Abstract
The Eastern European countries are a high potential market for Dutch and other Western European companies. Over 400 million consumers could be reached by marketing consumer goods and investment goods, at the moment that the transition from centrally guided economies will be completed. As far as Western standards are used, infrastructure, transport markets and vehicles from the point of view of quality and quantity are insufficient. Improvement of the quality of the infrastructure can only take place by massive investments; the Eastern European countries will not be able to pay these investments. Support from the Western countries will be needed to overcome this problem and thereby develop the promising Eastern European markets.