Slovakia was praised earlier this week by Jean-Claude Trichet, the European Central Bank’s president, at a conference that was meant to welcome the Central European country into the euro zone. Slovakia will become the second country in East Central Europe to adopt the common currency in January 2009, following Slovenia.

The fact that the European Union gave the go-ahead for the adoption is widely seen as recognition of the fast-paced growth that the Slovak economy has experienced in the past four to five years, as well as the important political reforms that have taken place.

In his speech at the euro zone conference, Trichet spoke of the “early challenges” that Slovakia faced, which was most likely a reference to a degree of isolation that this Central European country experienced in the 1990s.

But since then, Slovakia has turned into a “real success story,” according to the Central Bank’s president. “The vitality of the country’s economy can be seen by comparing its real GDP growth with that of the euro area. Between 2000 and 2007 average economic growth in Slovakia was 5.6 per cent, significantly above the average economic growth in the euro area,” Trichet noted, pointing to the stark difference when one looks at the relative health of the Slovak economy, compared to the daunting challenges faced in Western Europe, the UK and the US.

Trichet also mentioned that Slovaks are seeing a noticeable rise in their purchasing power and real income, which suggests that the gap between East and West is closing quickly and Slovakia has now truly moved beyond its communist legacy.