient. Funding from general taxation is increasingly needed to finance health insurance.
It is fair to suggest that private insurance for selected healthcare expenses would be helpful to solve funding issues of public healthcare, without a negative impact on the quality of care.
Author is Visiting Fellow Piet Calcoen.
A plan for the country
Belgium is a prosperous country to live in: on average its inhabitants enjoy reasonable prosperity and happiness, there are no worrying security problems, and elections usually take place without major incidents.
Nevertheless, we must warn against complacency: Belgium scores moderately In comparison with neighbouring countries, the scores of Belgium are very moderate. Other countries are growing faster and have a more positive attitude towards entrepreneurial initiative, our education has lost its top position, and the public administration could be more efficient and perform better.
Belgium has very great potential to do better.
The book ‘A plan for the country’ makes the analysis and brings together puzzle pieces of the solution. It recommends to look differently at labour, education, health and enterprise policies. The book presents a bold and ambitious plan instead of complacency and standstill. The authors call for a proactive and responsible stance of all citizens that prepare their vote in elections or engage themselves in politics.
Authors are General Director Leo Neels, Visiting Fellow Marc De Vos, Chief Economist Ivan Van de Cloot, Senior Fellow Johan Albrecht, Senior Fellow Jean Hindriks, Fellow Simon Ghiotto, Visiting Fellow Paul Becue and Visiting Fellow Cind Du Bois.
Books and reports
12 | BOOKS AND REPORTS BOOKS AND REPORTS | 13
Energy transition: solution to what problem?
The current implementation of the energy transition has not yet led to a break in the trend. The global fossil fuel system continues to grow and all reports conclude that the Paris objectives are very difficult to achieve. A proper policy response is based on a strong vision of liveable cities and liveable regions in 2050. Which infrastructure offers maximum quality of life for the rapidly changing population? How should public transport evolve to support this vision? What is a smart phase-out of fossil infrastructure and technologies? What levers can governments use to mobilise dormant capital to invest in a better quality of life for everyone? Only a policy that answers these questions can make the energy transition a real success story.
Author is Senior Fellow Johan Albrecht.
Stewardship of family enterprises: their value to society
Across the world, the greater part of economic value is produced by family-owned businesses. The Belgian chapter of the Family Buysiness Network states that family firms make up 77% of companies with employed personnel – 55% of those employing more than 200 – representing 45% of total employment in Belgium. Together they are responsible for 33% of Belgian GDP.
Family businesses are responsible for most of the employment and value creation in Belgium. They are all too often equated with SMEs, but family businesses can range from one-man businesses to multinationals.
Authors are Visiting Fellows Karel Volckaert and Michele Cincera.
Activation 2.0: defrost the iceberg
When we compare the Belgian labour market statistics with the EU-28 average, we see that Belgium has a high proportion of inactive people. Unlike the unemployed, who also do not have a job, inactive people are not looking for a job. Even Flanders, with 22.9%, has a percentage of inactive people within the 20-64 age group that is higher than the EU-28 average. Stijn Baert compares this to an iceberg. Historically, policy focuses very much on the tip of the labour reserve, i.e. the unemployed, but the much larger labour reserve below the water line receives much less attention.
Author is Visiting Fellow Stijn Baert.
Guidelines for more work and less poverty: social protection in times of labour diversity
he Belgian labour system is lagging far behind developments that have been going on for decades now. Whilst many other countries have fundamentally reviewed their labour market and social security regulations, Belgium did not take action.
Belgian labour regulation is obsolete, as it continues to be based on old-fashioned and foregone schemes of one economically active person per household.
Author is Visiting Fellow Ive Marx.
14 | BOOKS AND REPORTS BOOKS AND REPORTS | 15
The financing of the European budget: who pays?
Since the creation of the E.C.S.C. (European Coal and Steel Community) in 1951, mechanisms have been put in place between Member States to finance the relevant common budget.
The report analyses the contribution of the various Member States to the budget of the European Union, in comparison with their fiscal capacity. The UK managed to obtain a discount of 5 billion euro on their own contribution to the European Union treasury. This amount will be paid by the other Member States, but each of 4 richer countries of the EU – Germany, the Netherlands, Austria and Sweden – pay 25 % of the difference. The UK still contributed 17.5 billion euro to the 2019 EU budget, or 12.7 % of the income. Unless savings would be made in the European budget, it is expected that richer Member States will have to contribute significantly more to the EU budget. For Belgium, the difference could be around 500 million euro per year.
