Regional policy is the sum of a series of policies formulated according to regional differences to coordinate regional relations and regional macro operation mechanism, which affects regional development at the macro level. It includes regional

economic policy ''Economic Policy'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal published by Oxford University Press, Oxford Academic on behalf of the Centre for Economic Policy Research, the Center for Economic Studies (University of Munich), and the Paris Scho ...

, regional

social policy Some professionals and universities consider social policy a subset of public policy, while other practitioners characterize social policy and public policy to be two separate, competing approaches for the same public interest (similar to MD a ...

, regional

environmental policy Environmental policy is the commitment of an organization or government to the laws, regulations, and other policy mechanisms concerning environmental issues. These issues generally include air and water pollution, waste management, ecosystem ...

, regional political policy, regional

cultural policy Cultural policy is the government actions, laws and programs that regulate, protect, encourage and financially (or otherwise) support activities related to the arts and creative sectors, such as painting, sculpture, music, dance, literature, and ...

, etc.Regional policy aims to improve economic conditions in

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

s of relative disadvantage, either within a nation or within a supranational grouping such as the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

. Additionally, a regional policy may try to address high levels of unemployment and lower-than-average per capita incomes. Its main tool is public investment.

Regional policy in the European Union

Although the

is one of the richest parts of the world, there are large internal disparities of income and opportunity between its regions. The May 2004 Enlargement, followed by accession of

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

and

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

in January 2007, has widened these gaps. Regional policy transfers resources from richer to poorer regions. “Regional policy targets all regions and cities in the

in to support job creation, business competitiveness, economic growth, sustainable development, and improve citizens’ quality of life.�

The argument for regional policy is that it is both an instrument of financial solidarity and a powerful force for economic integration.

Regional policy in Italy

The major Italian experience of regional policy is the Cassa per il Mezzogiorno, set up in the mid-1950s to foster economic development in

southern Italy Southern Italy (, , or , ; ; ), also known as () or (; ; ; ), is a macroregion of Italy consisting of its southern Regions of Italy, regions. The term "" today mostly refers to the regions that are associated with the people, lands or cultu ...

. Originally intended to last for six months, it survived until 1984. New roads, irrigation projects and developments in infrastructure were built in an area where local communities had suffered seriously from poverty, de-population and high levels of emigration. Tourism projects attempted to exploit Calabria’s beaches.

Regional policy in the United Kingdom

UK regional policy was born during the

economic depression An economic depression is a period of carried long-term economic downturn that is the result of lowered economic activity in one or more major national economies. It is often understood in economics that economic crisis and the following recession ...

of the 1930s, when heavy industries in the north were devastated. " Assisted Areas" were established, within which companies could acquire grants or capital allowances – known as Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) – in return for protecting jobs. The overall pattern of policy changed little in the next forty years. Despite criticism by a 1970s Royal Commission that it was "Empiricism run mad; a game of hit and miss played with more enthusiasm than success", governments of both parties maintained Assisted Areas. Under the 1980s Thatcher government, regional policy was significantly rolled back, with Assisted Areas substantially reduced in size. The post-1997 Labour administration reorganised regional policy, with RSA replaced by Selective Finance for Investment in England and Scotland. UK policy has been subject to EU regional policy framework, with its strong injunctions against unfair competition (generally meaning state aid).

Regional policy in China

In China, regional policy is delivered through

multi-level governance Multi-level (or multilevel) governance is a term used to describe the way power is spread vertically between levels of government and horizontally across multiple quasi-government and non-governmental organizations and actors. This situation dev ...

that involves central government, provinces, counties, townships and villages. The key role in regional policy and regional development plays The Department of Regional Economy under the Chinese

National Development and Reform Commission The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) is the third-ranked executive department of the State Council of the People's Republic of China, which functions as a macroeconomic management agency. Established as the State Planning C ...

(NDRC). The development of regional policy in China can be divided into three stages. Balanced development in the early 30 years of New China (1949-1978) The balanced development policy implemented in the early 30 years of the founding of the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

is a process of the top-down one-way directive plan. The central government uses the national financial resources to implement major projects (infrastructure, national defense), carry out investment and construction, and adjust and control the layout of productivity. From the spatial level, it carries out strategic planning, guidance and control characterized by the unity of

regional development Regional development refers to a broad category of policies aimed at reducing regional disparities within an economy or across economies by devoting resources to underdeveloped areas. Regional development can be national or international in natur ...

