Border effects have long been studied and are a central element of EU regional policies. While most literature takes a macroeconomic approach, this paper adopts a microeconomic one, studying the ...impact on firm productivity in border areas. The empirical analysis, on Italian land borders, employs a novel two‐phases double‐matching design, which considers firm‐level characteristics as well as the territorial capital of municipalities where they locate. Results suggest that border effects are not limited to territories close to the border but affect larger areas. Furthermore, they are significant and negative in urban areas, while they are insignificant in peripheral areas which are characterized by low accessibility and territorial capital endowment.
Resumen
Los efectos fronterizos se estudian desde hace tiempo y son un elemento central de las políticas regionales de la UE. Mientras que la mayor parte de la literatura adopta un enfoque macroeconómico, este artículo adopta uno microeconómico, estudiando el impacto sobre la productividad de las empresas en las zonas fronterizas. El análisis empírico realizado sobre las fronteras terrestres italianas emplea un novedoso diseño de doble emparejamiento en dos fases, que tiene en cuenta las características a nivel de empresa, así como el capital territorial de los municipios donde se ubican. Los resultados sugieren que los efectos fronterizos no se limitan a los territorios cercanos a la frontera, sino que afectan a zonas más amplias. Además, son significativos y negativos en las zonas urbanas, mientras que son insignificantes en las zonas periféricas que se caracterizan por una baja accesibilidad y dotación de capital territorial.
抄録
国境効果については長期にわたって研究されてきているが、これはEUの地域政策の中心的要素である。多くの研究ではマクロ経済的アプローチが採用されているが、本稿ではミクロ経済的アプローチを採用し、国境地域における企業の生産性に対する影響を検討する。本研究の実証分析では、イタリアの国境地域を対象とし、企業レベルの特性と企業の立地する自治体の州都を考慮に入れた、新しい2段階の2重マッチング設計を採用している。結果から、国境効果は国境に近い領域に限定されず、より大きな地域に影響を及ぼすことが示唆される。さらに、国境効果は、都市部では有意かつ否定的であるのに対し、アクセシビリティが低く地域資本の賦存が少ないという特徴の周辺地域では有意ではない。
During the recent decade, scholars have started to pay more attention to how the local socio‐institutional environment affects the outcome of regional cross‐border co‐operation (CBC) programmes and ...projects. This paper studies the social capital processes of CBC, particular focus being on how power and trust relations are manifested in project networking and implementation governed by public authorities. The examination focuses on the border towns of Tornio (Finland) and Haparanda (Sweden) which share a common cultural history and a long tradition of co‐operation. The results, based on document analysis and 16 interviews, show that the CBC at Tornio‐Haparanda is not unproblematic but contested by different interest groups and actors. It involves practices of inclusion and exclusion that influence mobilisation, engagement and trust building between different actors. The social capital processes are intertwined with the local norms and values as well as with the strategic networking and pursuance of specific development objectives.
The paper observes an advent of unilateralism, brought by the pandemic, which has restricted cross-border flows and co-operation in the E.U. The pandemic re-introduced borders back in the E.U. and ...introduced new national border policies, which have complicated the lives of the people in the border regions. This might imply the imperfect communication between local cross-border co-operation stakeholders and central governments. It is therefore proposed to use the set of following five roles, which explain the importance of cross-border co-operation in cross-border regions: (1) multi-level governance form, (2) regional development tool, (3) paradiplomacy form, (4) post-conflict reconciliation tool and (5) Europe-building instrument. As those five roles cover functional, ideational and structural dimensions of cross-border co-operation, they have a potential to prevent the representatives of the central states from one-size-fits-all solutions and respect specificities of borderlands. This should help in the cases of repeated health crises, which would restrain the free border crossing in the E.U.
Russia has the largest number of neighbours in the world, with 16 different countries distributed along its more than 20,000 km land border. The diversity of situations in border regions offers an ...opportunity to study and to compare the influence of historical, cultural and geopolitical factors on the economic development of border regions, everyday life of population and interactions with the neighbours. The paper summarizes the results of recent projects devoted to Russian borderlands. It is based on the concept of bordering and a study of social practices. All Russian borders are analysed as a single system. The authors consider the impact of the 2014 crisis in Ukraine and the following geopolitical events on cross‐border interactions of Russian border regions and analyse the effects of border location on the development of Russian regions. A special attention is paid to the combined influence on bordering of both “hard,” “material” (the demographic situation, the territorial pattern of settlements and economy, etc.) and “soft” factors (the role of a border in territorial identities, political discourses and the perception of a neighbouring country, etc.). The fragmentation of the border space and the increasing asymmetry of socio‐economic indicators and cross‐border interactions between neighbouring territories are shown.
