Inclusive Regional Development Research Articles

Contribution of the Cultural and Creative Industries to Regional Development and Revitalization: A European Perspective

Cultural and Creative Industries (CCIs) have emerged as powerful drivers of regional development and revitalization in Europe in recent years. This study explores the impact of CCIs on European regions, focusing on their economic, social, and cultural contributions. Drawing on extensive literature review and empirical research, this study examines the role of CCIs in job creation, GDP growth, innovation, social cohesion, cultural identity, urban regeneration, and the revitalization of declining areas. Data were collected using questionnaires distributed to 345 key players in the Cultural and Creative Industry of Greece. The findings reveal that CCIs significantly enhance job opportunities in European regions, with 74.4% of participants acknowledging their role in reducing unemployment and underemployment. Moreover, 71.4% recognized the substantial contribution of CCIs to regional GDP, highlighting that their economic importance is comparable to traditional industries. CCIs are seen as catalysts for social cohesion and cultural identity, as 75.6% of respondents attested to their role in uniting diverse communities. These results emphasize the sensitivity of CCIs to the existing cultural and historical context of these areas. Furthermore, this study identifies outcomes of regional development and revitalization, including improved education facilities (21.7%), preservation of regional cultural heritage (14.6%), and enhanced business relations (26.7%). Regression analysis demonstrated a strong association between CCIs and regional development and revitalization. This study provides comprehensive insights into the contributions of CCIs to regional development and revitalization in Europe. Policymakers, practitioners, and stakeholders can use these findings to harness the full potential of CCIs for sustainable and inclusive regional development.

Place-based strategies for sustainable and inclusive regional development in the south of Mexico

Place-based strategies for sustainable and inclusive regional development in the south of Mexico

Methods and Practice of Assessing the Level of Inclusive Regional Development of Kazakhstan

Methods and Practice of Assessing the Level of Inclusive Regional Development of Kazakhstan

International tourism as a tool for inclusive development of region

The main purpose of the article is to determine the degree of interrelation of indicators of sustainable development of regions by forming models of sustainable development of tourist destinations as an inclusive tool of international tourism and building a model of sustainable development of tourist destinations. To analyze the situation, the authors consider a model that includes East Kazakhstan, Almaty regions and the city of Almaty. The study revealed the conceptual significance and influence of 6 indicators in the system of inclusive indicators of regional development. The development of tourism in an inclusive direction is one of the main directions in the national development strategies of international organizations and developed countries. Therefore, the study of international tourism as an instrument of inclusive development of regions reveals the relevance of this work. The main tools were generalizations, comparisons, economic, statistical analysis, as well as to determine each indicator of sustainability, the arithmetic mean of the indicators for determining the degree and value of the specific gravity was used, correlation analysis, Pearson linear correlation coefficients were used to correlate the indicators of sustainable development of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the regions under consideration. The authors propose an integrated approach as a tool for integration, systematization of the management process and indicators that affect the achievement of goals. It is recommended to form a mechanism in the field of ensuring the necessary level of stability of the development of tourist regions, allowing the formation of further mechanisms.

Infrastructure debt funds and the assetization of public infrastructures

Infrastructure has grown rapidly as an alternative asset class, yet many of the complex processes that transform public infrastructures into lucrative financial assets are poorly understood. This article examines investments by an infrastructure debt fund, to show how financial innovations expand and diversify the infrastructure asset class by finding new ways to generate financial returns from infrastructures. Infrastructure debt is an emerging sector of the infrastructure asset class, where private debt funds create assets that generate returns by extending loans or bond financing to physical infrastructures. The analysis uses assetization as a conceptual framework to scrutinise the construction of financial assets, centring the role of rent generation and extraction to show how infrastructure debt funds create financial value. By bringing the performative work of asset construction into dialogue with the political-economic forces enabling rent extraction, the analysis augments existing literature on financialized infrastructures. The findings show how infrastructure debt assets are predicated on multiple rounds of assetization: initially, the essential nature of infrastructure services is exploited to generate and extract monopoly rents as long-term revenue streams, and in turn, debt funds extend claims on these revenue streams to extract rents through interest payments. In this way, infrastructure debt extends the infrastructure asset class and provides a new route to extract rents, raising concerns over the potential of these investment practices to contribute to inclusive regional development and just transitions to mitigate and adapt to climate change.

