In order to curb rising unemployment and to upgrade low value-added activities, the competitive edge lost in low-cost labour must be earned back through education and innovation. Regional policy stands as a key tool to achieve this shift in a relatively small yet diverse country with moderate...

This report brings into light an emerging framework, with a new territorial unit for local initiative in the Czech Republic: the micro-region. It investigates the issues at stake in the development of these voluntary entities, that can be characterised as main partners for regions, although they...

OECD's Territorial Review of the Valencian Central Districts of Spain. It finds that the future of the region in an era of globalisation is uncertain. At a time when producer services are becoming critical to the success of goods producing industries, will the small settlements that characterise...

This detailed policy review examines recent developments in regional policy in France and in particular, challenges regarding competiveness policies and multilevel governance. It includes interesting statistics related to regions and makes a series of recommendations for French authorities.

OECD's Territorial Review of the Vienna/Bratislava region. The Vienna-Bratislava region on the Austrian-Slovak border rapidly increased its competitiveness after 1989, following a 40 year separation by the Iron Curtain. As a result of the removal of many national and international barriers,...

OECD's Territorial Review of Canada. It finds that Canada is composed of three macroregions: a southern ribbon with all the important metropolitan areas, a zone of rural and non-metropolitan adjacent regions and a sub-continent of remote northern territories. Disparities between these...

This first edition of the OECD Territorial Outlook examines policy developments in the areas of urban, rural and regional affairs in OECD countries. It explains why territorial policies matter and shows how diverse OECD countries can be. It examines such issues as sustainable development,...

OECD's territorial review of Hungary. It finds that ater a period of decline Hungary has returned on a satisfactory growth track. However, benefit and cost have not been evenly distributed during the transition. This report points to the persisting disparities between the West and the East, the...

This review outlines the key issues which will be important in shaping the future development of Athens, identifies trends in governmental policies and highlights the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats in the Athens Region. Three policy areas identified as requiring particular...

OECD's territorial review of the Tzoumerka region of Greece. The Tzoumerka is a mountainous area in Northwestern Greece that presents considerable development challenges with respect to economic growth, social cohesion and governance. The area is highly dependent on traditional agricultural...