Resumen
Rusia tiene el mayor número de vecinos del mundo, con 16 países diferentes distribuidos a lo largo de sus más de 20.000 km de frontera terrestre. La diversidad de situaciones en las regiones fronterizas ofrece la oportunidad de estudiar y comparar la influencia de los factores históricos, culturales y geopolíticos en el desarrollo económico de las regiones fronterizas, la vida cotidiana de la población y las interacciones con los países vecinos. En este artículo se resumen los resultados de algunos proyectos recientes dedicados a las tierras fronterizas rusas. Se basa en el concepto de “estar en la frontera” y en un estudio de las prácticas sociales. Todas las fronteras rusas se analizan como un único sistema. Se examinan las repercusiones de la crisis de 2014 en Ucrania y los acontecimientos geopolíticos posteriores en las interacciones transfronterizas de las regiones fronterizas rusas y se analizan los efectos de la ubicación de las fronteras en el desarrollo de las regiones rusas. Se presta especial atención a la influencia conjunta en la frontera tanto de factores “duros”, “materiales” (la situación demográfica, el patrón territorial de los asentamientos y la economía, etc.) y “blandos” (el papel de una frontera en las identidades territoriales, los discursos políticos y la percepción de un país vecino, etc.). Se muestra la fragmentación del espacio fronterizo y la creciente asimetría de los indicadores socioeconómicos y las interacciones transfronterizas entre territorios vecinos.
This paper aims to examine how Russian north‐western regions and municipalities use their marginal/border position as a resource to build a sustainable development strategy. Theoretically, this study ...is based on the marginality theory which states that border or remotely located subnational units are able to turn their marginality from disadvantage to a resource and transform themselves from depressed and provincial territories to attractive places hosting intense international flows of goods, services, capital, technologies and people. A number of venues for the EU‐Russia cross‐border co‐operation are explored: the European Neighbourhood Instrument, Northern Dimension partnerships, Euroregions and city‐twinning. The authors conclude that despite some problems with establishing a proper division of labour between above programmes and project implementation cross‐border co‐operation proved to be a valuable instrument not only for successful development of the marginal/border actors but also for establishing mutual trust and collaborative relations between Russia and neighbouring EU countries.
Resumen
Este artículo tiene como objetivo examinar cómo las regiones y municipios del noroeste de Rusia utilizan su posición remota/fronteriza como un recurso para construir una estrategia de desarrollo sostenible. Teóricamente, este estudio se basa en la teoría de la marginalidad que afirma que las unidades subnacionales fronterizas o situadas en lugares remotos son capaces de convertir su marginalidad, pasando de ser una desventaja a ser un recurso y transformarse para pasar de territorios deprimidos y provinciales a ser lugares atractivos que albergan intensos flujos internacionales de bienes, servicios, capital, tecnologías y personas. En el artículo se exploran varios formatos para la cooperación transfronteriza UE‐Rusia: el Instrumento Europeo de Vecindad, los consorcios de la Dimensión Septentrional, las Euroregiones y el hermanamiento entre ciudades. Los autores llegan a la conclusión de que, a pesar de ciertos problemas para establecer una división adecuada del trabajo entre los programas mencionados y la ejecución de los proyectos, la cooperación transfronteriza demostró ser un instrumento valioso no sólo para el desarrollo satisfactorio de los actores remotos/fronterizos, sino también para establecer una confianza mutua y relaciones de colaboración entre Rusia y los países vecinos de la UE.
