‘North of the South’ or ‘South of the North’? Revisiting the Spatially/Complex Economic Divide in Italy
Journal Title: Journal of Urban and Regional Analysis - Year 2013, Vol 5, Issue 1
Abstract
The present study evaluates the economic dynamics of more than 600 local districts in two contrasting periods (mid-1990s and mid-2000s) of the recent development path of Italy in the light of territorial disparities between northern and southern regions. In order to produce a multidimensional concept of ‘economic development’ 16 variables (including share of agriculture and industry on total product, labour productivity by sector, per-capita and per-worker value added) have been considered together by using exploratory multidimensional statistics. This approach has been preferred to more traditional procedures centred on single-variable analyses (e.g. GDP level and its changes over time) or convergence analysis since it allowed us to debate on the increasingly complex geography of the economic development observed in Italy and the 'newly emerging' socioeconomic disparities among regions. Results indicate that the traditional north-south gap has not been significantly reduced along the last ten years. Coastal-inland and urban-rural gradients revealed as crucial especially in southern Italy, indicating the late transition from agriculture and state-driven industry towards services producing low value added. The persistence of the north-south divide allowed us to identify ‘changing’ and ‘structurally stable’ variables as a possible target for integrated developmental policies.
Authors and Affiliations
Luca SALVATI
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP141128
- DOI -
- Views 84
- Downloads 0
URBAN STRATEGIES AND COLLECTIVE MEMORY. AN UPPER-MIDDLE CLASS MUNICIPALITY IN THE GRAND PARIS PROJECT
This article proposes a theoretical point of view in order to show the importance of the collective memory and the urban narrative in the strategic approach of the urban project. The capacity of a municipality to build a...
SUB-NATIONAL REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND DEGREE-AWARDING TERTIARY EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS IN NIGERIA: DESCRIPTIVE, GEO-DEMOGRAPHIC AND GEO-SPATIAL ANALYSES
Public and private investments in educational institutions as a means of catalysing economic growth has been recognized a veritable strategy for developing human capital, increasing productivity and competitiveness at va...
DOES LOCATION AFFECT EMPLOYMENT? EVIDENCE FROM THE HIGH NORTH OF RUSSIA
Local labour markets within one country can be characterized by different outcomes because of their geographical and economic peculiarities. The unique features of the labour markets of the High North regions of Russia i...
Smart Growth and the Challenge of Nimby: Multifamily Dwellings and their Association with Single-family House Selling Prices in Tallahassee, Florida, USA
Citizens protest development when they consider it undesirable. One type of development commonly perceived as undesirable by single-family home owners is proximate multifamily housing, often considered a cause of propert...
SUBURBAN VS. URBAN FRINGES ENTITIES’ WILLINGNESS TO PAY FOR AMENITIES: EMPIRICAL RESEARCH IN CRACOW CITY, POLAND
The aim of this paper is to estimate the value of selected amenities of infrastructure, space and public services on both sides of the cities’ administrative borders and its territorial implications. The used method is t...