This study examines the regional Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) framework as a tool for cooperative practice among Connecticut's municipal practitioners. The creation of a CEDS document is a prerequisite for municipalities wishing to access planning and public works funds of the Economic Development Administration (EDA). It is the primary means by which the EDA uniformly measures regional commitment to economic planning. With ever decreasing real funding levels and ever increasing demand, the EDA relies on its regional CEDS framework to evaluate the planning and implementation capacities of economic development organizations that cross political boundaries. This study examines the regional CEDS process and document from the municipal perspective, the claims that a CEDS developed through an inclusive process, driven by diverse stakeholders, results in lasting implementation strategies that are in greater adherence to regional goals; and that a well constructed CEDS document fosters greater cooperation among municipal officials in regional economies. The findings are based on primary data collection, including interviews and the surveying of two Connecticut CEDS regions and one control region that has not been involved in the creation of a CEDS. I use interviews and survey results from municipal stakeholders to assess the benefits and limitations of the CEDS process to economic development practice in Connecticut. This study finds participation in a regional CEDS is, by itself, insufficient to increase development of regional solutions. However, strong administrative leadership by various regional organizations participation in a CEDS increases inter-municipal communication and engagement in comprehensive economic development planning.

Thesis (M.Dev.) --University of Limpopo, 2018 / The aim of this study is to investigate and assess the effectiveness of Greater Tzaneen Municipality in implementing LED strategies in rural communities. Although the concept of Local Economic Development has been studied and widely debated in South Africa, the present study intends to determine the extent to which the implementation of LED strategy by Greater Tzaneen Municipality contributes towards improving the livelihood of communities for sustainable local economic development. In other words, the study purports to develop a more holistic understanding of the dynamics of local economic development efforts. This is a mixed method study in which elements of qualitative and quantitative approaches to collect, analyze, validate and interpret data were used. Quantitative design was used to profile respondents and do some statistical analysis of the population. The quantitative design used was in the form of a semi-structured survey questionnaire to acquire statistical data. Since the study is heterogeneous, stratified random sampling was used for the quantitative design whereby ward councillors, ward committees, project leaders and community stakeholders (n= 60) participated. For the qualitative aspect of the study face-to-face interviews schedule was used in order to construct the reality from the interviewees‟ world and to gain more in-depth dynamics and complexities by virtue of being the more natural form of interaction with respondents. Key municipal officials directly involved in LED and those who have more knowledge and information concerning LED implementation were identified by means of purposive sampling technique (n=10). The findings revealed that even though Greater Tzaneen Municipality on average is on the implementation side, there are some factors that hinder it from achieving the 100% LED strategy implementation. Even though policies are in place, it appears like LED strategies have produced very few success stories for various reasons country wide which among others includes lack of capacity within municipalities, financial constraints and poor and incorrect implementation. The other challenge is that communities regard LED as employment creation by municipalities and should not be viewed only as creating economic benefits, but as playing a vital role in poverty alleviation and therefore should have a strong social focus. As per the constitutional mandate Section 152 (1), (2) and Section 153 LED should be an integral part in the planning activities of municipalities across departments and not be afterthought. The process should clearly reflect participation by all wards and their respective communities, local economic growth, poverty alleviation and job creation as well as prioritizing human development initiatives.

