Global Economic Integration and Regional Attractors of Competence
Author(s)
Eliasson, Gunnar
Abstract
Over the entire post-World War II period, globalization of production, investment, and finance have eroded the cohesive forces of the nation state as an economic and politically controlled entity, creating tension between national and local economic centers. Regional clusters of integrated economic activity moved by economic incentives have emerged that often transcend national borders. Such regions form their own economic and political entities that often relate more to the global economy than to any national economy. National government still has the opportunity to support national economic growth with policies aimed at developing an institutional environment that is attractive for global investment. Welfare responsibilities, on the other hand, are being undermined by the increased global mobility of tax bases. The need to substitute the central welfare responsibilities of the state with a more effective, flexible, and individually-based infrastructure of social capital is derived from this analysis.
