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History and regional policy: some reflections on Italy’s Cassa per il Mezzogiorno

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  • Antonio Accetturo

    (Bank of Italy)

  • Guido de Blasio

    (Bank of Italy)

Abstract

This short essay looks at the interactions between history and economic development mediated by regional policy. We focus on Italy and present case studies based on the Cassa per il Mezzogiorno, a major intervention aimed at developing Italy’s South that was implemented over the second half of the twentieth century. We argue that historically-driven differences in local institutions were able to explain a large portion of the heterogeneous effects of the program. We also show that Cassa per il Mezzogiorno was able to permanently change the citizens’ preferences for redistribution and state interventions.

Suggested Citation

  • Antonio Accetturo & Guido de Blasio, 2022. "History and regional policy: some reflections on Italy’s Cassa per il Mezzogiorno," Review of Regional Research: Jahrbuch für Regionalwissenschaft, Springer;Gesellschaft für Regionalforschung (GfR), vol. 42(3), pages 269-277, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:jahrfr:v:42:y:2022:i:3:d:10.1007_s10037-022-00173-2
    DOI: 10.1007/s10037-022-00173-2
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