Buchwald E.M., Valentik O.N. Regional Development Policy in a New Strategic Perspective

Evgeniy  M.  Buchwald
Institute of Economics of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russian Federation
Olga  N.  Valentik
Institute of Economics of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russian Federation

Abstract. The article notes that the expiration in 2025 of the “Fundamentals of the State Regional Development Policy of the Russian Federation...” adopted in 2017 raises the question not only of updating this important document in the area of socio-economic regulation but also, in general, of the feasibility of such work against the backdrop of efforts carried out recently to develop the theoretical and methodological basis for spatial strategizing and territorial planning in the Russian economy. It is concluded that, despite the convergence of many aspects of regional development policy and spatial strategizing, these two areas of centralized government regulation should be assigned independent tasks that are important for the sustainable socio-economic development of Russia as a federal state. To solve this problem, it’s necessary first of all to evaluate the implementation of the most important targets of the “Fundamentals...” of 2017 and to show the ways of their updating and coordination with the main provisions of the latest renewed variant of the Spatial Development Strategy of the Russian Federation, adopted in 2024. An important task mentioned in the article is the further development of the theoretical and methodological foundations of spatial strategizing, as well as the need to specify the objectives and economic and legal mechanisms of the innovations in this area, which were formulated in the new Spatial Development Strategy adopted in 2024. Special attention is paid to the practical issues of implementation of the principle of “priority” in the territories’ development policy and to the possibilities of use of this principle in order to ensure sustainable economic growth in regions and municipalities, as well as to improve social services for the population. The authors emphasize the importance of taking into account the historical experience of the USSR, both positive and negative, in the implementation of the strategy for the advanced development of various types of support, priority, and similar territories in modern conditions. Authors’ contribution. E.M. Buсhwald – development of theoretical and methodological foundations of spatial strategizing and substantiation of their connection with the development of economic and legal foundations of Russian federalism; analysis of the essence and historical roots of the principle of priority in spatial regulation; O.N. Valentik – analysis of the features of local self-government at the current stage of spatial reforms; study of practical possibilities of use of the principle of “priority” to ensure sustainable growth of socio-economic complexes of regions and municipalities 

Key words: strategic planning, spatial strategizing, regional development policy, economic alignment, municipal reform, principle of priority in spatial regulation.
Citation. Buchwald E.M., Valentik O.N., 2026. Regional Development Policy in a New Strategic Perspective. Regionalnaya ekonomika. Yug Rossii [Regional Economy. South of Russia], vol. 14, no. 2, pp. 4-15. (in Russian). DOI: https://doi.org/10.15688/re.volsu.2026.2.1

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