Article published by José Miguel González Hernández in the October issue of La Gaveta Económica.
Under the current circumstances, it is necessary to address the lack of sustained vitality of economic activity, drastically reducing unemployment rates with the consequent improvement of the processes of redistribution of the income generated. But at the same time, the objective of consolidating the economic structure must be added so that it does not suffer in the future the harmful effects with the intensity of the past and the present while strengthening those that have had a positive sign. In short, any proposal must be inherent to the reduction of vulnerability and dependence that our economy and society shows cycle after cycle.
This is why regional strategies must be designed based on the exercise of strategic leadership to address the undeniable interdependence of our economies. Under this premise, the strategy must have a double interrelated objective. On the one hand, promoting sustained economic development and, on the other, achieving a higher level of economic and social cohesion.
To achieve this, it is necessary to provide the economic structure of production and distribution with higher levels of competitiveness, incorporating high levels of knowledge, with the aim of competing in excellence, so that the knowledge applied to production and distribution activities has a defensive purpose, that is, aimed at overcoming the vulnerability that is inherent to economies deconcentrated from the apparent strategic axes and to the small magnitude of the internal market together with an active purpose, in the sense of tending to the constant improvement of goods and services. produced and the way they are produced.
In the case of small regional economies, far from large markets, their vulnerability is reduced by improving accessibility. Therefore, obstacles that translate into operational costs and times in the flow of goods, services and knowledge must be dismantled. In this way, nearby markets would be integrated, also reducing the economic distance with those that are geographically distant.
In short, it is about overcoming the conditions that are related to the accessibility deficit, promoting a strategy that makes companies more competitive together with more efficient Public Administrations in terms of the provision of services and public goods, so that the logistics of transporting people, goods, services and ideas acquires capital importance.
This is why, in order to grow in size, the maximization of connectivity related to the mobility of people and goods must be a priority. Even so, we must not forget that the absolute advantage of strategic location in the 21st century economy does not guarantee permanent positioning in the markets, which is what gives stability to the system and allows minimizing the economic and social cost of recessions. We are witnessing continuous change, so we must opt for continuous adaptation.
And, for this fact to become a competitive advantage, it needs the appropriate economic, social and environmental projects that can and should develop a core of economic growth, with the consequent generation of direct and indirect employment. Now, there must be coordination, with all of them being necessary, losing effectiveness if each of the projects are separate and unrelated to each other.
All these particularities mean that, when talking about changes in the so-called productive model, it is necessary to specify the necessary measures to develop an economic and fiscal framework that promotes the necessary incentives for investment, employment and social cohesion, as well as the collection necessary for an optimal provision of preferential public goods and services. Of course, you must have access to financing structures, investment plans and sectoral support along with the essential development of a system of measures related to innovation.
In this sense, the competitiveness of a region depends on its predisposition to innovation, as well as the price of its inputs, together with the degree of internationalization. Likewise, it is conditioned by the level of per capita income, factor productivity and the productive and socioeconomic structure in relation to other regions. For this reason, we must generate synergies that support economic growth, economic and social cohesion and commitment to quality of life. In this way, priorities are defined through the stability of long-term economic growth, economic and social cohesion in terms of equal opportunities, the reduction of income inequalities, the disappearance of social exclusion and responsibility in the use of natural resources focused on the commitment of current generations to the long term, without leaving aside the indispensable and necessary investment in human capital, as this is what the entire system will pivot on.
