Deferred Regionalisation as the Feature of Regional Policy in the Transition Period

Abstract

The study is aiming at presenting the most important characteristics of the Hungarian regional policy during the transition period. It defines the challenges the Hungarian regional development has to face before the accession, using the comparison of this political subsystem with the expectations of European Union's regional policy as a basis. The study pays attention to regionalisation, to the development of regions and to the factors assisting and hindering this process.

The study has three chapters. The first period, which finished in 1996, was the period of regional crisis management. Spatial impacts of political and economical system transformation were shocking. However foreign funds (Phare programme) played very important role in the management of regional crises, several measures were carried out to renew the economic structure especially to settle down foreign investments (western part of the country) and to diminish disadvantageous infrastructure situation (eastern part of the country). In the first period aims and methodologies of the traditional regional policy were dominant which were connected to modern market economy.

The second period (1996-1999) was characterised by the development of the institutional system of regional policy. The act on regional development has been passed, which provided the required frame for regional policy, and Regional Development Conception of Hungary defined the principals and directions of policy. Regions appeared only as a frame of principle, the counties and small regions formed the basic level of regional development. In the period of development of the institution system regional development received new impulse. Although planning started and management organisations were established, there were no available resources for development.

The third period started in 1999 with the modification of the act on regional development. This increased the role of regions. However in economic policy the focus moved to the central programme, the govemment representation in regional development was very week and feeble and the political elite did not committed itself to strong decentralisation so the conceptions of regionalisation were hindered. In this last period the elements of post-modern regional policy has already been appeared especially endogenous development initiatives, innovation systems building and local economy development.

In the second chapter of the study we compare the characteristics of transition with the principles of the European Union's regional policy. Although the principle of subsidiary got its way in regional policy, the real, operable regional level was not developed so the enforcement of regional interests were divided. The principle of partnership was only partly realised because of the restrained co-operation of regional development actors, which were not bottom-up initiated, but were initiated by the just forming regions for their management. Management organisations of regional development have been established but their co-operation with the development actors is only forming gradually. The principles of programming were adapted into Hungarian regional policy successfully. Analysis and planning of regional processes have been started and development programmes for different regional levels were elaborated. Resources for these development programmes have not been available yet, so the principle of additionality was only partly realised. In the previous years central programmes received determinant priority and they were connected to regional development conceptions only in indirect ways though we could not doubt their necessarity.

Transition has not finished in the Hungarian regional policy, which could be characterised by the dichotomy and continuos fight between centralisation and decentralisation. Development and preparation for European Union might and should have accelerated the regionalisation process with vast political support. The frames of this (institutional system, management, plans and programmes) have already been existed and are suitable for larger autonomy, which could open new areas of socio-economic development.