Author is Visiting Fellow Herman Matthijs.
The budget and the cost of the European Parliament
The financing of the European Parliament is a part of the general budget of the European Union. The own income and all the expenditures of the European Parliament are an integrated part of the general budget of the Union.
This report examines the following items in further detail:• how has the appropriation for the European Parliament evolved
since 2003?• which costs are paid from the EP budget?• is it possible to compare the costs of the European Parliament
to those of other Parliaments?• how did the cost per MEP evolve?
Author is Visiting Fellow Herman Matthijs.
Public administration in Brussels
Brussels looks like a pressure cooker: the pressure is increasing. Is government policy up to the challenges? In an analysis partly based on interviews with officials, the authors, Prof. Jean Hindriks and Joël Van Cauter, take stock and propose lines of action and concrete measures.
On the basis of an analysis of the internal tensions within Brussels government policy and building on the work of the Itinera Institute on the topic of good governance, combined with extensive discussions with the people on the ground, we draw up an action plan for Brussels based on the integration of information systems and the development of a culture of
public service aimed at the citizens. More concrete measures include the generalisation of performance contracts, the strengthening of autonomy and the tightening up of assessment, the reduction of the number of actors, the testing and exchange of good practices, better training and the relaxation of guidance for workers.
Authors are Senior Fellow Jean Hindriks and fellow Joël Van Cauter.
16 | BOOKS AND REPORTS BOOKS AND REPORTS | 17
Belgium: facts and figures 2019
Itinera publishes a selection of international indexes that are published by institutions such as the World Bank, the World Economic Forum or the OECD, ranking the performance of countries in various fields. They quantify the performance of governments on an evidence-based basis. The inconvenient truth is that Belgium is not catalogued as a top notch-country: we are performing well below our potential. In indexes that aggregate a broad number of indicators, we find ourselves lagging behind in comparison with neighbouring countries.
Authors are CEO Leo Neels and Fellow Simon Ghiotto.
Pension account as an alternative to pension with points
The pension account can be an alternative to the pension with points. The concept of an individual pension account in euros instead of points is explained in this report. A pension account in euros is opened for each member. That account is supplemented each active year of work by a theoretical pension equal to that year’s individual salary (capped), multiplied by a yearly fixed accrual rate. This new entitlement in euros comes on top of what has already been accumulated and is revalued.
Authors are Senior Fellow Jean Hindriks and Pierre Devolder (UCL).
Iceberg or starry sky? Beyond the tightness of the labour market
“The low unemployment rate in Flanders forces us to broaden the activation policy to encompass, on the one hand, persons receiving benefits in other social security or assistance systems, and on the other hand persons who are inactive. In addition, we need to redirect and retrain employees in shrinking professions or companies more quickly to bottleneck occupations. This will only succeed if we dare to reform the existing institutional arrangements.”
That’s what Fons Leroy, former head of the Flemish employment service VDAB, says in the vision ‘Iceberg or starry sky? Beyond the tightness of the labour market’. “Increasing the employment rate is the main political challenge facing the new Flemish and federal governments. But employers and the employment service also play an important role.”
Author is Fons Leroy, former Director General VDAB.
What are difficult jobs?
The direct approach of working conditions was the path followed by the Michel I government. The social partners had defined four criteria: heavy physical work, strenuous work organisation (shift work, night work), increased safety risks, and mental and emotional strain. It was determined that if the occupation met one (two or three, respectively) of these criteria, the length of service required for early retirement would be reduced by 5% (10% and 15% respectively). This reform has reached an impasse.
In our opinion, this approach is inadequate and leads to endless discussions about the relative weight of the different criteria.
Authors are Senior Fellow Jean Hindriks and Arno Baurin (UCL).
18 | BOOKS AND REPORTS BOOKS AND REPORTS | 19
The learning account under the microscope
In our open knowledge economy, knowledge and skills are more important than ever. Moreover, the knowledge and skills that will be productive in the next decades are changing faster than ever. Our employment rate must increase drastically in order to continue to finance the welfare state.
The learning account is a personal backpack of entitlements to education, training & personal development, and is part of a broader career account. Every citizen automatically opens a learning account when he or she enters the labour market, and retains it, even in the event of a change of employer, sector or status. Variations make it possible to meet specific needs.
