Regional Policy as Interaction between National Institutions and Regional Science |
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Authors: | Martin Eriksson Lars Westin |
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Affiliation: | 1. Department of Geography and Economic History , Ume? University , SE-901 87 , Ume? , Sweden Martin.Eriksson@ekhist.umu.se;3. Centre for Regional Science , Ume? University , SE-901 87 , Ume? , Sweden |
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Abstract: | As a reaction to emerging regional imbalances, discussions regarding growth centre policy began in the Nordic countries during the latter part of the 1960s. At this time, a working group within the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) provided a policy option based on international theories from urban and agglomeration economics. Within the actual growth centre policies in Norway, Sweden and Finland, central elements from the EFTA concept related to the scale of the centres were, however, not adopted. Instead, growth centres were located to places that had a smaller population than the 30,000 inhabitants recommended by the EFTA concept. This outcome was related to the fact that the EFTA concept was adapted to the existing regional policy institutions. As these institutions were egalitarian and redistributive in character, the Nordic growth centre policies favoured a more dispersed settlement structure than suggested by the EFTA concept. |
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Keywords: | growth centre policy regional science regional policy institutions |
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