The increasing trade between the countries of East Asia, the European Union and other countries of the Eurasian continent predetermines a significant revival of transport links in the direction of East-West and vice versa. In order to solve the intercontinental transportation and logistics issues, Russian scientists have developed the concept of the Trans-Eurasian belt «Development» (Razvitie). In 2014, the leadership of the People’s Republic of China initiated “One Belt — One Road”. It includes the construction of a railway infrastructure linking China and the countries of Western Europe through the countries of Central Asia [13] under the project “Silk Road Economic Belt”. At present, the group of scientists from the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Lomonosov Moscow State University and the Joint Academic Council of the Russian Railways has proposed the Concept of the Integrated High-Speed Intelligent Railway TransEurasia. It will serve for the transport of passengers and high-tech electronic products for e-commerce from the ports of the Russian Far East and railway border crossings China — Russia. The railway will allow to transport goods three times faster in comparison with classical railway technologies and 15 times faster in comparison with the ocean transportation in the framework of “One Belt — One Road”. The experience of the design of the Moscow-Kazan high-speed railway (HSR) and the technical development of the HSR network in China and Western Europe, as well as the promising information technologies of the “Industry 4.0” generation, allow applying intelligent control systems in the Megaproject “Trans-Eurasia”. Therefore, it will guarantee the highest level of safety, reliability, comfort for passengers and competitive cost of transportation. To develop financial conditions for the implementation of the Megaproject, we propose to create an international consortium.

The spatial and territorial development of Russia was explored by many groups of geographers, historians and economists within the framework of academic programs. I interpret such development as economic and geographic activity covering regional statistics, geo-informatics, spatial planning and design as well as geographical review. This approach corresponds to one of the general directions of fundamental research of RAS «Development of the strategy of the transformation of the socioeconomic space and territorial development of Russia». My northern research, since 2010, has become an integral part of the RAS programmes «Fundamental issues of spatial development of the Russian Federation: the interdisciplinary synthesis». Its conceptual foundations were formulated by Academician A. G. Granberg and «The role of the space in the modernization of Russia: natural and socio-economic potential» (supervisor, Academician V. M. Kotlyakov). At first, I consider the following problems of the North: the North and Russia’s internal market, modernization of the Northern households, scientific and technical preparation of the projects for the upcoming development of the Arctic. Further, I give the scientific explanation of the issues of socio-economic development. They are due to the poor state of the spatial organization of national economy in Russian Federation and the underestimation of the economic systems formed in the Northern and Arctic regions. These systems are divided into three types: territorial and economic complexes, certain centers (industrial periphery), the periphery of rural type. Complexes concentrate about 60 % of labour potential of the North, the industrial periphery — 15 % and rural — 25 %. They have different directions for the economic modernization and on the condition of this potential realization can ensure long-term sustainable development to the Northern regions. The Arctic vector of natural resource economy can succeed if its scientific and technical preparation is considered as an independent and priority direction of appropriate programs and projects. In fact, the science plays a pioneering role in the development of territories with an extreme environment.

This article presents the results of the study on precarious employment, which represents a multilevel phenomenon of the instability in the socio-economic positions of workers. This phenomenon has various forms. Precarious employment can be identified both in terms of the quality and nature of employment contract, working conditions, and in terms of the standard of living of households of precarious workers, their self-perception and behaviour models in labour market and other spheres of life. The purpose of the research is to study precarious employment using sociological indicators. We characterize precarious employment of workers, in general, and also define their profiles. Depending on the type of contractual relations and the implementation of their requirements, the profiles of employees differ in the socio-demographic, age, educational and economic characteristics. As a research method, we chose a mass survey. The sampling frame is the Russian population aged from 15 to 72 years. The selection included 1002 respondents, which were quoted by sex, age, region and socio-demographic status on the labour market. During the survey, we investigated the various aspects of precarious employment including respect for the rights of employees, level of their income, prevalence of various forms of precarious employment by profession, sex-age structure. The results of the study are the demographic, socio-labour and economic characteristics of the surveyed population as well as the description of five profiles identifying the different groups of precarious workers. The results may be applied in social-labour relations regulated by contractual agreements and working conditions of employees. Restrictions are connected with the need to change the legislation and the enforcement of the current labour and civil legislation. Future research should be focused on the üreasons of the differentiation in precarious employment.

