Content №1 от 2022
The Potential for the Development of Financial Market Institutions in Russia’s Federal Districts As the Basis for the Functioning of Regional Financial Centers
The article deals with the problem of establishing regional financial centers as a foundation for stimulating financial development in the regions in question. It puts forward a hypothesis about the need to create conditions for the financial development of federal districts based on the potential of financial market participants (issuers, investors, financial intermediaries, infrastructure organizations, regulatory and self-regulatory bodies), which would stimulate investment activity in the regions. We discuss models to form financial activity centers and substantiate a comprehensive one built upon institutional and instrumental approaches. The use of these approaches is justified with a view to introducing financial “afterburner" in Russia. As applied elements of the study, we have designed directions for a roadmap within each of the approaches (institutional and instrumental) to establish regional financial centers in Russia’s federal districts. The research relies on a representative statistical sample that allows assessing the current potential of participants in the Russian financial market as well as in individual federal districts.
Assessing the Spatial Development of the Russian Electronics Industry
Electronics is one of the critical industries that have a great impact on the social and economic growth of the industrial areas. The work aims to assess the spatial development of electronic production in the regions of Russia. To achieve this goal, we highlight the main development indicators of the electronic industry and provide the structure of the main types of electronics produced in the regions of Russia.
Microelectronics sets the pace for the development of the electronics industry. The lack of indicators for microelectronics growth in the Development Strategy for the Electronic Industry of the Russian Federation until 2030 makes it difficult to assess the effectiveness of its implementation. Our study tests a hypothesis whether it is possible to consider an integral indicator for assessing the localization of integrated electronic circuits production as an end-to-end indicator for the microelectronics spatial development. For this purpose, we have designed an integral indicator against the structural peculiarities of the industry. The feasibility of the applied approach defines the need to take into account both physical and intellectual productions of microcircuits as the primary products of fabless manufacturers.
By testing the designed integral indicator under current conditions in Russia, we managed to establish the development levels of microelectronic production located in the federal districts of Russia. The results obtained may be used to draft and adjust state programs and strategies for the development of the Russian electronics industry and the spatial development of Russian regions in general.
Population Migration for the Development of the Russian Arctic: Features and Opportunities
The article presents the results of the analysis to determine the volume and directions of migration flow of the population to the nine Arctic regions of Russia. It identifies labor surplus constituent entities of the Russian Federation relying on statistics on the state of regional labor markets and tests the hypothesis about the role of labor surplus regions in supplying the Arctic with human resources.
The analysis draws on official statistical reports by Rosstat on inter-regional migration of the people aged 14 and over. We examine the qualitative aspects of migration to the Arctic through the reasons why migrants change their place of residence, as well as their level of education. Based on aggregated information, it is possible to construct the structure of migration flows into the Arctic regions using statistical analysis methods.
The findings suggest that the 15 labor surplus regions account for only a small share of the total migratory flow to the Arctic. At the same time, it has been found that labor surplus regions, unlike other regions of Russia, are characterized by a positive balance of migration to the Arctic. The example of the Republic of Dagestan shows that the regions of the North Caucasus can act as suppliers of labor resources for the Arctic regions of Russia. Here we also identify 15 Russian regions of origin of the most migrants arriving in the Arctic each year.
The results of this study will be of use to the relevant authorities, especially to implement human resources policies aimed at attracting workforce to the Arctic regions.
Human Capital in Arkhangelsk Oblast: Its Essence and Calculation
The article provides an overview of interpretations of the concept of human capital suggested by international and Russian researchers. There is no consensus about human capital, which leads to numerous approaches to its measuring and assessing and requires further discussion since the issue is complex and multifaceted. The problem posed and the subject of our research require that it is necessary to supplement and expand the toolkit to improve the quality assessment of the indicator under study.
The paper uses an indicator method for assessing the level of human capital. We use the following factors as indicators: population, health, the standard of living, employment, living conditions, education, safety, and ecology. Each factor includes a specific list of indicators. The article interprets the values of the human capital level and introduces a new term, “criterion for assessing the quality of human capital level. "
As a database for analyzing and assessing the level of human capital, we rely on regional statistical information. The research testing ground is Arkhangelsk Oblast, along with the Nenets Autonomous Okrug and the Northwestern Federal District regions.
