Abstract
Culture is one of the main tools for developing regions and reducing regional disparities. It is a significant job creator; it participates in social cohesion representing a catalyst for economic growth. In practice, when boosting the potential of cultural and creative industries, we encounter an insufficiently developed approach to evaluating the initial conditions for the allocation of financial resources for its development. This paper’s objective is to identify, map, and analyse spatial concentration of cultural institutions in Slovakia. The intention of the analysis was the identification of regions and districts with the potential for full use of cultural capital as a tool for sustainable regional development as well as the setting of cultural policy. The cluster analysis pointed out significant differences in the representation of cultural institutions in individual regions and districts of Slovakia. The regions with the most desirable results (e.g., Bratislava, Trnava, or Nitra) have some common characteristics linked to the local context, such as historical development, good infrastructure, concentration of educational institutions. The results also confirmed the assumption that within the regions, cultural institutions will be concentrated in larger district cities, specifically in the case of Bratislava even inside the city. From the cluster analysis it is possible to observe a “belt of districts” of Southern, Central, and Eastern Slovakia, which do not have sufficient cultural infrastructure. Since the process of shaping the supportive policy for cultural industries is now ongoing in Slovakia, we consider mapping the situation as one of the key elements in the policy-making process.
Highlights
In recent years, in Slovakia, but throughout the European Union, there has been a revival of interest in culture
The intention was to create a model of spatial concentration, on the basis of which we can support the economic potential of culture, namely specific cultural institutions in a given region or district
The most favourable result was achieved by Clusters 4 (Nitra Region, Trenčín Region, Trnava Region) and 3 (Košice Region)
Summary
In Slovakia, but throughout the European Union, there has been a revival of interest in culture. Culture is one of the main tools for developing regions and reducing regional disparities. It is a creator of new jobs; it participates in social cohesion and is a catalyst for economic growth. An inclusive approach to culture is increasingly being used. Its economisation is a consequence of the requirement to use the full potential of culture in creating capital. With this approach, the question of the negative consequences of commoditising culture comes to the fore. Discovering the potential of cultural products and services in the last twenty years has attracted the attention of politicians and economists. The share of these sectors in GDP or employment is still very low compared to other industries
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