Author is Fellow Simon Ghiotto.
Only pleasant work makes population ageing affordable
Only a small proportion of current employees really enjoy working. According to Gallup, barely 10% of Belgian employees are committed and enthusiastic. 73% of employees are indifferent, and the remaining 17% are downright obstructive.
The current population of workers will not work longer and harder on their own will. Moreover, the obstructive employees should leave the workplace as soon as possible. The committed and indifferent employees will only work longer and harder if there is a strong financial incentive to do so. This in turn will increase labour costs, price levels, benefits and therefore also the cost of ageing. Moreover, there is a risk that the limited enthusiasm will melt away further if the invitation to work longer is not sufficiently compensated.
Author is Senior Fellow Johan Albrecht.
Itinera Talks Podcast
Itinera Talks is the biweekly podcast of Itinera. Host Simon Ghiotto and Itinera fellows analyze the most important social and political challenges. The podcast can be found on Anchor, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, RadioPublic and more.
Podcasts broadcasted in 2019
• Itinera Talks #1: Leo Neels on ‘Een Plan voor het Land’
• Itinera Talks #1.2: Leo Neels on ‘Un projet pour la Belgique’
• Itinera Talks #2: Marc De Vos on the paradoxes of the Belgian labor market
• Itinera Talks #3: Jean Hindriks et Joël Van Cauter on public management
• Itinera Talks #4: Ivan Van de Cloot on Belgian government formation
• Itinera Talks #5: Désirée Vandenberghe on prevention in health care
• Itinera Talks #6: Johan Albrecht on energy transition
• Itinera Talks #7: Jean Hindriks on education
• Itinera Talks #8: Ivan Van de Cloot on the Flemish agreement
• Itinera Talks #9: Jean Hindriks et Joël Van Cauter on the Walloon and Brussels general policy declarations
20 | BOOKS AND REPORTS ITINERA TALKS PODCAST | 21
Press & Social media
22 | PRESS & SOCIAL MEDIA PRESS & SOCIAL MEDIA | 23
24 | PRESS & SOCIAL MEDIA PRESS & SOCIAL MEDIA | 25
Press & Social media
7
Television coverage in French 11
Television coverage in Dutch
4Radio coverage
in French
2Radio coverage
in Dutch
62 Newspaper
and Magazine coverage in French
143 Newspaper
and Magazine coverage in Dutch
4 Newspaper
and Magazine coverage
in German or foreign countries
91 Online Press Coverage in
French
216 Online Press
Coverage in Dutch
6 Online Press
Coverage in German and English
5.947 Followers on
164 Number of
tweets in 2019
164 Number of
Facebook-posts in 2019
861 Followers on
795 Followers on
201 Number of
subscribers on YouTube
2.333 Number of
plays on Itinera Talks
26 | PRESS & SOCIAL MEDIA PRESS & SOCIAL MEDIA | 27
Events
15/01/2019 Launch of the report ‘Yellow vests, globalisation, and technology’Together with professor Bruno Merlevede senior fellow Johan Albrecht presents the report ‘Yellow vests, globalisation and technology’ to a group of guests.
16/01/2019 Workshop on communication by FINN Communication office FINN analyzes the communicationtools and exposure of Itinera.
17/01/2019 Newyear’s lunch On invitation of president Bart Verhaeghe fellows and visiting fellows of Itinera celebrate the new year with a lunch in Auberge Napoleon in Meise.
22/01/2019 Launch ‘Een plan voor het land’ Itinera launches the book ‘A plan for the country’ at Axa’s headquarters.
21/03/2019 Launch of the report on private health insurance Visiting fellow Piet Calcoen presents the report ‘Private expenditure for health care: the role of private health insurance’ to a group of stakeholders
26/03/2019 Launch of the report on energy transition Senior fellow Johan Albrecht presents the report ‘Energy transition: which problem does it solve?’ to a group of guests.
28/03/2019 General Assembly of Financial Partners and Potential Financial PartnersLooking back at the past Itinera year and looking at the future of Itinera with a 3-year plan. Thanking our financial partners for their unconditional support.
02/04/2019 Launch ‘Un projet pour la Belgique’ Itinera launches the book ‘A plan for the country’ at the Salons of the president of the Chambre of Representatives.
