OPTIMAL ALLOCATION OF INVESTMENT AND REGIONAL DISPARITIES

Alexiadis Stilianos

Ministry of Rural Development and Foods, Department of Agricultural Policy &   Documentation, Division of Agricultural Statistics, e-mail: salexiadis7@aim.com

and

Ladias Christos

Department of Regional Economic Development, University of Central Greece

Abstract: 

A model of optimal allocation of investment across regions is developed. It is shown that the optimality conditions may lead to increasing inequalities at the spatial level. Introducing an element of endogenous innovation dualistic situation emerges. An empirical analysis, using data for the NUTS-2 regions of the European Union seems to confirm this argument.

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EVALUATING ROAD NETWORK IMPROVEMENT: ECONOMIC IMPACTS ON SAN-EN REGION IN JAPAN

Yasuhiro HIROBATA

Graduate School of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Toyohashi University of Technology

1-1, Tempaku, Toyohashi, 441-8580, Aichi, Japan. e-mail: hirobata@ace.tut.ac.jp

Yuzuru MIYATA

Graduate School of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Toyohashi University of Technology

1-1, Tempaku, Toyohashi, 441-8580, Aichi, Japan. e-mail: miyata@ace.tut.ac.jp

and

Hiroyuki SHIBUSAWA

Graduate School of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Toyohashi University of Technology

1-1, Tempaku, Toyohashi, 441-8580, Aichi, Japan. e-mail: hiro-shibu@tut.ac.jp

Abstract:

Japan’s economy is entering a new phase of economic growth after the so-called “lost 15 years” since 1990. Particularly Tokyo and Aichi prefectures have been drawing attention as engine of new economic growth in Japan. Although the recovery of Japan’s economy has resulted in an increase in the demand for transportation, construction of new roads in region-wide areas has been in a serious situation. It is attributed to a decreasing trend in Japan’s population and aging which will cause Japan’s national budget being reduced in the future. Due to this situation, stricter economic assessment of new roads development in region-wide areas has particularly been required than before. Taking into account these backgrounds, this article aims to present a model integrating the equilibrium concepts of economic and transport network. Moreover this model will be able to be extended into a full spatial equilibrium model. And then setting San-En region in Aichi and Shizuoka prefectures as a study area which consists of many urban and countryside areas, this study also aims to measure the economic impacts of construction of new roads development in this region.

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NEW SOCIAL RISKS AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF URBAN AREA

Lubor Hruska-Tvrdy and Ivana Foldynova

VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, 17.listopadu 15

Ostrava-Poruba, 70833, Czech Republic

 Abstract:

New social risks are key factors for social cohesion of local community and society. Currently new social risks which are caused by changes in a society appear more frequently than before. While previously the groups of underprivileged were counted in endangered groups, now the middle class can be affected as well. This report shows a spatial distribution of these risks. How to obtain this result is shown on a particular example of the city of Ostrava. This report seeks to establish future influence of industrial city cohesion. Mainly processes of industrialization and deindustrialization are examined in a detail, especially their effect on demo-social structure of the city.The results are based on the research of the project called „Industrial society in a postindustrial city“ under which there were large sociological research of Ostrava and a long term monitoring of statistical indicators carried out.All social problems lead to inability to retain basic residential standards. Social risk distribution is surveyed in Ostrava however the context of larger area (the Moravian-Silesian Region) is also taken into consideration.

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