This research provides information about Economic Development Zones (EDZ) to help the reader understand these programs. For a business owner they are able to make informed decisions about the merits of these programs and decide whether it makes sense for them to relocate their businesses to Florida’s Economic Development Zones. What most readers do not know is that these programs and the operating condition of an Economic Development Zone can offer benefits to a business owner, allowing them to reduce their operating expenses and the cost of doing business. Over the past several years, the researcher discussed foreign trade opportunities with different individuals. One of these conversations was with the sale director of a company located at Sebring Airfield and Intermodal Facility in Sebring, Florida. In this discussion, the benefits of locating a business in an Economic Development Zone, within an economically depressed rural area of Florida, was introduced. This conversation led to researching what it takes to relocate or operate a business in Economic Development Zones located in rural areas. The basic purpose in creating an EDZ through local, state, and federal government agencies is to reduce unemployment in depressed areas of the United States. This goal is accomplished by incentivizing businesses to create jobs and make capital investments in those areas. Different levels of government offer incentives to companies for relocating or expanding their businesses by creating Economic Zones. The incentives for relocating, expanding, or starting a business in an EDZ can be very lucrative. Businesses look for every opportunity to reduce their operating expenses by reducing the cost of doing business. Through incentives and tax breaks, a business could reduce its yearly operating costs making them more competitive. The goal of companies is to reduce their overhead and the government goal is to create jobs which should be mutually supportive, yet it is not the case. This lack of awareness is a major contributing factor for why these programs are not successful. From prior research conducted during a literature review, there is very little information about these programs beyond government webpages. With the rapid turnover of programs due to the political election cycle, there is little current information on the most recent EDZ except what is offered at the Federal level. One of the challenges in starting operations in an EDZ is the identification of the different stakeholders for federal, state and local programs. The lines of communication and the delineation of responsibilities between the federal government, state, and local development councils can be very confusing. In order to navigate between the different programs a business owner needs to understand how support flows down to the local agencies. An interest trend from this research, is a clear lack of awareness about these programs. Most business leaders are not aware of their local economic development office and only a few businesses had received any benefits from this organization. There is a need for better awareness about these opportunities. After reading these articles, a business leader is able to make informed decisions about the merits of these programs and decide whether it makes sense for them to relocate or expand their businesses to Florida’s Economic Development Zones.

中國大陸自1978年改革開放後，經濟成長驚人，但是這個成長是伴隨著城鄉之間的差距與地區之間的差距。地區間絕對差距與相對差距都在逐年擴大，以1999年的資料，上海與貴州人均GDP相差16倍，絕對差距為一萬元人民幣。對於區域間發展差異的問題，有些學者從自然環境差異等天賦條件因素解釋；另有一派學者則以依賴理論說明市場自然運作的結果；亦有專家以過去計畫經濟時期的歷史發展來說明國家能力，尤其是財政能力，是消弭差異的主要關鍵；也有人以政府的傾斜政策，將資源導向被傾斜的一方流動，致使東西差異形成。本論文認為經濟事物應回歸經濟的角度來探討，再結合制度（正式與非正式）選擇對於經濟層面的干擾因素，來尋求各地區經濟發展差異的解答。在理論上，以新經濟成長理論為基礎，認為除了生產要素的增加外，資源配置是否有效率亦是經濟成長的重要關鍵，而制度決定資源配置的效率，因此，東西部的制度落差是造成東西部經濟成長差異的源頭。這樣的制度落差可以分為兩個面向來探討：第一是經濟領域上政府的退出；第二是社會關係、法律制度、中介組織等相關配套措施的建立。要使得地區發展能夠得到平衡，管制的解除以及新制度的建立是主要的關鍵，尤其是不合理戶口制度造成勞動市場的不健全以及各地方和全國法律的完善程度。本論文整合時間（1978年到1999年）和橫斷面（28個省市區）的統計數據，使用迴歸分析說明制度變數與經濟成長之間的關係。 / Since the reform in 1978, China has experienced an astonishing economic growth. However, the disparity between the coastal and inner provinces is increasing. According to the 1999 statistics, the GDP in Shanghai is sixteen times of GDP in Guizhou. More and more scholarship focuses on the uneven development in China. The reasons of regional disparity in China have focused on the geography, the operation of market, the weakening of the central government's power, or the preferential policies received by the coastal provinces. These can't fully explain China's disparity. I argue that the real reasons for China's disparity lying in the " institutions" (formal and informal) in China. Based on regression analysis of data from 1978 to 1999, my thesis intends to explain the dynamic between institutions and economic growth.