Regional Policy

Regional policy is an essential in any government’s toolkit for promoting socioeconomic prosperity. It comes in many forms and can be used to target the development of weak and stronger regions. This textbook provides comprehensive and systematic coverage of regional policy, dealing with core theories and looking at contemporary challenges in practice, addressing regional policy across the world.

Structured in four parts, the book opens with an exploration of regional policy’s characterisation, aims and rationale. The second part is devoted to issues of implementation and the instruments available to policymakers for intervention. The third part addresses regional policy evaluation, as well as statistics and modelling in policymaking. Finally, the book discusses how regional policy is applied in different contexts. Each chapter contains real-life examples of a regional policy topic in action and highlights supplementary topics for advanced readers.

With its broad coverage of the subject, Regional Policy: Theory and Practice will prove a valuable resource for advanced students, researchers and practitioners in regional policy, regional economics, economic geography, planning and public policy.

Ugo Fratesi is Professor of Regional Economics and Policy at Politecnico di Milano, Italy. He is the Editor-in-Chief of Spatial Economic Analysis.