Tag: R1

PATTERNS OF SPATIAL DEVELOPMENT: EVIDENCE FROM RUSSIA

Veronika MASLIKHINA

Ph.D. in Economics, Associate Professor of  Department of Management and Law, Volga State University of Technology, Yoshkar-Ola, Russia

Maslikhina_nika@mail.ru

Abstract

The aim of the paper is to analyze the trends of spatial inequality in Russia in 1994-2015 based on the convergence concepts. Russia faced the problem of inter-regional inequality as well as most countries. The situation is aggravated by the external economic and domestic factors in recent years. The fall in energy prices and Western sanctions had a negative impact on the country’s economic development. Russia is compelled to take into account geopolitical interests in the implementation regional policies in some regions (the Far East, the Crimea, the Kaliningrad region, the republics of the North Caucasus, the Arctic). Many regional budgets have budget deficit, highly debt load. They optimize spending on the social sphere and reduce investments in the real economy. Russia is emerging from the crisis despite the difficult situation. A review of the theoretical positions of the four types of convergence concepts (σ-, β-, γ-, ρ-convergence) was made. The spatial inequality evaluation was carried out on the basis of σ-convergence and absolute β-convergence concepts. The Williamson coefficient, the Hoover index, the Theil index and the Atkinson index were used to analyze spatial inequality based on the σ-concept. Differentiation has increased over the analyzed period, but gap decreased after 2005. The  convergence speed  is 1.79% in Russia. Regions with a low initial level of development have higher growth rates than regions with a higher initial level of development

Keywords: spatial inequality, spatial development, β-convergence, σ-convergence, Russia

JEL classification: D63, O52, R1, R58
read more

FIRMS’ ENIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE AND REGIONAL RESIDENTS

Kenichi SHIMAMOTO

Associate Professor, Konan University, Japan

kenichi@center.konan-u.ac.jp

Abstract

As the scale of economic activities continue to grow, the burden on the environment for the surrounding region increases, so it has become necessary for firms and the regional community to have bilateral negotiations taking economic activities and environmental issues into consideration in order to find an efficient solution. This paper attempts to use the Nash bargaining solution concept between firms and the surrounding residents to analyse the optimal solution when considering the firms’ economic activity and environmental performance. It includes a model to analyse the impact that a firm’s environmental performance has on improving its economic performance. It also takes into consideration the effects that an improved environmental performance will have on the regional residents, through reduced pollution, employment opportunities and tax revenue. The results for both cases, when environmental regulations are absent and when they are enforced, find that the party that receives the greater benefit will transfer income to the other party which supports the benefits principle. Thus, in order to examine the mechanism of income transfer between firms and the regional residents, it will be important to comprehensively consider the affect that firms’ environmental performance have on their economic performance, the environmental cost for firms to improve their environmental performance and the benefits to regional residents from environmental regulations.

Keywords: Environmental performance, Economic performance, Bargaining game, Income transfer

JEL classification: M2, Q5, R1
read more

DETERMINANTS OF EMPLOYMENT SITUATION IN LARGE AGGLOMERATIONS IN INDIA: A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY

Sabyasachi TRIPATHI

Department of Economics, Adamas University, Kolkata, India

Abstract

The present paper analyzes the employment situation in different class of cities in urban India. By focussing on 52 large urban agglomerations in India and using latest unit level National Sample Survey data for the year of 2011-12 on employment and unemployment, it investigates the relevant city specific determinants of city-wise work-force participation rate (WPR). Finally, it reviews the current and past employment policies in India. The analyses show that though urban India has been witnessing an increase in the number of total job opportunities, WPR in the large cities have declined over the years. The regression results show that indicators like city-wise average land owned by a person, city-wise percentage of persons receiving any vocational training, percentage of persons currently registered with any placement agency, city size population and city output growth have a positive effect on city-wise WPR. Finally, the paper suggests that education of the worker, vocational training, and placement agencies are needed for successful job creation in the large agglomerations in India.

Keywords: Urban Agglomeration, employment, urban India

JEL classification: R1, J21
read more