The new Regionalism and the services role on development; transformations of the economic regional hyerarchies

Abstract

This paper analyzes the role of the activities of services activities as inductive of the social and economic development, due to regional effects of the productive restructuring that is seen world-wide in the present time. The analysis adopts a recent theoretical approach, the “New Regionalism” that presents the discussions on economic growth and regional development from a new governance paradigm and not only as a political dynamics. It examines new hierarchical patterns of economic concentration, that result from the regional political and productive reorganization process that present new forms of regionalization. This article first analyzes the elements which respond for the productive restructuring, economic development and increasing relevance of the services activities. It follows the exam of this dynamic impact effects on regional hierarchies and on the definition of new regionalization patterns, and it is seen that services activities has a special function in the regional changes and development processes.