28 | EVENTS EVENTS | 29
07/05/2019 Launch of the report on family businesses Visiting fellows Karel Volckaert en Michele Cincera present the report ‘Stewardship of family enterprises: their value to society’ to the members of the Family Business Network.
04/06/2019 Launch of the reports on labour 4.0 At Bozar visiting fellows Marc De Vos, Stijn Baert and Ive Marx present their reports on labour 4.0 to a group, followed by a debate with Bernard Conter, Nico Reeskens Caroline Mancel and Fons Leroy.
02/07/2019 Launch of the report on governance in Brussels Senior fellow Jean Hindriks and fellow Joël Van Cauter present the report ‘Good governance in Brussels’ to a group of guests.
12/09/2019 Inner Circle Itinera organizes a community & network lunch at the Warande. Guests enjoy a welcome drink followed by short presentations by the fellows. President Bart Verhaeghe also welcomes the guests and invites them for a walking lunch.
13/09/2019 Summer University 25 high potentials enroll for Itinera’s summer university. They attend lectures and debate policy topics all day.
21/10/2019 FBN CEO-circle The organizing committee of FBN organizes a dinner at Itinera. The guests were introduced to the vision and objectives of Itinera.
28/11/2019 IMD-Itinera event with Arturo Bris Professor Arturo Bris, Director of the IMD World competitiveness Center compare the ranking of Belgium with other countries in the IMD Competitiveness Index during a lunch for invitees. Leo Neels and Ivan Van de Cloot present ‘A plan for the country’. In the evening the same presentations are given at De Warande for a group of IMD alumni and guests.
18/12/2019 Launch of the report on working longer Together with the autor of The Positive Sum Game, Herman Toch, senior fellow Johan Albrecht presents the report ‘Working longer and harder? With pleasure!’ to a group of guests.
30 | EVENTS EVENTS | 31
Impact
From the book ‘Schone schijn particratie wurgt democratie’ of Hendrik Vuye and Veerle Wouters.
32 | IMPACT IMPACT | 33
From the proposal for a resolution of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives, published on January 17, 2019.
34 | IMPACT IMPACT | 35
Team
LEO NEELS is general director and Boardmember of Itinera Institute since 2014. He is PhD in Law (KULeuven), teaching Media and Communications Law at Leuven and Antwerp Universities (1980-2018). He was a Member of the Bar (1975-2003), CEO of VTM (1989-1993), Chairman of the Board of Directors of NV Belga News Agency (1994-2014), CEO of of pharma.be (2003-2013), and Chairman of the Advisory Board of Vlerick Healthcare Management Centre at Vlerick Business School (2013-2018).
MARC DE VOS holds a Licentiate and Doctorate in Law (UGent), a Master in Social Law (ULB), and a Master of Laws (Harvard University). He is visiting fellow of Itinera and taught employment and labour law, European law, and the rule of law, at Ghent University, the University of Brussels, and at various international universities before he moved to Australia where he became dean at the Macquarie University in Sydney. He writes, lectures and debates on issues of labour and employment law, European integration, labour market reform, pensions, healthcare, ageing and the welfare state, both nationally and internationally, and in academic, professional and policy circles, as well as in the media. His most recent publications are on happiness, capitalism, globalisation, basic income and inequality.
IVAN VAN DE CLOOT is chief economist at the Itinera Institute. He studied economics at the University of Antwerp and was research assistant for two years in the domain of public finances. As a consultant he helped preparing the liberalisation of the gas and electricity market in Belgium. Afterwards he worked as an economist for the research department of ING/BBL for 6 years. Ivan wrote about pensions but also about the liberalisation of railway traffic, economic aspects of immigration, entrepreneurship and healthcare. As a commentator for financial and economic events, he often appears in the written and audio-visual media. He is equally Executive professor at the Universiteit Antwerpen Management School and has a column in De Tijd. Ivan Van de Cloot is for Itinera author of ‘The pension book’ and co-author of ‘The Grey gold’. In 2016 he published ‘Tax shift, why our country needs a tax reform’ and co-authored ‘De Verlichting uit evenwicht’.
Book “Een plan voor het land” in De Standaard bookstore.
