Local development challenge in lagging-behind areas: insights from new & evolutionary economic geography

Lagging-behind regions, as an example of the failure of convergence in a country, has attracted the attention of many researchers who are attempting to adopt applicable policies and strategies to overcome the problem of low growth paths. The present study focuses on the policy proposals in the context of new economic geography and evolutionary economic geography for lagging-behind areas. Industrial agglomeration, as an essential element of the new economic geography, has restricted the potential for policy-making in lagging-behind regions. Creating regional advantages, as a policy in evolutionary economic geography, has provided diversified policy options for lagging-behind regions. However, this approach faces multi-level challenges in lagging-behind regions, including the lack of critical mass about low diversity and the gap in the knowledge base between lagging-behind and affluent areas. Therefore, if this policy is to be the basis for creating regional objectives, it should provide a structure for simulating external knowledge links and distinguishing the nature of the various related industries.