The geography of environmental innovation: a critical review and agenda for future research

AbstractThis article provides a critical literature review on the regional determinants of environmental innovation. The analysis of the relevant literature on supply-side factors, demand-side factors, and institutional factors reveals the importance of regional determinants in green technology development. Specifically, regional R&D collaborations, university-industry collaborations, and technological relatedness have positive effects on innovation activities in green domains. On the demand side, regional environmental awareness and demonstration effects play a pivotal role in the emergence and diffusion of environmental innovations. Environmental regulations also induce environmental innovation, however, there is only limited evidence at the regional level. Our literature review has informed the development of an agenda for future research, which suggests three avenues for further investigation. Firstly, we recommend abandoning the simple green vs. non-green dichotomy and conducting more technology-sensitive studies on the determinants of environmental innovation. Secondly, we call for a more sophisticated and critical engagement with regional institutions, with a focus on both formal and informal institutions. Lastly, we propose a demand-side turn in research on the regional determinants of environmental innovation in order to better understand their diffusion across space. Overall, our findings suggest that policymakers need to adopt a more nuanced and comprehensive approach to eco-innovation policy, one that considers the spatial and multi-level governance challenges and promotes inclusive regional development.

The Economic Potential of the Regions of Kazakhstan: Comparative Analysis and Regional Accessibility

This study examines the relationship between regional accessibility and economic potential in Kazakhstan based on empirical data processing. The study shows that transport infrastructure, measured by the length of roads and railways, is one of the decisive factors affecting regional accessibility. The structure of the study consists of four essential stages: data collection; identification of leading directions; correlation and regression analysis; substantiation of conclusions, and recommendations. The variables used in the comparative analysis are the operational length of railway lines, the length of public roads and the gross regional product. The correlation and regression analysis results revealed significant links between the length of railways and highways and the gross regional product (GRP) of the selected regions. The obtained models for South Kazakhstan, North Kazakhstan and Karaganda regions showed high positive relationships based on high values of R-squares. The study results showed that the variables included in these models strongly correlate with the overall regional changes in output and better explain their positive relationships. The study emphasizes the importance of taking into account regional differences in infrastructure development and economic indicators. As a result of the results obtained, conclusions should be drawn, and recommendations should be made policy makers can use that to promote balanced and inclusive regional development by reducing inequality.

E-government as a tool to improve the efficiency of public administration: The case of Kazakhstan

Digitalization contributed to the modernization of public administration, particularly e-government development. The purpose of this study is to determine the role of e-government in improving the efficiency of public administration in Kazakhstan. The research methods are comparative, economic-statistical, and qualitative content analysis. The sources of statistical data were the Bureau of National Statistics, the Committee of public services, the e-government portal, and reports of international organizations and national development institutions. The study determined that e-government is a modern paradigm of public administration that contributes to the efficiency of public administration; its development and efficiency are significantly influenced by financial, economic, technological, and legal factors. Kazakhstan has a high level of e-government development. The e-government development portal in Kazakhstan has contributed to improving public administration, especially during the pandemic. However, e-government requires further development, as its functioning has various issues (low degree of information relevance, insufficient portal filling, and low share of automated functions). At the same time, the readiness of public administration organizations for digital transformation is medium. The study proposes recommendations for Kazakhstan’s e-government development to improve public administration, mainly developing technological infrastructure and digital human capital. The results can contribute to the further e-government development in Kazakhstan and enrich the theoretical base in increasing the efficiency of public administration in the context of digital transformation. AcknowledgmentsThis study is supported by the Science Committee of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan (Grant “Priorities and mechanisms of inclusive regional development of Kazakhstan in the context of overcoming the economic recession,” IRN AP09259004).

Аналитический инструментарий оценки инклюзивного развития региона

The study formulated a methodology for assessing the sustainable balanced inclusive growth of regional systems, adapted to analyze the development of Russian regions. The methodology is based on the analysis of a system of indicators classified according to the following criteria: 1) economic indicators characterizing the stability of the system, environmental indicators responsible for balance, and social indicators revealing the inclusive development of regions; 2) outcome indicators, indicators of development conditions, and indicators of efficiency or effectiveness of regional development. The indicators are based on the analysis of statistical data from the Federal State Statistics Service, developed within the framework of the national set of indicators of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which ensures independence and improves the objectivity of the assessment. The system of indicators is grouped into a matrix in which nine blocks are allocated. Based on the matrix, private indices characterizing one of the analyzed aspects of regional development and an aggregated index of sustainable balanced inclusive growth of the region are calculated. The proposed methodology was tested for the Volgograd region, for which the index of sustainable balanced inclusive development of the Volgograd region was calculated. The authors believe that the developed analytical tools will make it possible to more objectively take into account the regional specifics of sustainable balanced inclusive development when developing, monitoring, and evaluating regional strategic plans and programs.