. It established a number of industrial bases with initial scale, and laid the foundation for China's industrialization construction. During China's Third Front construction, concerns of invasion by the Soviet Union or the United States prompted the development of infrastructure, industry, and specialized talent remote regions, ultimately laying a foundation for continued economic development in China's western regions even after the end of the initiative.It was distributed in the scattered mountainous areas, with the priority given to heavy industry, especially military industry. The development of light industry was insufficient, and there was a shortage of materials. In addition, the tendency of "attaching importance to the mainland but less to the coast" in the application of the balanced development policy has restrained the economic development. After a Party Work Conference in May 1973 resolved to re-direct state investment efforts from the Third Front to the northeast and the coastal regions, the Third Front was no longer the country's most critical economic objective. Unbalanced development in reform and opening up (1979-1998) At the end of 1978, China began the historical process of

reform and opening up Reform and opening-up ( zh, s=改革开放, p=Gǎigé kāifàng), also known as the Chinese economic reform or Chinese economic miracle, refers to a variety of economic reforms termed socialism with Chinese characteristics and socialist market ...

, and profoundly summed up the lessons of the "

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a Social movement, sociopolitical movement in the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). It was launched by Mao Zedong in 1966 and lasted until his de ...

" and the disadvantages of

planned economy A planned economy is a type of economic system where investment, production and the allocation of capital goods takes place according to economy-wide economic plans and production plans. A planned economy may use centralized, decentralized, ...

. During this period, unbalanced development was highly praised, which basically dominated the economic layout and regional development of China. In order to make some areas rich first, it encourages coastal cities and regions with low cost, quick effect, easy project landing and convenient foreign trade to develop first, and open up the riverside, belt and inland areas in stages, with emphasis and efficiency. Specific measures include establishment of

special economic zones A special economic zone (SEZ) is an area in which the business and trade laws are different from the rest of the country. SEZs are located within a country's national borders, and their aims include increasing trade balance, employment, increas ...

, economic and technological development zones and coastal port cities, etc. Coordinated development since the new millennium (1999-) At this stage, China implements the regional policy of "four plates" and "three support belts" as a whole, and promotes coordinated and complementary development among regions and narrow the regional economic gap under the guidance of major strategies. Specific measures include The Belt and Road Initiative, the development of the " Beijing Tianjin Hebei", the

Yangtze River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ) is the longest river in Eurasia and the third-longest in the world. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows including Dam Qu River the longest source of the Yangtze, i ...

economic belt, the development of the Yangtze River economic belt, the construction of the

Guangdong ) means "wide" or "vast", and has been associated with the region since the creation of Guang Prefecture in AD 226. The name "''Guang''" ultimately came from Guangxin ( zh, labels=no, first=t, t= , s=广信), an outpost established in Han dynasty ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

and

Macao Macau or Macao is a special administrative region of the People's Republic of China (PRC). With a population of about people and a land area of , it is the most densely populated region in the world. Formerly a Portuguese colony, the ter ...

. After more than 20 years of

, the unbalanced development strategy is oriented by "efficiency" and adopts the policy of inclining to the East, which promotes the rapid development of economic core areas such as the

Pearl River Delta The Pearl River Delta Metropolitan Region is the low-lying area surrounding the Pearl River estuary, where the Pearl River flows into the South China Sea. Referred to as the Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area in official documents, ...

, the

Yangtze River Delta The Yangtze Delta or Yangtze River Delta (YRD), once known as the Shanghai Economic Zone, is a megalopolis generally comprising the Wu-speaking areas of Shanghai, southern Jiangsu, northern Zhejiang, southern Anhui. The area lies in the he ...

and the Bohai rim, and economic growth poles such as

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

Shenzhen Shenzhen is a prefecture-level city in the province of Guangdong, China. A Special economic zones of China, special economic zone, it is located on the east bank of the Pearl River (China), Pearl River estuary on the central coast of Guangdong ...

and

Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...

