ABSTRACT
There is no doubt that during the past two years, interest in reform has revived on the Soviet economic scene. True, since the last major package of measures in the summer of 1979, no comprehensive reform project has been adopted, yet all signs indicate that one is in preparation. This year or next, therefore, revisions in planning, management, and the economic mechanism are likely to be decided on—modelled on the experiment currently under way in Soviet industry—and we can expect them to be continued during the twelfth five-year plan. The new secretary general, Gorbachev, outlined the importance of such measures: "Whatever question we examine, from whatever direction we approach the economy, it always ultimately boils down to the necessity of serious improvement in management and the overall economic mechanism." 1 At the same time the intensity of the reform discussion has increased and it has reached a breadth not seen for a long time.