Poverty of population and regional differences in the social development of Kazakhstan

The purpose of this study is to determine the features of regional differences in social development, the ways of their cognition and regulation. Regional differences in the level of social development from the perspective of inclusiveness are understood as inequality of individuals or groups in access to material goods and services. The receipt of monetary income by the population is only an instrument of access to them. Therefore, in order to develop methodological approaches and make managerial decisions, it is important to answer two questions: what specific material goods and services are considered within the framework of social inequalities, how to assess the level of the latter? However, the presence of regional differences in social development contributes to the search for real opportunities of regions in smoothing or leveling imbalances, identifying the sources of their occurrence. This approach made it possible to develop specific mechanisms to overcome social imbalances that will ensure inclusive regional development. From the totality of the sources of social inequalities in the regions, the problems of poverty of the population are chosen as the subject of research. Solving this problem is a key position in an integrated approach to regulating regional differences in social development. The methodology of the study is based on the calculation of the population poverty index according to the recommendations of the UNDP on four indicators. Based on these indicators, the calculation of the integral poverty index of the population and the grouping of regions of Kazakhstan are made. This approach will make it possible to introduce adequate tools for state support of various territories. Today, the identification and assessment of the level of poverty of the population is very relevant, since ensuring the sustainable development of regions does not allow ignoring situations of social inequalities in society.

Assessing the differences in the levels and dynamics of economic development of Kazakhstani regions

This study aims to analyze the level of differences based on effectiveness, statistical dependence, and mutual influence of economic indicators for ranking the regions of Kazakhstan. In the paper, a systematic algorithm of actions is used, ensuring the interconnectedness, the sequence of work, and the validity of the methods used. Several model specifications were formulated to identify interregional differences in economic development indicators: the operating data environment analysis model (DEA) and the random effects regression model (RE). The information database of the Bureau of National Statistics of the Republic of Kazakhstan for 2010–2020 was used. The construction of the RE model was carried out in the SPSS program. A regression model with fixed and random effects in panel data was employed to determine the impact of the selected indicators on gross regional product produced (GRP). Based on the results, the influence of the physical volume of industrial products on GRP per capita in the regions of Kazakhstan for 11 years was revealed in both models with a high significance of coefficients. The study results can be used by public administration bodies that carry out effective strategic management by smoothing interregional differences. Moreover, they can determine the prospects for studying other parameters based on efficiency, statistical dependence, and mutual influence of economic indicators for ranking regions. AcknowledgmentThis study has been funded by the Committee of Science of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan (grant “Priorities and mechanisms of inclusive regional development of Kazakhstan in the context of overcoming the economic recession” AP09259004).

Understanding regional value chain evolution in peripheral areas through governance interactions – An institutional layering approach

Due to ‘dark sides’ of global value chain integration, a growing body of literature engages with regional value chains (RVC) as alternative strategy for inclusive regional development. To date, we know little about the conditions and actors under which RVCs evolve. Research dominantly highlights the role of regional lead firms, such as supermarket chains in food RVC, and state interventions. However, the role of other stakeholders such as public organisations and civil society at the local remains unclear. Therefore, the embeddedness of RVCs in multiple institutional layers and their exposure to institutional change needs consideration to understand how they evolve. The analysis of an emerging horticulture RVC in Namibia allows disentangling the interactions of state-driven market protection, firm-driven standardisation, and civil-society-driven collective action by analysing the processes of institutional layering underlying value chain governance. This study asks (1) how public, private and civil society governance forms hamper or foster the expansion of RVCs, and (2) how the layering of various institutions can create synergies rather than frictions. The case study helps to develop a grounded understanding of multi-layered governance, which is a crucial step to understand how RVCs can contribute to inclusive economic development in peripheral, rural areas.