36 | IMPACT TEAM | 37
MARION VAN SAN is visiting fellow. She studied sociology and criminology at the Free University of Brussels. In 1998 she graduated from the University of Amsterdam with a dissertation on violent crime among Curaçao boys. Over the years she has investigated crime, violence, prostitution and other metropolitan issues. Since 2009 she has been conducting research into radicalization and deradicalization. She is currently attached to the RISBO (Erasmus University, Rotterdam) as a senior investigator.
MICHELE CINCERA is visiting fellow. Professor of Industrial economics at the Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management – Université Libre de Bruxelles. Since 2012, he is the Director of the International Centre of Innovation, Technology and Education Studies (iCite). In 2009-2010, he was visiting the EC-JRC-IPTS as a senior scientist. His research interests embrace the quantitative assessment at the micro-level of innovative and entrepreneurial activities, their determinants and socio-economic impacts as well as the analysis of National Innovation Systems and policies supporting science, research and innovation.
PAUL BECUE is visiting fellow at the Itinera Institute. He holds degrees in law, applied economic sciences and diplomatic sciences. He first worked in the banking sector for fourteen years, and then in the credit insurance industry from July 1998, where he held various management positions. During his career, he wrote articles for various newspapers and financial and scientific journals. His books on credit insurance are regarded as reference works, and have been translated into several languages.
KRISTOF DE WITTE is visiting fellow. He’s Associate Professor at the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration from the University of Leuven and professor through the Chair ‘Effectiveness and Efficiency of Educational Innovations’ at Maastricht University. Kristof De Witte is also an affiliate member of the CESifo Network (Ludwig-Maximilians-University and Ifo Institute). At the KU Leuven he coordinates the Teacher Training Economics and has been director of the faculty’s research ‘Leuven Economics of Education Research’ (LEER). His research interests include education economics, performance measurement and school dropout. He published his work in numerous international magazines.
JOHAN ALBRECHT is a senior fellow at the Itinera Institute. He studied at the universities of Ghent and Oxford and has a PhD in environmental economics from Ghent University. He teaches courses on environmental economics and on the economics of innovation. He is the author of five books and over fourty publications in international journals and volumes. As scientific advisor, he worked for Belgian and international organisations in the fields of energy and technology policy.
JEAN HINDRIKS is a senior fellow at the Itinera Institute. He obtained his BA, MA and PhD in Economics at the University of Namur. A former lecturer in economics at the University of Exeter and at Queen Mary, University of London, he is currently professor in Economics at the Université Catholique de Louvain (UCL). He also served as co-director of Centre of Operations Research and Economics (CORE) and as director of Undergraduate Studies in Economics and Management at the UCL. A co-editor of several academic journals and a member of the International Monetary Fund’s panel of fiscal experts, he has published widely and internationally on issues of public economics and political economy. He was à member of the pension reform commission 2020-2040 and is now member of the pension academic council.
SIMON GHIOTTO is fellow at the Itinera Institute. He holds a Master in Economics with specialisation in Economic Policy from the Ghent University that included a year of study abroad in Istanbul, and a Master in Economics, specialising in Development and International Economics, from the University of Namur and the Université Catholique de Louvain-La-Neuve. Simon works on various fields within Social Policy and wrote De Staat van het Gezin/L’État de la Famille (2016) on Family Policy, which was nominated for Le Prix du Livre Politique 2016.
JOËL VAN CAUTER is fellow at the Itinera Institute. He has a degree in philosophy (ULB) and economics (UCL). His professional career in collective action involves three sectors: the political field, as a consultant in a study center or communication; the associative, the Red Cross or in cooperation; the social economy in Belgium and Asia.
38 | TEAM TEAM | 39
TINNEKE BEECKMAN is visiting fellow at the Itinera Institute. She studied Moral Sciences and Philosophy at the VUB and ULB. She attended additional courses on economics Crisis Busters: From Marx to Krugman at the University of Maastricht (Brussels branch); on globalization and democratization during Summer Schools at the London School of Economics. She has a doctorate in Moral Sciences, and worked for years as a postdoctoral re-searcher for the Fund for Scientific Research Flanders on political philosophy. In 2012 she published her book ‘Door Spinoza’s lens’ (5th edition 2015), which was awarded the Liberales prize. She gives lectures on philosophy, is a columnist with De Standaard, writes for Belgian and Dutch media. In 2015 she published her book ‘Macht en Onmacht. Een verkenning van de hedendaagse aanslag op de Verlichting’ (De Bezige Bij, in October 2015, 4th edition) and co-authored ‘De Verlichting uit evenwicht’.