The results of this study may help regional bodies in charge of territorial development and be of use in designing strategies for the development of Russia’s constituent entities.
Human Capital As a Concept for the Socio-Economic Development Strategy of the Republic of Tatarstan
One of the leading factors in the development and efficiency of the innovation economy is human capital. The competitiveness of a country’s economy directly depends on its ability to develop, preserve, and accumulate human capital. The economy of modern developed countries is primarily characterized by high quality and level of human capital and considerable investment in its development.
The primary purpose of our research is to study human capital as a concept underlying the strategic guidelines of social and economic development of the Republic of Tatarstan. The law of the Republic of Tatarstan, “On Approval of the Strategy for Socio-Economic Development of the Republic of Tatarstan until 2030,” has been chosen as the fundamental information source. The research objectives are met by using content analysis as a qualitative-quantitative method of studying the content of text arrays. We apply two types of content analysis during the research: non-quantitative and quantitative. Based on non-quantitative content analysis, we construct a non-frequency model of the text content from the Republic’s strategy for socio-economic development in view of the human capital concept. On the other hand, quantitative content analysis allows us to record, describe in quantitative terms, and meaningfully interpret the categories most relevant for the study purposes: human capital, human potential, labor resources, and labor potential.
Modeling the Optimization of a School Network Amid Rural Depopulation (Case Study of Elabuzh District, the Republic of Tatarstan)
Given that rural settlement patterns actively transform due to a depopulating village network, agglomeration and urbanization processes, mass migration from suburbs and concentration of population in large cities, rural territorial systems demand to resolve the spatial organization of individual living environments. In particular, fewer residents and settlements render the educational system inefficient, both in terms of how much the educational process costs and how it is organized. In this regard, the issues of educational system logistics associated with optimizing schoolchildren’s transportation flows between settlements and planning the placement of social elements by territory are highly relevant.
The article analyzes the existing spatial organization of the educational system in rural areas of a municipality as illustrated by Elabuzh municipal district in the Republic of Tatarstan. Based on analytical study findings, we designed alternative models to organize a general educational system, which were then cross compared by performance indicators. The models built upon cluster formations with passenger turnover minimization have proved optimal; they allow us to determine the accommodation options with moderate costs and low transport load on the transported children. Another mechanism of traffic flows optimization is bound to developing the existing transport infrastructure so that a new level of the system’s spatial organization may become attainable. The results of this study can be applied in regional (municipal) management, forecasting and design, spatial and urban planning.
Agro-Industrial Regions in a Context of the Russian Territorial and Sectoral Structure Development: Changes in the Composition and in Socio-Economic Characteristics
The article presents the results in a study of Russian agro-industrial regions as a special group of territorial socio-economic systems with the features of economy and social sphere development and problems of prospects forming. The presented results complement the materials previously published in “Region: Economics and Sociology " (2019, No. 2), which reveal the specifics of the development of agro-industrial regions in statics. The purpose of this article is to identify changes in composition of agro-industrial regions, as well as dynamics of their socio-economic and demographic development for almost three decades.
We describe a methodology and results of the transformation that the territorial and sectoral structure of the Russian economy underwent. The article studies the shifts in the territorial and sectoral structure of the Russian economy, evaluates the changes that have occurred in each type of region, and characterizes the level and dynamics of the gross regional product of the agro-industrial regions.
We consider the socio-economic and demographic dynamics of the agro-industrial regions against the background of Russia. The population incomes, poverty, and inequality in the agro-industrial regions are described depending on the economic period characteristics. Regional differentiation for these indicators is assessed. The agro-industrial regions demonstrate the heterogeneity of demographic space. Regional grouping is proposed in terms of the level and nature of demographic development. The research reveals how the regions demographic characteristics depend on their centro-peripheral position.
We present an integrated estimate of the well-being dynamics of the agro-industrial regions on economic, social, and demographic indicators. On the one hand, they show a lack of correlation between the economic and social well-being in regions; on the other hand, the demographic well-being is not associated with those as well. The study concludes with exhibiting the unique traits of each agro-industrial regions.