An improved algorithm of the spatial coordination analysis on higher education resources and employment population

The traditional evaluation criteria of coordination analysis were based on the classification of fixed interval index. Clustering methods serve to redefine the criteria and improve the accuracy of the coordination analysis. The improved algorithm was adopted to analyze the spatial coordination between Chinese higher educational institutions and employment population. It was discovered:1.The regional imbalance of the higher educational institutions was less serious than that of the employment population;2.Although the coordination level of developing regions in the south-central and north-east was lower than that of western border and eastern coastal regions, all those regions globally maintained a high level of coupling and coordination; 3. Inclusive regional development strategies could be adopted to optimize the coordination between education and employment.

Exploring determinants of innovation potential of enterprises in Kazakhstan

The study aims to analyze the innovation potential of enterprises, explain the use of the binary regression methodology, and explore different indicators of the enterprises in the regions of Kazakhstan for building an effective management strategy. Methodological substantiation is based on the complex survey data analysis, provided by the World Bank Enterprises Survey (WBES) for Kazakhstan. WBES database has covered a sociological survey of enterprises, which was conducted using a random survey and representativeness among 1,296 enterprises, mainly in the production sector. Besides, the data were collected among companies regarding their experience in environmental perception (including innovation activity), in which they worked. The results have demonstrated that the age of the company, exporter status, type, sector, or activity – all these have a positive influence on the company’s tendency to innovations. However, as part of the study, it has found out that competitors in the marketplace and regions of activity of enterprises predominantly negatively affect the prospects of introducing innovation. It was also in evidence that the same factors (foreign ownership, advanced training, type, size, and sector of an enterprise) are essential determinants of product, technology, R&D, ICT, and innovation. Obtained results can be used by enterprises for building an effective management strategy of own business innovative development, as well as by local authorities to upgrade the competitive performance. AcknowledgmentsThis study has been funded by the Science Committee of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan (Grant “Priorities and mechanisms of inclusive regional development of Kazakhstan in the context of overcoming the economic recession” No. AP09259004).

Приобщаващо регионално развитие – социални, икономически и екологични измерения

The article examines important aspects of spatial differences in three leading areas - social, economic and environmental. The main aim is to present the results of the development and approbation of an author’s methodology for assessing the existence of “inclusive regional development” – a development that does not lead to critical regional differences. The methodology is applied to assess the inclusive economic development in EU countries. Its application at a district level for Bulgaria allows to determine those of them that are the most problematic and do not meet the requirements for inclusive development in terms of economic, social and environmental dimensions. Lastly, the results of the research and analysis are summarized.

The changing nature of regional policy in Europe

AbstractThis article charts the changing context of regional economic development and the advancement of both policy thinking and analysis on this issue. The shift away from ‘traditional’ regional policies, designed to bring about regional convergence, towards new approaches, designed to exploit the economic development potential of regions, is the focus of the article. Specific attention is paid to the emergence of regional development strategies in the process, where ‘regions’ may be defined functionally rather than administratively. We outline the elements of such strategies—including redefining objectives, new types of interventions, involvement of new actors, and the broadening and integration of regional interventions—which distinguish them from traditional policy and which will determine the degree of success achieved. In conclusion, the paper raises two points of interest, namely the need for more inclusive regional development processes and better implementation of these demanding strategies.

Inclusive Development as Means of Overcoming Regional Inequality

The study is aimed to determine the essence, directions and methods of measuring the level of inclusive development of the national economy and society, which may form the basis of the toolkit for regulating regional development for government bodies of Kazakhstan. As a methodological approach to measuring the possibility of inclusive development of regions of the country, it is proposed to abandon the one-dimensional measurement of economic growth using a gross domestic product (GDP) and use the method of multidimensional assessment, including indicators of the development of the economy, society, infrastructure and innovation. The results of the analysis of the levels of socio-economic, infrastructural and innovative development of Kazakhstan are presented, on the basis of which a conclusion is made about the continuing inequality of its regions. Various points of view on the theory of inclusive development are considered and it is concluded that inclusive development involves overcoming inequality of countries, regions, incomes and living standards of certain segments of the population in different regions of one country. As a result of the study, it was recommended to use the author’s methodological approach as a toolkit for public authorities when developing regional programs and making managerial decisions on the development of regions of the country.

