Eastern European countries have generally skilled workforces with skills needed to
build the Information Economy. Against this background the introduction of
information technology, which is the backbone of e-business, presents the potential to
leapfrog stages of transition and convergence to the new knowledge driven economy.
Nonetheless, even in this domain, which is of paramount importance for the transition
to the new knowledge-driven economy, the challenges confronted by Eastern
European countries should not be underestimated, as it is accurately captured by the
quote above.