Open AccessThe foundations of balanced regional development policy: The case of Tunisia
Author(s) -
Mohamed Ali Labidi
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
international journal of regional development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2373-9851
DOI - 10.5296/ijrd.v5i2.13420
Subject(s) - lagging , regional policy , regional development , context (archaeology) , unrest , regional science , order (exchange) , scale (ratio) , inequality , distribution (mathematics) , economic geography , public policy , economic growth , social unrest , geography , shift share analysis , development economics , political science , economics , economic system , politics , medicine , mathematical analysis , cartography , mathematics , archaeology , finance , pathology , law
Tunisian’s regional development policy has failed to reduce regional disparities and has been unable to support regions that are lagging behind economically. This has resulted in under-used economic potential andhigh social unrest. Understanding the regional development process requires a thorough knowledge of regional economic dynamics in terms of geographical distribution of economic activities. In the Tunisian context, regional development policies have not been up to the scale of the imbalance. Growing regional disparities and low density of economic activities in the interior regions of the country have raised an important question about the foundations of balanced regional development policy. The results indicate significant sectoral disparities between coastal and interior regions. Thus, this article outlines the role that public authorities can play in order to implement policies that correct spatial inequalities and assist regions that have been less favored by nature and history.