👉Belgium Economy Report : A Rich & Divided Country .

The economy of Belgium is a modern, capitalist economy that has capitalized on the country's central geographic location, highly developed transport network, and diversified industrial and commercial base. Belgium lies between the French, Germans, Dutch and British and trades with all of Europe. The workers are skilled. Education and health care are good with extremely good social security. And a guaranteed virtually free top-class medical care, and large unemployment benefits and an insured income in case of sick leave. Belgium ranks around position 20 in the richest countries list. According to a 2018 survey, Belgians had an estimated 262 billion euros on saving accounts. Belgium is the home of the Antwerp harbor, the second largest in Europe, the Antwerp diamond industry, and Brussels, the capital of Europe. From 1908 until 1962, Belgium occupied (and plundered) the Congo, a country the size of Western Europe, rich in natural resources. It made Belgium the second richest country in the world in that era. But also : In Belgium, taxes are high; some people pay up to 50% of their salary. People try to work around the previous point by not declaring all of their income, so they don’t show off in order not to look suspicious. Every Belgian is born with a brick in his stomach: they spend a lot of money on the houses, which are mostly larger than their foreign counterparts. For example, a normal Belgian house is considered a mansion by Spanish standards. Belgium depends on imported energy, which has become very expensive over the last 20 years. Welcome to The Atlantis Report. Belgium, or at least what is now called Belgium, was a traditional economically strong area already during the middle ages. Also, during the 19th century, Belgium was a world economic superpower. They lost quite some position in the meantime, but they still have two world-class seaports (Antwerp and Zeebrugge), solid petrochemical industry, and a highly developed services sector; besides the presence of NATO HQ and EU institutions. Belgium was the first country in continental Europe to experience the Industrial Revolution and was the most intensively industrialized country in the world throughout most of the period. Belgian industrialized rapidly over the 19th century, with a focus on iron, coal, and textile production. By 1914, Belgium had extensive rail networks, mines and factories, and a productive export sector. Belgium is in the middle of an area of the world that has been highly productive. The Agricultural Revolution expanded food production with more calories per person and greater food security. And was followed by the Industrial Revolution that centered on an area from Glasgow through Belgium and Northern France through to northern Italy and Bohemia. This allowed Belgium to create institutions that promote high median wealth and income: An educational system with world-class higher education. Homeownership. A Peaceful society that does not destroy wealth. A tax system that mitigates income and wealth inequality. The people are generally skilled and educated, healthy, and have high productivity. Belgium thus is one of the most prosperous states in the world. They are in the top 10 for the best education in the world. They have a budget deficit, which is only 2.6% of their GDP (in the U.S. deficit was 4.6 percent in 2019). They just underwent a second round of prison closures because their crime rate is so low that they just don’t need that many prisons. They are internationally renowned as expert manufacturers of high-precision equipment. Their healthcare is equal in quality to the U.S. and way cheaper in price. Belgium is part one of a group of countries that I call “the excellent six”: Belgium, The Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland. The United States should be duplicating policies from these nations. Now, to be completely accurate, Belgium is not outperforming any of the other Excellent Six except in manufacturing, and Germany is outperforming them there. But being close to the best still makes someone really good. Finland is the world leader in education, beating Belgium by a narrow margin. The Netherlands is the world leader in crime rate reduction, again beating Belgium by a narrow margin. Denmark is the world leader in clean energy. Sweden is the world leader in reducing garbage. But in each of these categories, Belgium is on the podium, even if they aren’t in the first place. I think that these countries are doing almost everything right, but I’m not about to move to any of them. I’m an American, and I love America. But I would love to see my country transform completely. If those “excellent six” were blended together, I want the U.S. to transform into that. I want Finnish education outcomes, Belgian manufacturing expertise, Dutch crime rates, Danish energy production, and Swedish garbage management. It would be amazing if the U.S. could have those things. And now here are some Belgium Cons. #1. Terrible, horrible urban planning. If there ever was a rule, it was "A Belgian has the right to build anything, anywhere, anytime." The urban planning is a disaster, and among other things, it turned the whole of Flanders into a suburban area with barely any green sites left. #2. A huge amount of taxes for small and middle-sized businesses, high taxes for people with something that looks like a decent wage. #3. Belgian roads are too crowded, complex, very dangerous, and badly maintained. Belgium has the highest death toll due to traffic accidents in Western Europe. It's a disgrace. They also like diesel, diesel cars and trucks are everywhere, and so is their soot pollution. #4. Politics: Politically, Belgium is a mess. It is a hopeless cut and paste and stick of regions and communities, regional and federal, and they are constantly bickering on who's responsible for what. Flemish feel superior to the Walloons, Walloons think the Flemish are selfish and racists. Belgium is a very complex country. For starters, Belgium isn't really one country. At least, that's how it