EVALUATION OF DISPARITIES IN THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF THE REGIONS OF UKRAINE ON THE BASIS OF CONVERGENT-DIVERGENT PROCESSES

Abstract

Disparities of socioeconomic indices of Ukraine's regions are a scientific problem and a practical task that should be solved on a strategic horizon. Current regulation of regional development does not take into account the dynamic processes of disparity indicators in the long-term period, which leads to an incorrect definition of disparities regulation goals. The purpose of this article can be stated as the working out of a system for evaluating the disparities indicators, and disparities' dynamic shows the necessity to use a convergent-divergent approach. Convergent-divergent processes were analyzed for the following groups of indicators (demographic, productive, natural and ecological, foreign economic, and structural disparities) in 2007–2021 and for three classes of regions: with balanced, restrained, and unrestrained disparities. The analytical model for convergent- divergent processes of territorial development disparities is based on econometric models of assessing spatial β-convergence. It involves analysis of absolute and conditional convergence of regional development; assessment of convergence accounting indicators of regional disparities; verification of the hypothesis about the strengthening of disparities. In particular, obtained results of absolute convergence indicate that regions with unrestrained disparities of some spheres do not tend to grow faster than classes of regions with balanced disparities of the same spheres since even a lower level of disparities does not guarantee a higher rate of disparities reduction. Therefore, the convergence of disparities is a very long process. Results indicate the strengthening of divergent trends in the uneven development of regions and can be used to determine vulnerable areas with disparities in regions, and besides, this model is considered to be a decision-making supportive tool for the reduction of interregional disparities.