抄録
本稿の目的は、ロシアの北西部の地域と自治体が、どのように自らの辺境/国境の立地を持続可能な開発戦略を構築するための資源として利用するかを検討することである。理論的には、この研究は、国境または遠隔に位置する地方自治体は、その辺境性を不利な状態から資源へと転換し、景気の悪い地方の地域から、商品、サービス、資本、技術、人員の激しい国際的な流れを受け入れる魅力的な場所へと転換することができるという周縁性理論に基づいている。European Neighbourhood Instrument、ノーザン・ディメンション・パートナーシップ、ユーロリージョンおよび姉妹都市提携などのように、EU‐ロシア間の国境を越えた協力活動のための多くの候補地が調査されている。上記のプログラムで適切な分業の確立にはいくつかの問題があったが、我々は、国境を越えた共同プロジェクトの実施は境界/国境のアクターの開発の成功だけでなく、ロシアと近隣のEU諸国との間の相互信頼と協力関係を確立するための貴重な手段であることが証明されたと結論する。
In the life cycle of cross‐border cooperation programmes, their performance is assessed according to a European Commission methodology, focusing mainly on relevance, efficiency, effectiveness, impact ...and sustainability, added value, coherence, consistency, complementarity and synergies. Covering these key dimensions of performance assessment, this paper proposes an analysis on the effectiveness of 2007–2013 cross‐border co‐operation programmes between Romania, Moldova and Ukraine, from the perspective of the perception of projects beneficiaries. The study was based on a qualitative and quantitative research, by applying questionnaires to a large number of beneficiaries. The added value of the research derives from the comparative analysis of the perceptions of the beneficiaries from the three countries, thus taking into account the interpretation of the programme results in relation to these perceptions. The main purpose of the paper was to evaluate the extent to which they are perceived as being adapted to local/regional needs, correlated with the capacity of local actors to participate in the programmes thus bringing about a relevant contribution to development. The results obtained highlighted that there are gaps between the three countries included in the analysis in terms of perceiving the effectiveness of cross‐border co‐operation programmes. The limits of the research are related to the impossibility of making a comparison, at least currently, regarding the effectiveness of 2007–2013 versus 2014–2020 programmes.
Resumen
En el ciclo de vida de los programas de cooperación transfronteriza, su desempeño se evalúa con arreglo a una metodología de la Comisión Europea, centrada principalmente en la pertinencia, la eficiencia, la eficacia, el impacto y la sostenibilidad, el valor añadido, la coherencia, la regularidad, la complementariedad y las sinergias. Mediante la consideración de estas dimensiones clave de la evaluación del desempeño, este documento propone un análisis de la eficacia de los programas de cooperación transfronteriza de 2007‐2013 entre Rumanía, Moldavia y Ucrania, desde la perspectiva de la percepción de los beneficiarios de los proyectos. El estudio se basó en una investigación cualitativa y cuantitativa mediante la aplicación de cuestionarios a un gran número de beneficiarios. El valor añadido de la investigación se deriva del análisis comparativo de las percepciones de los beneficiarios de los tres países, teniendo en cuenta la interpretación de los resultados del programa en relación con esas percepciones. El principal objetivo del documento fue evaluar en qué medida se perciben como adaptados a las necesidades locales/regionales, en correlación con la capacidad de los agentes locales para participar en los programas, aportando así una contribución pertinente al desarrollo. Los resultados obtenidos pusieron de relieve que existen desfases entre los tres países incluidos en el análisis en cuanto a la percepción de la eficacia de los programas de cooperación transfronteriza. Los límites de la investigación están relacionados con la imposibilidad de hacer una comparación, al menos en este momento, respecto de la eficacia de los programas de 2007‐2013 frente a los de 2014‐2020.
抄録
国境を越えた協力プログラムのライフサイクルにおいて、その成果は、重要性、効率性、有効性、影響と持続可能性、付加価値、首尾一貫性、継続的不変性、補完性、相乗性に主に焦点を当て、欧州委員会の方法論に従って評価される。成果の評価のこれらの重要な側面を踏まえて、本稿では、プロジェクトの受益者の認識の観点での、ルーマニア、モルドバ、ウクライナの間の2007~2013年の国境を越えた協力プログラムの有効性に関する分析を提示する。この研究は、多くの受益者から質問票の回答を得る、定性的および定量的研究に基づくものである。研究の付加価値は、3カ国の受益者の認識の比較分析に由来するものであり、すなわちプログラムの結果の解釈をその認識に関連して考慮している。本稿の主な目的は、それらがその地方/地域のニーズに適合していると認識されている程度を評価することであり、それはプログラムに参加する地域の主体の能力と相関するため、開発に重要な貢献をもたらすものである。結果は、分析の対象の3国間では、国境を越えた協力プログラムの有効性の認識に差があることを明確に示すものであった。研究の限界は、少なくとも現在のところでは、2007~2013年と2014~2020年のプログラムの有効性を比較することができないことに関係している。
European integration has had a dual impact on border regions. On the one hand, borders were physically dismantled across most of the EU's internal territory. On the other hand, they have become a ...fertile ground for territorial co-operation and institutional innovation. The degree of cross-border co-operation and organization achieved varies considerably from one region to another depending on a combination of various facilitating factors for effective cross-border co-operation, more specifically, economic, political leadership, cultural/identity and state formation, and geographical factors. This article offers a conceptual framework to understand the growth and diversity of cross-border regionalism within the EU context by focusing on the levels of and drives for co-operation.
