Cluster and Network Approach in Regional Development

An integral element of modern regional economies of the EU is that of network ties between the participants of economic life who are exceptionally successful at innovativeness and regional competitiveness. The significance of the innovative network is increased with the perspective of intervention undertaken within the framework of the EU structural policies. The changes in emphasis in the course of increasing pressure on innovativeness and development of new technology is evident, instead of the exclusive subsidies to poorer regions. The central role in increasing the competitiveness of EU regions with relation to the economies of USA and the fast growing economies of South East Asia, especially Japan and to an increasing degree China and India, is attributed to the construction of regional networks of sectoral interaction of enterprises. The network form of interaction is seen as the way to increase productivity and innovativeness. In deliberations on the topic of regional networks of interaction, it is worth paying attention to the concept of clusters which can be acknowledged as one of the key elements in the development of regional systems of innovation. Regional clusters are characterized by a particularly advanced network structure and its significance is equally emphasized by the innovative policies of spatial arrangements. The concept of clusters, widely popularized in associated literature and already standardized in its initiation within the framework of the policies of developing EU regions is attributed the role of strengthening the regional innovative abilities. Clusters have become an integral part of regional systems of innovation and rather one of the conditions facilitating the shaping such systems in regions. This is the conditioning of the fundamental role that the process of clustering (or in other words, the spatial concentration of network structures1) plays in increasing competitiveness and innovativeness in local economies.