The Metropolitan Regions. Regional Policy and the Decentralized Regional Structure in Germany

2018 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 15K03591
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Economic history
• Research Institution: Ritsumeikan University
• Principal Investigator: Yamai Toshiaki 立命館大学, 経済学部, 教授 (10230301)
• Project Period (FY): 2015-04-01 – 2019-03-31
• Keywords: メトロポリタン・リージョン / 地域政策 / 地方自治 / 民主主義 / Verband Region Stuttgart / シュトゥットガルト21

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Since the 1990s, German regional policy experienced a remarkable change. In contrast to the regional policy in the previous years, which mainly pursued to mitigate the regional disparity and to maintain and construct a decentralized regional structure, the focus of the policy now moved rather to promote the development of key areas that could be footholds of German economic development in the global locational competition: The eleven Metropolitan Regions that were designated by the federal government since 1995 were to be such areas and expected to be the "motors" of German social, cultural and economic development. Focusing on one of these areas, the Stuttgart Metropolitan Region, and the "Stuttgart 21", a gigantic redevelopment project in the Stuttgart area, this study investigated the German regional policy and especially issues related to democracy in the regional development.

Free Research Field

社会科学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

メトロポリタン・リージョンについては、ドイツではとくに経済地理学の分野で早くから研究がなされてきた。そこでは、国際的立地競争の拠点としての機能をそれぞれの地域がどれほど果たしえているかの検証に重点がおかれている。これに対して、地方自治・民主主義の問題を検討の軸に据えたところに本研究の特色がある。政府の「地方創生」事業や、人口減に伴う「自治体消滅」の予測などが示すように、地域形成の問題は日本の将来にとって喫緊の課題であり続けている。本研究が明らかにしたドイツの経験は、日本にとっても重要な示唆を与えてくれるだろう。