PUBLIC HEALTH SYSTEM IN INCLUSIVE REGION GROWTH

The article explores the concept of inclusive development of regions, emphasizing the study of the formation and maintenance of a stable level of public health in the scientific literature. For bibliographic analysis, complex scientometric databases Scopus and Dimensions were used to analyze a set of publications formed according to specific criteria using the software tool VOSviewer. The visualization method was used to visualize the obtained results. The search in scientometric databases was carried out by the criterion of the title of the publication, the content of its annotation and keywords. The analysis showed that the main research clusters form groups of scientists' publications from the United States, Great Britain, Australia, and Canada. The small number of publications, but their growth dynamics and the increasing number of citations (according to Google Scholar) indicate a lack of study of inclusive growth in the region in the public health management system and the prospects for its exploration by scientists. According to the analysis, the interest of scientists in solving the problem of public health in ensuring regional development increased in 2020-2021. Much of the publications relate to such areas of knowledge as business, management and accounting. The main areas of research on public health in the development of the regions include the provision of medical services, the health care system, social determinants of health, and the population's state of health. Scientific clusters are gradually being formed around these keywords. The obtained results of the bibliographic analysis form the basis for a better understanding of public health issues, the search for gaps, the solution of which should be worked on in further research. Particular attention is paid to the issue of the COVID-19 pandemic as a crisis-forming factor that hinders the movement of regional development in a promising direction and ensuring the resilience of the system. It is substantiated that the health factor is essential in forming a robust human potential of the country and the growth of labor productivity.

Conceptual bases of forming the regions’ economic security strategies

The article systematizes the existing theoretical approaches to revealing the essence of the definition "a region’s economic security strategy". The strategy of economic security should be a priority in ensuring the goals of inclusive development of regions, their competitiveness and stability. The order of development of this strategy includes: 1) forming the strategic goals of economic security of the region taking into account the management hierarchy; 2) strategic analysis of the external and internal security environment of the region; 3) identifying the strategy options; 4) determining the strategic alternatives and priorities of economic security of the region; 5) implementing the strategy; 6) monitoring the determinants of the economic security management process; 7) control; 8) adjustment of appropriate measures for economic security in the region. A number of new strategies are proposed: 1) of equalization and elimination of risks, threats, and dangers, 2) of growth and activation of growth poles; 3) of active growth; 4) of advanced safety-oriented development; 5) innovation-investment and adaptive strategies. Strategies for equalization and elimination of risks, threats, and dangers for areas with signs of depression and a critically low level of security are aimed at overcoming imbalances in the socio-economic system of the region and restoring positive economic growth parameters. Strategies for growth and activation of growth poles are focused on identifying profitable economic activities in the region, increasing innovation and investment, and overcoming the existing low level of economic security. Strategies of active growth provide for positive dynamics of development of the economic subsystem in the region and indicators of its security and increase of internal potential for an economic breakthrough. Strategies of advanced security-oriented development are typical for leading regions with a high level of development of the economic subsystem in the region and its security with a focus on the long-term increase of regional economic activity and security indicators. Innovation-investment and adaptive strategies are typical for the region with the highest level of economic security based on the adequacy of financial security and concentration of innovation and investment potential in the region.

Inclusive Regional Development: A Case Study of Pengerang Region in Johor Malaysia

The large development projects exhibit positive impacts on the surroundings and immediate spatial vicinity of the development. Pengerang Integrated Petroleum Complex (PIPC) is a mega project planned under Malaysia’s National Key Economic Areas (NKEA). Even though the PIPC seems to be beneficial for the country’s economic growth, in terms of foreign investment, however, it also creates controversial issues among local people, such as the local people may not necessarily obtain benefits from the development of PIPC. Previous similar studies did not adequately explore these issues. Therefore, this research study presents two main objectives: (i) to explore the issues and benefits of those arising among local people by the development of PIPC projects and (ii) to prepare a strategic plan for inclusive development where local people can benefit from the development of PIPC projects. In order to reach the aim of this research site observation, and interviews with community leaders, local workers, and government institutions, have been as an instrument for data collection. However, the finding of this research indicates that the issues of the PIPC development that were considered are those arising among the fishermen community in the region, local businesses, and other related issues. While this research study has been prepared, the strategy where local people can benefit from the development. Furthermore, an initiative and a well-designed strategy of this research study will lead to relatively long term support and a relationship between locals and the government.