Trotskovsky A. Ya. altailab@mail.ru
Perekarenkova Yu. A. perekarenkova@mail.ru
Comparative Analysis of the Large Cities’ Budgets
The budgetary policy is among the main tools for managing local development. Its effective implementation contributes to budget replenishment, allowing regions to increase expenditures on social and economic measures. This study aims to analyze the most important directions that state policy takes to fund the activities of local self-governments in large cities and to study the impact of budgetary policy on the development of urban areas with at least one million inhabitants.
The paper considers the primary fiscal indicators for the largest cities of the Russian Federation; assesses the structure of budget revenues to identify, on the one hand, how sufficient tax and non-tax revenues accumulated in cities and credited to their budgets are and, on the other hand, how dependent city budgets are on grants from the budgets of their respective regions; and carries out a detailed analysis of urban budget expenditures.
Since the city of Novosibirsk is the largest municipal entity in Russia, this article takes a close look at its budget specifically. By calculating fiscal coefficients, we study the city’s budget stability and reveal its stance both among the other largest cities of the federation and urban districts of Novosibirsk Oblast.
We analyze in greater detail crucial revenue items for Russian cities with a population of over one million, both accounting for their own tax and non-tax revenues and considering gratuitous transfers to urban budgets from regional ones. The article concludes that it is necessary to secure stable income tax sources to local budgets in general (and to cities in particular) to enhance their tax potential. We have noticed that between 2011 and 2018, urban areas with over a million inhabitants had the significantly poorer fiscal capacity and were less self-sufficient in terms of their revenues. Moreover, we have examined the main expenditure items for the largest Russian cities to determine whether they correspond to the socio-economic development goals of cities with over one million inhabitants. In Russia, such cities must be separated from the total population of municipalities as they act as the country’s growth drivers and have a decisive impact on its economy. Large cities need tax sources of income sufficient for their stable functioning and the formation of development budgets secured legislatively and at the federal level.
Positions of Large and Big Cities in Spatial Transformations of Regions of Russia: Case of the Urals
This article examines the positions of large cities (250-1,000 thousand people) and towns (100-250 thousand people) in regions’ economic space drawing on the example of the Ural macro region. We assess spatial significance in terms of specific weights in population size, investment, the volume of manufacturing output, retail trade turnover, and the commissioning of residential buildings. All indicators are found to have disproportions, which testifies to a violated spatial structure and a deformed economic space. Large cities and towns in the Urals are characterized by low population density, and their shares in the retail trade turnover and the commissioning of residential buildings are lower than shown by demographic indicators. The traditional industry is the only proverbial “anchor" that maintains the existing settlement structure. Compared to 2007, 2017 saw the spatial significance of large cities and towns in the Urals decreased. Such urban localities cease to function as trade and service centers for neighboring regions. Preserving the status quo poses the risks of growing imbalance in the national economic space and requires the advanced development of large cities and towns.
Efficiency and Equality: Twenty Years of Discussion on Spatial Development
In this review, we aim to analyze the development and mutual influence of the ideas of efficiency and equality in spatial development, the reflection of these ideas in competing concepts of regional policy from the 1990s to the present day, drawing on the three literature strata. The first stream of publications captures the debate about the role of space in an era of globalization and revolutionary changes in how information transmits. The polar hypotheses - from the “death of space" to the “tyranny of space" - have stimulated empirical assessments of the impact that distance has on the level of economic interactions, which have not confirmed the thesis of a “flat world" where economic activity is distributed evenly.
At the same time, dissatisfaction with the results of traditional redistributive regional policies matured in the expert community, giving rise to the second stratum of literature: a debate between the proponents of “space-neutral" and “place-based" policies. The former focuses on urban agglomerations as sources of growth, while the latter seeks to unlock the underutilized potential of each place. The discussion clarified the possible implications of these approaches for national economic efficiency and the reduction of regional inequalities. Recognizing the value of each place has brought forth a new requirement for the place-based policy to be “place-sensitive ”.
A similar discussion about the directions that the spatial development of Russia’s economy takes, and the principles of regional policy developed simultaneously in the Russian-speaking segment. The territorial concentration of growth in cities and the ways to reduce interregional inequality became major talking points. The peculiarity of such a debate was that it took place around the changing versions of spatial development strategies, often based on opposing principles.
