Although the European business environment induces important premises and assures conditions in determining economic growth and social well-being, the determinant and existent connections between the evolution of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), business demography characteristics and the European socio-economic model have been scarcely studied in recent years. The dimensions of the European socio-economic model design a very specific framework in developing business demography and assuring a favorable environment for future SME development. The main aim of the manuscript is to investigate the evolution of the European SMEs sector and the perspective of business demography evolution to converge with exigencies of the European socio-economic model. In order to argue the research objective, eight specific and representative business demography variables were employed, from 12 European Union member states (EU-MS), during 2009–2017. Further, the SMEs’ performances, determined by changing the economic functional paradigm, were assessed. For proving this, an econometric model was designed considering labor productivity as an endogenous variable. Our preliminary analysis shows considerable differences in business demography indicators and SMEs development among all five socio-economic sub-models of the main European socio-economic model, proving a tight connection between European socio-economic models and SMEs’ performance and arguing the necessity of a paradigm convergence. Within some sub-models, there is clear evidence of clustering and convergence in terms of business demography and SMEs future development.

Following the Second World War, the economic reconstruction of Europe became a central priority, exemplified by the Marshall Plan, while development in less industrialized countries gained global significance. In the 1940s and 1950s, classical development theories emerged, emphasizing capital accumulation, industrialization, and structural transformation, with the state as a key agent of change. Influential approaches included Rosenstein-Rodan’s Big Push, Nurkse’s Balanced Growth, Hirschman’s Unbalanced Growth, Lewis’s Dual-Sector Model, Prebisch’s Import Substitution Industrialization, Rostow’s Stages of Growth, and Myrdal’s Cumulative Causation and Soft state concepts. This study critically synthesizes the main concepts of these approaches, highlighting shared features such as structuralist orientation, the central role of the state, and the importance of capital and coordination, while noting their neglect of micro-level factors, limited empirical grounding, and assumption of linear growth. Implementation failed due to weak institutions, governance challenges, and regional variation. Nevertheless, enduring insights, such as coordination mechanisms, economies of scale, sectoral linkages, and dual-sector dynamics, remain relevant. The paper shows how these theories influenced later developments, including New Growth Theory, New Institutional Economics, and behavioral approaches, which integrate macro- and micro-level dynamics, and formal modeling. The offered perspective underscores the continuing relevance of classical structuralist ideas. Keywords. Development economics; Development theory; Development; History of economic thought. JEL. B25; B31; O10; O20.

The problem of youth unemployment remains of high socio-economic importance in the context of the digital transformation of the economy and the pronounced regional heterogeneity of the labor market of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Despite the relative stability of official youth unemployment rates, there are significant inter-regional differences that require a comprehensive scientific analysis. The purpose of the study is to identify and quantify the factors determining the level of youth unemployment in the regional context, as well as to substantiate the directions of its reduction, taking into account regional specifics. The article uses official statistical data from the Bureau of National Statistics of the Republic of Kazakhstan for 2020-2024 and methods of economic and statistical analysis, including dynamics analysis, correlation and regression analysis based on panel data. As a result of the conducted research, it was found that the level of economic development of the region, the economic activity of youth and the structure of education have a statistically significant impact on the level of youth unemployment. The results obtained indicate a decrease in youth unemployment in regions with a higher level of youth involvement in the labor market and in the education system. The practical significance of the research lies in the possibility of using the results obtained in the development and adjustment of regional employment promotion programs and the implementation of state youth policy. Keywords: economy, region, youth unemployment, employment, determinants, demographic factors, employment policy.

This article examines the scholarly contribution and political activity of Walt W. Rostow (1916–2003) through a historical-interpretative approach. It focuses on his stages of economic growth as an alternative to Marxist interpretations of development and as part of broader post-war debates in development economics. The analysis shows that Rostow’s stage theory, anti-communist worldview and involvement in U.S. development policy were closely related but should not be conflated, while U.S. strategy in Vietnam cannot be treated as a direct application of his theory. In retrospect, elements of Rostow’s model remain useful for interpreting post-socialist transformations and China’s development, but its explanatory power is limited by linearity and an assumption of self-sustaining growth.