Indicative planning is a significant tool for regulating the processes of socio-economic development at the regional level. Among the indicators used in this regard, we highlight the indicators that reflect the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of the human wellbeing. The aim of the study is to reveal the potential of indicative planning for analyzing and forecasting the dynamics of population income in a region. Our analysis is focused on the incomes of the population in regional scales. We consider the evolution of indicative planning. Moreover, we classify macroeconomic parameters reflecting different aspects of the dynamics of the regional population incomes according to different analytical blocks. In order to assess the relative importance of each indicator, we propose to evaluate them using three matrices: achieving objectives (how much indicators influence the achievement of main objectives); autonomy (how much indicators or processes ensure the stability of regional socio-economic system); regionality (to what degree they can be classified as internal factors of regional system). The authors substantiate a method of the construction of integral index including seven stages. Furthermore, we estimate the weights of the selected indicators according to the special criteria. The assessment has showed the influence of “big challenges” on the regional population incomes, on the integral index as well as on the block indexes. The proposed typology of macroeconomic parameters of the population income can be used to forecast the socio-economic development of regions within the framework of strategic planning. In addition, it can be applied by the authorities of the Russian Federation subjects for the indicative planning of economic and social policy. Moreover, it is useful when monitoring the dynamics of population income and other indicators reflecting the living standard of the inhabitants of a region.

Increasing the budgetary potential is an important factor for the socio-economic development of a region. The level of the regional budget capacity influences the budget services delivery to the population, which makes the research topic relevant. The methodology of the assessment of the budgetary situation in regions is the scope of the study. The subject-matter of the research is the socio-economic relations arising from the use of the budget capacity of a region. The hypothesis of the research is that the regional budget’s situation reflects the use of the budget capacity of a territory in the current conditions. We consider the various definitions of «budgetary potential» category. We propose our own interpretation of the budgetary potential as a set of financial resources of a territory, which, under the optimal conditions, can be used for the realization of budget functions to achieve strategic and tactical targets for the development of a region. Our methodology allows to estimate the regional budget’s situation on the basis of the indicative analysis. Further, we subsequently determine the degree to which the budgetary potential of a territory is used. We have classified the selected indicators into five groups. These groups of indicator estimate the certain area influencing the regional budget’s situation. For each indicator, we have set thresholds according to the standard values or average values for Russia. The calculations for each group of indicators have allowed to define the budgetary situation of regions. On the basis of these cluster evaluations, we propose to classify territories by the degree of using the budgetary potential. Under this method, we have analyzed of the state of the budgets of the Ural region. The received integrated estimates have allowed to rate all the territories and determine the degree of using the budgetary potential. We have concluded that in the Chelyabinsk and Sverdlovsk regions, there is an optimal budgetary situation and, as a result, a high degree of using the budgetary potential. The received results can be applied by the authorities when developing and implementing the programs for the socio-economic development of the territorial subjects of the Russian Federation. They can be also applied for both the assessment of budgetary situation and the diagnostics of the quality of the regional financial management.

The article presents the methodology for the assessment of the resource potential of the Arctic. The authors analyze the main elements of its economy that are involved in the food supply of both the Arctic regions and the whole country, as well as in export-import transactions. We state facts and figures for the implementation of the Arctic States policies with the field of both potentials in the Northern latitudes and the projects for utilizing living marine resources in previously unexplored waters. We reveal the dependence of the use of Arctic resources from geopolitical, economic and technological changes in the world. Previously, the economic activities in the Artic were conditioned by certain legal regimes. Now it may revised because of the differences in conceptual approaches when determining the external borders and delimitating continental shelf. We characterize the domestic model of Arctic exploration and the food supply system of territories. We identify the current problem of extraction of marine resources, their processing and delivery to the consumer. The intersectoral resource economy of the Arctic territories, the difficulties of fishery and fish processing, aquaculture production, the lack of support for local farms cultivating crops and producing of animal genetic resources are inherited from previous economic models. The basic features of the modern economy of the Arctic have significant country-specific differences depending on the policies that are implemented on one or another Arctic territory. This is manifested in the conditions created by the state as well as in the level of investment attractiveness and the quality of life. The factors affecting food security in Arctic areas are the following: the access to fishing stocks; support of the agricultural sector and rural households; the formation of state market mechanisms when creating interregional agrofood complexes; respect for animal genetic resources. We recommend enhancing the regulatory, institutional and economic opportunities of coastal regions, creating the conditions for competition development in the extraction and processing of natural resources in the Arctic.