While the relatively free and frequent flow of traffic across international boundaries is an essential foundation of cross‐border regions, cross‐border public transit systems are the ultimate symbols ...of metropolitan integration. This paper investigates the governance of the cross‐border transit system in Eurometropolis of Lille‐Kortrijk‐Tournai between France and Belgium. It relies on a qualitative analysis of actors and institutions as well as social network analysis to more precisely fix the positions and roles of actors on either side of the border. The new cross‐border institution, the EGTC agency, is a central actor in public transit policy networks and its function is more complex than the institutional analysis implies. Evaluating these roles in evolving cross‐border public transit policy enables an assessment of the effectiveness of this new governance institution and the challenges faced by general‐purpose cross‐border governance structures in affecting policy areas in which political authority is fragmented.
This paper analyses the strategic role of tourism within the Hungary–Croatia (IPA) Cross-border Co-operation Programme 2007–2013 (hereinafter HU-HR (IPA) CBC Programme), as well as in the Interreg ...V-A Hungary–Croatia Co-operation Programme 2014–2020 (hereinafter Interreg V-A HU-HR CBC Programme). HU-HR (IPA) CBC Programme applied a new two-step development approach to tourism, with no similar case in other CBC programmes. First, it prescribed the preparation of the Regional Tourism Product Plan (RTPP) within a special project (Varjú, et al., 2013) and only after the RTPP was elaborated, could the open call for tourism proposals be launched at the end of 2011 (Čelan, 2015). Interreg V-A HU-HR CBC Programme has continued with usage of RTPP as the obligatory strategic guidelines. The main goal of this research is to review the impact of tourism on the border area and to conclude whether it has become a real connecting element, or the developments were only scattered and limited. The author will analyse publicly available Programme level documents and reports, furthermore, examine the methodology introduced in the planning of tourism actions in the Programme. As of results, more than 36% of contracted EU funds in the Programme supported 38 tourism projects, which proved to be beyond the expectations of planners in HU-HR (IPA) CBC Programme. The share of tourism in the Interreg V-A HU-HR CBC Programme 2014–2020 increased, where 46% of the total funds allocated to the Programme went to 34 tourism projects. The approach in the decision making and selection of projects will be studied. The tensions arose among the local and regional stakeholders, due to the lack of funds and as of their strong interest mainly for the infrastructural tourism projects. The author will try to prove the hypothesis that the tourism is not a real connecting feature of the EU funded Cross-border Co-operation and the border area. He presumes that a tourism disconnection is a combined consequence of geographical border handicap and not properly planned and implemented Cross-border Programmes, having also relatively small amounts available for joint Hungarian–Croatian developments.
The Czech–Polish border is almost 800 kilometres long. Since 1991, 6 Euroregions and two European Groupings of Territorial Co-operation (EGTC) were created and have been conducting cross-border ...cooperation (CBC) along the entire length of the border. This was probably also the institutionalisation of cross-border co-operation, what has helped to reach and maintain a high level of mutual Czech–Polish relations. What can therefore be considered striking or surprising is a rather low level of cross-border labor mobility between the labor forces of both countries. Authors therefore attempted to identify projects and initiatives in the field of the cross-border labor market along the entire border. Research showed that the CBC stakeholders don’t prioritise co-operation in the field of the labor market, as they don’t see any real cross-border demand. There are some exceptions, driven mainly by the automotive and mining industries in Czechia attracting a Polish workforce. The main reason for the relatively low level of Czech–Polish cross-border co-operation in the field of the labor market is an absence of a major economic engine on either side of the border, rather than any kind of hostile or re-bordering sentiments in mutual relations between subjects from both countries.
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