Tourism and local economic development: The case of the Highlands Meander

Local economic development (LED) planning is of major policy importance in post-apartheid South Africa. Although issues surrounding LED have attracted considerable policy attention, one neglected theme has been the role of tourism as a lead sector for LED. The aim of this article is to examine the planning and workings of one tourism-led LED initiative in South Africa. The case study is that of the Highlands Meander in Mpumalanga province, where five towns are collaborating in their LED initiatives in order to promote the area's tourism products. A key finding is that this growing tourism initiative is currently not benefiting local black communities. Recommendations are offered for developing a pro-poor tourism initiative.     

Small firms and local economic development in South London

A growing body of literature has identified a number of potential constraints on small firm growth. Arguably, the severity of these constraints is closely related to the differing fortunes of industries and firms and the extent of localised external economies or diseconomies. This paper looks at the constraints facing manufacturing and business service firms in a large urban area. The paper draws on findings from a survey of small firms in Croydon. Data from the survey reveal some differences between small manufacturing and service firms in their experience of the urban environment. Physical constraints on expansion and labour shortages appear to be hindering small manufacturing firms in Croydon. Deficiencies in specific niches of the local business service sector may be preventing small business service firms from complementing and enhancing their internal capabilities. The problems facing small firms in Croydon and the sorts of local policy initiatives being developed are likely to be applicable to other large urban areas.     

Integration, embeddedness and local economic development. The case of the clothing industry in Coventry

This paper examines the ways in which a new sector is linked to a local economy, and the implications for local economic development. The focus is on the clothing industry in Coventry which survey evidence suggests operates independently and in isolation. A major reason is that the sector is only weakly embedded in a social sense. Clothing manufacturers have a low social profile and contribute little to the institutionalised business life of the city. The consequences of low integration are examined, as are the steps necessary to anchor the sector within the local area.     

Skills audits - a framework for local economic development

Skill creation and utilisation are important to local economic development as they represent an area in which local authorities have a track record of intervention and some very real powers, through their ability to influence parts of the training infrastructure. There is, of course, no direct causal link between changes to the training system and local economic performance. Fine-tuning the training infrastructure to meet identified needs in the labour market must be recognised as a necessary not a sufficient condition for creating or retaining jobs.

In providing an organising framework for a skills audit we have emphasised the four dynamic elements of a local skills pool: utilised skills, under-utilised skills, and the depletion and replenishment of skills. From our initial run through of the framework several factors already emerge as important considerations -- the need to try to establish an age profile of skilled workers, the desirability of providing a .local technology profile and the need to foster and maintain responsiveness in the training system to changing skill needs. This latter aspect requires local initiatives to improve signalling between demand and supply for training.     

Cable and local economic development: Local authority roles and responses

There has been much recent comment about the development of the “information superhighway” and the opportunities that this will create for economic development. Yet elements of such a superhighway are already in place through the activities of cable companies in the UK This paper outlines the development of cable to date and examines the response of local authorities to such developments.     

Integrating the economic and the social. Policy and institutional change in local economic strategy

Since the mid-1990s policy “integration” has become an increasingly salient theme within central government and local government policy-making. In this paper we report survey findings tracing the recent emergence of explicitly “integrated” local economic and social strategies, and the evolving position of ostensibly social themes in local economic strategies. These highlight some of the more important policy and institutional changes that have characterised local economic strategy in the post-Thatcher era. Subsequently, in the light of this initial data we outline a number of possible directions for further research.     

中国向常规经济过渡

我国GDP增长速度已经从第一季度的11．9％下降到第二季度的10．3％。现有的一些领先指标,如制造业采购经理指数表明,增长还在持续减速,第三季度的GDP增长率可能跌到10％以下。     

Rural development in Hertzog,Eastern Cape: Successful local economic development?

The government's recently released rural development strategy identifies the important role which local economic development can play in the rural areas of South Africa. This article examines the key features of local economic development and the degree to which recent initiatives in the rural village of Hertzog conform with the basic principles of local economic development. The recent establishment of an agriculture cooperative and smallholder farming on irrigated one‐hectare plots forms the basis of the initiative. Community structures, strategies and achievements are outlined and assessed.     

Gender and local economic policy

Booth, C., Darke, J. and Yeandle, S. 1996: CHANGING PLACES: WOMEN'S LIVES IN THE CITY. London: Paul Chapman, £14.95 paper.

Gardiner, J. 1997: GENDER, CARE AND ECONOMICS. Basingstoke: Macmillan, £15.99 paper.

Dijkstra, G. and Plantenga, J. (eds) 1997: GENDER AND ECONOMICS. A EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE. London: Routledge, £45.00 cased, £14.99 paper.     

Developers, property cycles and local economic development: The case of Sheffield

The interaction between the property market cycle and the development industry at the local level is examined. The Sheffield office market is used as an example. Market trends result in limited periods of development profitability. Developers therefore face a difficult operational environment and adopt different tactics to cope with it. Some are more successful than others. The implications for the development sector and for the local economic development process are considered.     

Company-led strategies in defence sector restructuring: Implications for local economic development

This paper examines defence sector restructuring as effected through the networks of Lancashire-based companies involved in defence production. Evidence of restructuring is drawn from the Lancashire Defence Survey. The data provides the starting point for discussion of the strategies of those companies contracted to supply products and services, and employees contracted to supply skills, in the military production process. Transaction cost theory is applied to these changing contractual relations and implications for local economic development organisations are drawn out.