How ICT affects economic growth in the Euro area during the economic crisis

The financial and economic crisis in Europe highlighted issues related to the competitiveness of member states, as well as the importance of measuring each country's economic efficiency. Professional experts and the academic community are making efforts to develop appropriate strategies for each country to achieve sustainable growth. In the era of international competition, Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) have been studied as a source for economic growth. This current study aims to expand our understanding on how ICTs can lead to economic growth in the Eurozone, officially called the Euro area. Our research targeted a 20-year period (1996-2016) but most emphasis has been put on the period of the economic crisis (2008-2016). Growth accounting methodology has been used, alongside regression analysis and the Cobb-Douglas production function, in order to estimate the Eurozone countries' production functions. Results indicate that ICT capital is a factor of growing importance, during the economic crisis, which contributes positively to the economic growth of the Eurozone. Investments in ICT under economic crisis conditions seem to have a greater impact on development than in previous years, revealing the fundamental role of ICT in economic renaissance.