Keeping Emilia-Romagna strong: an integrated industrial policy approach

Almost fi ve decades after the creation of institutional governments at the regional level in Italy (1970) and the transfer of a selection of policy responsibilities to the regional administrations, this paper focuses on the more recent policy experience of Emilia -Romagna and its 2015 “patto per il lavoro” (Deal for Labour). The deal is part of the current build-up of an integrated approach to industrial policy at the regional level as an attempt to extract the most from available resources. It is in constant dialogue with the ‘external’ territories and institutions, represented by other regions, the nation, the European Commission and beyond. In addition to the leverage of research for innovation, the key pivot around which all the other elements turn is education and training. The individual’s ability and right to participate in enhancing the production of value with existing and new resources is the core of future development. Initial observations seem to support expectations, including positive trends for the key variables in training/education and employment.