Regional Industrial Policy Evaluation: Introductory Remarks

Following on from the special issue of Scienze Regionali – Italian Journal of Regional Science recently edited by Fabio Mazzola (2015), this new special issue aims to contribute further to the debate on regional policy by bringing out parts of policy evaluation that have so far remained in the background. In fact, the range of interventions targeting firms and innovation is very wide, but most of the evaluation literature has to date focused on a limited number of instruments, namely R&D and generic investment supports. A first goal of this special issue is to encourage evidence-based debate on some parts of regional policymaking that, despite being common, are still understudied. A second goal of the special issue is to fuel further debate on the regional effects of national programmes. The most important lesson to be drawn from this special issue is that neither regional nor national interventions are necessarily bound to fail, but there is considerable room for improvement.

Scienze regionali, Special Issue “Regional Industrial Policy Evaluation: New Insights from the Italian Experience” (edited by Marco Mariani)