Cities and Regions in the New Learning Economy

Abstract

The process of transforming the industrial economy into a society largely based on the production and dissemination of information and knowledge has widespread implications for cities and regions as well as organisations and individuals. And while the economy is increasingly global, the differences in economic development between cities and regions will not necessarily disappear. Indeed, the diversity in knowledge-based economic development reflects the complex interaction between global and local contexts as well as policies for increased decentralisation.Do regions and cities play new roles in terms of governance and intervention in order to promote innovation productivity and economic performance at the local level? What is the relationship between learning and social cohesion? A new OECD publication, Cities and Regions in the New Learning Economy, examines such questions by analysing e.g. the correlation between primary, secondary and tertiary education levels and GDP per capita in 180 regions of the European Union. While tertiary education remains important, secondary education appears as the most important for regional economic performance. The former is clearly essential in terms of innovations, but the latter represents the intermediary skills, which are also crucial to industrial know-how and learning-by-doing. Moreover, the fact that university students and labour are mobile blurs the correlation between higher education and regional economic development.Although the experiences presented provide valuable insights, it should be stressed that high levels of individual learning in itself does not contribute to economic growth before it has been applied to the production of goods and services. The extent to which individuals and organisations absorb and apply learning and innovations will determine their competitiveness in the learning economy.The final chapter presents ten policy principles for regional and urban policy makers for helping their region or city to improve its economic performance in the new learning economy through the development of innovation-intensive activities. (Less)