URBAN & REGIONAL ECONOMICS

EAEQ 3211
Regions and regional delimitations
MBIMBI JOSEPH

Definition
Regional definition has many ambiguities, and many
attempts have been made to define a region
A region can vary from a small village to a massive
block within a continent depending on the range and
type of questions under study
A region is a subjective construct of the analyst which
he coins depending on the context and scope of study

Identifying a region
In a region there is a high degree of correlation of
behavior among constituent parts. The correlation is
described through concepts of;
Homogeneity, Contiguity, functional
These are utilized to describe and identify the boundaries
or delimitations of a region
However because of the ambiguity of the definitions it
has been argued that there is no such a thing as a true
region. The region exists as a intellectual concept, useful
for a specific purpose of interest under investigation.

Homogeneity
Region has internal uniformity in terms of
phenomenon(an event or fact perceived by senses)
( geographical characteristic, social or economic)
Analyst is interested in the : economic activity, racial
mix, income level etc
The authorities agree that the conceptual and
operational objective of regional delimitation is to
minimize the deviation of all the variables being
examined within each region and maximize this
deviation between regions

Contiguity
This regional definition and delimitation demands that a
region must exist in one spatial unit with which
homogeneous variables of all kinds can be discernible.
All parts of the region must be joined to each other with
respect to at least one phenomenon distributed over
space. Regions are considered as individual units which
are not separated by space of any kind

Functional integration: Has sameness of purpose. This implies that each part of a
region has some link with every other part of the same
region through some definite phenomenon like transport
network, water supply channels, interregional migration
flows, flows of low materials and manufactured
commodities
Manifested in nodal regions where central business districts
(CBD) are linked to neighboring peripheral areas by
infrastructure and any other means
Functional integration is the basis of correlation of
community interests within a region

Importance of regions
Regions serve to cut down complex space to smaller
areas within which physical, social-economic and
environmental variables can be observed as opposed to
partitioned space.
Regional delimitation is important for efficient
observation, study and manipulation of spatial variables

Types of regions
Nodal regions or polarized regions: look like atoms-nucleus
and complementary periphery area
Urban areas-they consist of towns and periphery areas, the
inner core is intensively developed and populated. However
the exact position of boundaries cannot be fully established
Uniform or homogeneous regions: criteria for homogeneity,
contiguity and functional integration forms the bases of
judgement before an area is delimitated. Geological, Climatic
etc can be used, both natural and manmade that are related
to human occupancy or ecological functioning of the area

Urban Area
This also has no universal definition.
Different disciplines use their yardsticks of defining and
delimiting urban regions eg Economics looks at the
population size and density.
An urban place has been defined operationally as any
concentration of population closely settled in in a town or
city of at least 2500 inhabitants. Most countries define
urban areas with an outer boundary. They include the
central nodal areas with the greatest intensity of urban
physical development and peripheral areas with high
population concentrations.

 The boundaries delimited are used for public

administration, service provision and other social
economic purposes by the central and local authorities
together with the resident population.
Exact position of boundaries for urban areas are unclear
because the distribution of population development
over space is indefinitely demarcated and to aid the
demarcation the authorities use functional integration

Location of regional economic

activities
The most successful economic performers in any
production activity tend to specialize in the production
and provision of a product or service .
The specialized services tend to locate in the most
accessible place to avail themselves to all the economic
actors surrounding a central place, and this centralized
location coincides with the market place in an isolated
state because each consumer tends to minimize
transport costs

 According to Von Thunen analysis the market place is the

most logical location for specialized producers. The central
place becomes the market center for all commodities and a
distribution point for retail goods produced by specialized
groups who are not farmers.
Farmers travel to this market to sell their produce and
purchase required goods and services
Price of any good or service is determined by distance from
point of production. The threshold of a service or product
can be defined as the minimum level of dd required to
support a central function