Internationalization of regions: the role of public policy

Abstract

The main purpose of this article is to build on previous efforts to investigate the effects of Out-ward-FDI promotion measures taken by governments and levels of outward foreign investment at regional level. We examine regional levels of outward FDI within Italy, a country with marketed regional asymmetries. Within the European arena, the heterogeneity of socio-economic condi-tions among Italian regions is a clear example of intra-border imbalances. In fact, the different growth rates characterizing the various areas of Italy are far from being an exception in the Un-ion, where diversity across member states is a reflection of domestic socio-economic disparities strongly concentrated in space and reproduced over time. The study allows also to investigate and to compare different types of incentives (financial and non-financial). Finally it provides evi-dences on the non-policy factors that determine the spatial evolution of O-FDI projects, a theme deserving careful and close attention. For the empirical model we use information on the population of Italian firms that received in-centives from 2000-2007. Data, aggregated at the regional level, refers to the major public tools implemented to promote Italian companies’ internationalization.