KAREL VOLCKAERT is visiting fellow at the Itinera Institute. He graduated as a physicist at the University of Ghent. He then obtained a charter of Financial Risk Manager and Chartered Financial Analyst. He was a portfolio strategist and fund manager to include Bank Corluy and Econopolis and valuation expert commissioned by private investors and major consultants. He is a partner at Riverrun investors. His interest is in the functioning of financial markets and climate change.
PIET CALCOEN is visiting fellow at the Itinera Institute. He is both a doctor (UGent) and a lawyer (UAntwerpen and Yale University). He also holds a master’s degree in Philosophy (VUBrussel), and recently defended his PhD at the Erasmus University Rotterdam. Piet has been active as the medical director for DKV, a market leader in the field of private health insurance, since 2006. Prior to that, he worked for Christelijke Mutualiteiten.
SAM HAMELS is visiting fellow. He holds a master’s degree in general economics from the University of Ghent, and a master’s degree in EU studies from the same university. For his work about the future electricity market model, he received the prize for the best master thesis in the widening economic direction in 2014. As a student, he was also actively involved in the UN climate summits in Doha and Warsaw. He has been working as a PhD student in economics since 2015, and is conducting research into the future of the energy landscape. Specifically, he worked on an extensive study on the Belgian electricity landscape in 2030. He is currently also specializing in the energy consumption of individual buildings. Together with Johan Albrecht and Lennert Thomas, he is the author of ‘Energy Trilemma’.
KJELL CLARISSE is visiting fellow. Kjell is a historian and holds a Master in Management from the Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School. He founded Zerocopy, a student advertising platform that was acquired in 2014. Since then Kjell gives strategic advice to start-ups. He worked also one and a half years in Uganda for a real estate developer. He recently added a 3-month study at MIT, focusing on FinTech to its cv. His focus at Itinera is technological innovation in government.
ETIENNE DE CALLATAŸ is visiting fellow at the Itinera Institute. He studied economics at the Facultés de Namur and the London School of Economics. He is currently chief economist at Bank Degroof and Chairman of Degroof Fund Management Company (DFMC). He also is guest lecturer at the Facultés de Namur and the UCL. He has published many articles on government financing, such as ageing, social security and federalism.
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Marc De Vos Visiting fellow [email protected]
Ivan Van de Cloot Chief Economist [email protected]+32 (0)2 412 02 60 +32 (0)478 43 47 17
Simon [email protected]+32 (0)2 412 02 66+32 (0)497 85 73 07
Johan Albrecht Senior Fellow [email protected]+32 (0)2 412 02 58+32 (0)476 51 15 43
Jean Hindriks Senior Fellow [email protected]+32 (0)2 412 02 59 +32 (0)472 41 55 27
Joël Van Cauter Fellow [email protected]+32 (0)2 412 02 62+32 (0)487 51 91 49
Liesbeth Defrancq Office Manager [email protected]+32 (0)2 412 02 65 +32 (0)486 98 31 17
ContactDÉSIRÉE VANDENBERGHE is visiting fellow at the Itinera Institute. She is a PhD student in Economics at Ghent University and a She obtained a bachelor and master in Economics at the University of Ghent, for which she studied for a semester in New York. She also received a postgraduate in welfare and health management at EHSAL Management School. Her research in health economics focuses on the challenges of chronic diseases and the potential of preventive health care in an economic context. The connection between environment, health and economy is also an important focus within her research.
MATTÉO GODIN is visiting fellow at the Itinera Institute. He is an economist with a strong quantitative background. He has experiences in different work environments such as international institution (Inter-American Development Bank), academic research (University of Namur) and business federation (Walloon Business Federation). He wrote the rapport ‘Egalité des chances à l’école’ with senior fellow Jean Hindriks. He is also principal consultant at Stratec.
LIESBETH DEFRANCQ is Office Manager at the Itinera Institute. She studied Law at the VUB in Brussels and Journalism at Erasmushogeschool in Brussels. She obtained a bachelor’s degree in Law and a bachelor’s degree in Journalism. She joined the Itinera-team in October 2016. Previously, Liesbeth worked as an editor for the newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws.
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