. During the 2000s, China's coastal areas continued to outpace its interior in economic development. The thinking of China's regional economic development has turned to the coordinated and balanced way of "maintaining the priority development momentum of the eastern region and accelerating the development of the central and western regions". As regional disparities widened however, coastal areas became a major source of investment for inland areas.Manufacturing that was lower on the

value chain A value chain is a progression of activities that a business or firm performs in order to deliver goods and services of Value (economics), value to an end customer. The concept comes from the field of business management and was first described ...

trended towards moving inland. This trend was termed "industrial transfer." Developing Chinese policymakers reacted by further encouraging industrial transfer. In the early 2000s, the government began to finance construction of cross-regional transportation to improve accessibility to, and develop of, China's interior regions. In March 2004, Premier

Wen Jiabao Wen Jiabao ( zh, s=温家宝, p=Wēn Jiābǎo; born 15 September 1942) is a Chinese retired politician who served as the 6th premier of China from 2003 to 2013. In his capacity as head of government, Wen was regarded as the leading figure behin ...

announced The Rise of the Central Regions during his delivery of the Annual Report of the State Council. This initiative was added to the Politburo's agenda in 2006. Western development and Northeast Revitalization are other main regional policy directions. Specific Regional Policy Special economic zone In 1979,

Deng Xiaoping Deng Xiaoping also Romanization of Chinese, romanised as Teng Hsiao-p'ing; born Xiansheng (). (22 August 190419 February 1997) was a Chinese statesman, revolutionary, and political theorist who served as the paramount leader of the People's R ...

first proposed the establishment of "export special zone". In 1990, the State Council approved the establishment of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone, the first free trade zone in New China. In 2001, China joined the WTO to participate in international competition and cooperation. Since 2003, the State Council has issued a series of documents to build an energy-saving society. The development mode of

low-carbon economy A low-carbon economy (LCE) is an economy which absorbs as much greenhouse gas as it emits. Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions due to human activity are the dominant cause of observed climate change since the mid-20th century. There are many proven ...

has become China's transformation of economic development mode and adjustment China (Shanghai) pilot Free Trade Zone, the first free trade zone in China, was officially established in 2013. The policy includes related keywords as bonded zone, western development,

free trade zone A free-trade zone (FTZ) is a class of special economic zone. It is a geographic area where goods may be imported, stored, handled, manufactured, or reconfigured and re- exported under specific customs regulation and generally not subject t ...

, scientific and technological innovation,

WTO The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland that regulates and facilitates international trade. Governments use the organization to establish, revise, and enforce the rules that g ...

entry,

, regional preferential policies,

foreign direct investment A foreign direct investment (FDI) is an ownership stake in a company, made by a foreign investor, company, or government from another country. More specifically, it describes a controlling ownership an asset in one country by an entity based i ...

. Main functional areas China's regional economy has formed an overall strategy of "four major plates" for the development of the west, the revitalization of the northeast, the rise of the central region and the first development of the East. The main functional areas are the implementation of the overall strategy of regional development. The land and space are divided into four categories: optimized development, key development, restricted development and prohibited development. The policy includes keywords such as coordinated development, cultivated land protection, the rise of

Central China Central China () is a List of regions of China, region in China. It mainly includes the provinces of China, provinces of Henan, Hubei and Hunan. Jiangxi is sometimes also regarded to be part of this region. Central China is now officially par ...

, industrial agglomeration, tax preference,

public service A public service or service of general (economic) interest is any service intended to address the needs of aggregate members of a community, whether provided directly by a public sector agency, via public financing available to private busin ...

s, economic compensation, ecological compensation, revitalization of Northeast China, and

circular economy A circular economy (also referred to as circularity or CE) is a model of resource Production (economics), production and Resource consumption, consumption in any economy that involves sharing, leasing, Reuse, reusing, repairing, refurbishing, and ...

. One belt and one road One belt and one road, Silk Road Economic Belt & 21st century maritime Silk Road, is a global development strategy adopted by the

Chinese government The government of the People's Republic of China is based on a system of people's congress within the parameters of a Unitary state, unitary communist state, in which the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) enacts its policies through people's ...

in 2013 involving infrastructure development and investments in nearly 70 countries and international organizations in

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, and

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

. It includes key words such as

, regional cooperation, industrial upgrading, regional coordinated development, innovation drive,

open economy An open economy refers to an economy in which both domestic and international entities participate in the trade of goods and services. This type of economy allows for the exchange of products, including technology transfers and managerial experti ...

Regional policy in the United States

Tennessee Valley Authority The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is a federally owned electric utility corporation in the United States. TVA's service area covers all of Tennessee, portions of Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, and small areas of Georgia, North Carolin ...

Department of Housing and Urban Development The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It administers federal housing and urban development laws. It is headed by the secretary of housing and u ...

(HUD)

References

External links

Regional Policy for the EU home page

European Parliament Resolution on Community regional policy and the role of the regions
European NAvigator {{Authority control

Policy Policy is a deliberate system of guidelines to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes. A policy is a statement of intent and is implemented as a procedure or protocol. Policies are generally adopted by a governance body within an or ...

Policy Foreign policy