feels. It is a federal state with three regions, Flanders, Wallonia, and Brussels. And three official languages (Dutch, French, and German). This matters, because it affects so much of the mindset, politics, and way of life. The only thing Flemings and Walloons have really in common are beer, soccer, and the royal family. The language divide is substantial and really is a heated issue. Flanders is much wealthier than Wallonia. Most regions in Flanders are wealthier, and you can notice that quite rapidly by looking around when you’re in a Flemish city. They’re just too damn beautiful! That doesn’t mean that all Walloon cities are ugly as hell, and you shouldn’t ignore Wallonia if you’re on a trip to Belgium. There are some really beautiful cities there are worth sightseeing. The thing is that the two biggest cities of Wallonia (Charleroi and Liège) are not as beautiful as the average flemish city. Now, as for the tension, it emerges from two things. Belgian History and the present economy. When Belgium was created, the official language was French and only French. Apparently, that’s because, at the time, French was the “noble language” in Europe. Probably because it was the language of the Philosophers of Enlightenments, the language of the Revolution, etc., the fact that they had to go through a revolution against The Netherlands where they speak Dutch to get their independence may have influenced the first Belgians just to ignore that language completely. In fact, Dutch was only recognized as the other official language of Belgium in 1898, which is pretty rich considering the fact that French wasn’t an official language in The Netherlands (which included Belgium) from 1815–1830. The newly formed government of Belgium in 1830 had a short memory apparently. So you can see why some Flemish feel a bit bitter towards the Walloons. The real problem, though, is the Economy. Up until World War 2, Wallonia was the economic stronghold of Belgium. But since then, Flanders adopted a more intelligent political economy and rose from there only to become one of the best economies in Europe. In the meantime, Walloon leaders (socialists) took bad decisions to prevent the Walloon industry from collapsing. Which indubitably happened. Since the economy in Flanders is stronger than the economy in Wallonia, money flowed from north to south. But the dramatic point is that it doesn’t make Wallonia rise from its industrial ashes. And that’s probably because of the political leaders south of the country are too attached to the social fight. In fact, the Socialist party holds power for 30 years. And Flanders really got the money flowing for 30 years. The south, Wallonia, has been industrial (as in heavy industry: mining and steel industry) for decades. Whereas the north, Flanders, has long time been mainly agricultural, with a number of very important cities (Antwerp, Bruges, Ghent). The main difference between the two parts is, of course, the language but linked to that the standing. Wallonia, i.e., the french-speaking part, has been linked to heavy industry and developed a worker-based predominant left-wing, socialist attitude. The north, i.e., Flanders, went from a rough farmers community to a fully developed service and trade industry. Wallonia, the Southern half of Belgium, was the area of coal mines and heavy industries, way earlier than the rest of Belgium or the Netherlands. But two things happened: Germany destroyed a lot of this, twice (World War 1 and 2), even though Belgium was supposed to be neutral. This cost a lot of damage, economically, in terms of missing workforce, infrastructure (roads, railroad), destroyed factories but also spent all the money Belgium might have had saved for a rainy day. The days of mining coal are over, and economies have moved from industry-based economies to trade and service-based economies. Funnily enough, that’s what the Netherlands are historically good at. The Flemish part of Belgium is doing great, but this has caused tension between the two halves. Meanwhile, economic reconversion is slow, and it will take a while for Wallonia to catch up. The difference between the two communities has been the Belgian cover-all. The south went from bad to worse because of their aggressive anti-capitalist vision. The heavy industry disappeared, mainly because of the anti-capitalist attitude, strikes, etc. Of the workers, and within the Belgian context, they were financially compensated by the Flemish. All in all the Walloons, and Brussels leftists, have the majority in the regional governments because the latter just promise one thing: “You don’t have to work because we will make sure the Flemish will continue to pay for your unemployment benefit.” If it wasn’t big, Belgium would not exist anymore. You have to understand that: Belgium isn’t a country, it is a tax system. Really: the only thing that is still common (besides some symbolic things like the football team) is the tax system. The day the economy of Brussels and Wallonia is at the same level as Flanders, Belgium will stop to exist. Belgium still exists, so there is still a big economic difference. Belgium is poorly run. The inability to really have a unified government increases costs and political complexity for everything. Most recently, it showed up in the discussion about terrorism policing and the Paris attackers. A rationalization of the police forces around Brussels has long been stymied because of sectarian power struggles. Not to mention a tendency to rely heavily on government jobs, contracts, and more to keep the economy afloat. Most IT systems seem to be in need of an overhaul. Many of the roads need repair (despite the make-work projects). Road signs are dilapidated. One can go on and on. It is a sign of the depth and inertia of the state that it was able to keep going for 541 days without political leadership in 2010/2011. Finally, let's not forget that Belgium has the best beers in the whole world. This was The Atlantis Report. Please Like. Share. And Subscribe. Thank You.











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