Industrial policy for a competitive repositioning and development of Southern Italy - Aims and instruments

This paper analyses Italian industrial policy patterns over the last years, characterized by the economic and financial crisis and its effects. In the first part of the paper, new international trends of economic policies, leading to a renewed central position of industrial policy, are considered. Starting from these reflections, a survey of the measures implemented in some advanced countries - i.e. Germany, France, United Kingdom and United States - is carried out (par. 2). In the second part, recent dynamics of public interventions in favour of Italian businesses are evaluated, in the light of the serious structural problems featuring our productive system, in particular referring to the two big macro-areas of our Country - the Mezzogiorno and Central-Northern Italy (par. 3 and 4). In the final part of the paper some policy recommendations are presented (par. 5). Besides the need of quick interventions through the strengthening of some of the most effective operating instruments, the demand for a medium and long-term industrial policy strategy is put forward, identifying the guidelines necessary for a competitive repositioning of the productive system. Such a strategy has to be differentiated at a territorial level, to take the particular structural characteristics and the higher deficits of Southern manufacturers in consideration. Finally, it is necessary to support such strategy with a regional policy, Sothern Italy oriented, aimed at promoting the development of productive system "tout court", thus opposing the processes of industrial desertification triggered by the crisis.