Magyarországi megyék társadalmi és gazdasági fejlettségének vizsgálata

According to the present position of the European Commission, closing the development gap among regions is of crucial importance in regard to the economic growth and competitiveness of the EU as a whole. To decrease regional disparities, Hungary is expecting a sum of € 33 Mrd from community sources in the period 2007-2013. The precondition of obtaining the EU subsidies in question (as well as their utilization) is basically twofold: (1) the region should have a GDP (PPP) per capita that does not exceed the 75% of the EU average (grants are to be spent on regional development), while (2) the receiving country's GNI should be 90% or less than the EU average (grants may be spent on inter-regional issues such as environmental and infrastructural development). It is clear from the above, that obtaining EU subsidies mainly depends on the status quo of the member states' national accounts, which are considered to be the foremost indicators of a country's or region's developmental level. This assumption raises two important questions: (1) whether GDP per capita is an effective indicator of (regional) development and (2) if there are other, "more-embracing" solutions to measure economic performance and well being than GDP. An analysis carried out by the author examines the relationship between (a) the level of GDP and (b) the economic and social development of Hungarian counties. The model may help in assessing the efficiency of the Hungarian cohesion policy. It may also provide an opportunity to define the leading industries of underdeveloped regions, thus contributing to the quest for the best ways of regional development. Besides discussing the questions posed above, the author also presents the methodology of his model, including the pitfalls caused by the specific dynamics of the capital's (Budapest) development