Chapter 16 Regional policies in developing countries

This chapter focuses on regional policies in developing countries. Diversity in the regional problems of developing countries and in the social and economic policies designed to alleviate these problems reflects not only different levels of development and the systems of government, but also geography, history and tradition, and societal goals. In any country, developed or developing, what constitutes a regional problem differs among social groups. In the developed industrial market economies, regional problems are rarely defined in terms of absolutes. Relative imbalances in the indicators of the social and economic conditions of different regions induce regional policy responses from the center. The chapter discusses the key themes that link thinking about regional development to the process of economic growth. It refers to the policy implications of these theories and discusses the relevance of the urban dimension in regional policy analysis. The chapter also discusses the four major aspects of regional development strategy: (1) experience with national and regional planning agencies; (2) the role of infrastructure; (3) policies to promote industrial development in lagging regions; and the roles of communications and human resource investments. It also draws some lessons from regional development experience in developing countries in the past two decades and some conclusions on the effectiveness of past policies and implications for the future.