Regional Structures in the European Union

Abstract

In this study we try to show the regional structures of the EU based on regional data. The objects of the research were social-economic indices (GDP per capita, unemployment rate, activity rate and employment by economic sectors (percentage in total employment)) of NUTS 2 regions of the EU, and we examined the elements of the regional structure: North-South, West–East, centre–periphery and neighbourhood. The method used was a linear regression (backward). The results show the most significant element is the neighbourhood, and out of the four indices this is the only one element of regional structure. The regional structure of the GDP per capita has three elements: neighbourhood, centre–periphery and North-South. The regressions (figures 2., 3.: West–East and South–North – GDP per capita) show the centre–periphery model. The research supports that the fact the issue of centre–periphery is a big problem in the EU in the regional policy, and the neighbourhood contacts of the regions is worth much more attention.