The article proves that the industrial policy is not only an element coordinating the various types of state policies. It is as well a platform, on which the economic policy of the state is built. I systematize five directions representing the traditional approach to understanding the industrial policy and three new directions of its understanding. I emphasize that a new purpose of the industrial policy as the achievement of «an image» of a “good economy”, and that the «standard projects» of regional industrial policy are unacceptable. I define new characteristics of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Its fundamental features are harmonization and integration of a large amount of research disciplines. This, in turn, imposes high requirements to developing priorities for both the federal and regional industrial policy. Another feature of the Fourth Industrial Revolution is the emergence of the digital economy. I analyse its development in Russia as compared with the developed countries. Moreover, I systemize the studies about the readiness of Russian companies for the digital economy. The information and communication technologies are the most important factor for the digital economy. The analysis of these technologies development in regions showed high level of its differentiation of regional indicators (from 1.5 to more than 300 times). The assessment of the development of information and communication technologies allow categorise the Middle Urals as a leading region almost for all indicators in this area not only in the Ural Federal District, but also in Russia, in general. The importance of new business models as most essential innovations during the Fourth Industrial Revolution has increased. This defines new agents and objects of industrial policy. The results of the research may be used to correct the regional strategy of socio-economic development as well as laws on industrial policy.

The article presents the results of the authors’ research into ways of improving managerial education and organization of anticipatory learning that are required for achieving a technological breakthrough in the national economy. The authors prove that in order to address complex tasks associated with modernization and emergence of Industry 4.0, to make decisions under uncertainty, unpredictable changes and considerable risk, managers need to possess interdisciplinary competencies in engineering and economics and pre-emptive action. The authors’ hypothesis that calls for change in managerial education is based on the idea that the new generation of managers will engage in the complex processes of creating fundamentally new technologies and markets as well as of modernizing the existing industries. To verify the hypothesis, we performed an analysis of development trends in global managerial education and universities’ responses to new challenges. The analysis allowed identifying the key characteristics of educational models employed by leading universities. They are focus on breakthrough technologies as well as on design and research component, orientation to cross-disciplinary educational products. The results of the analysis and surveys of experts have enabled the authors to determine the content of relevant interdisciplinary competencies for a technological breakthrough and to formulate the principles of anticipatory learning. These principles are represented in the organized process of creating knowledge and competences for addressing future problems corresponding to global trends and national development programs. The article describes the experience of the Research and Educational Centre for Interdisciplinary Investigations and Educational Programs (REC ENGEC) at the Ural Federal University in implementing a new paradigm of managerial education. It was designed within the framework of the research field «Pre-emptive management in rapidly developing industries» and the multi-project «New leaders for technological breakthrough». Overall, the results are of interest to the universities, including corporate ones, as well as to innovative business structures and research institutes participating in the process of transformation of educational models to response the new challenges of the technological revolution.

The article considers macrostructural modelling of the consequences of the creation of a gas processing complex in the Russian Far East as it is the new gas-processing industry for the economy of the region. The research includes two stages. Firstly, the authors determine the conditions for “the integration” of the new industry into the system of inter-industry interactions of the regional economy. Secondly, we simulate the perspective trends of the regional macro-indicators that take into account the direct and indirect effects of the new industry. To verify the modelling approach, we describe three basic alternatives: the first one is based on the input-output analysis; the second one — on the analysis of economic interactions, the third one — on the integration of macrostructural and project analyses. Focusing on the possibility of taking into account the time factor, we chose the second alternative. We analyzed the investment and production characteristics of the projects on the development of the Chayandskoye field, construction both the cross-country gas pipeline “The Power of Siberia” and the Amur Gas Processing Plant as well as the helium logistic center. Thus, we have found that the development of gas processing will lead to the increase in demand on the production and services of the industries existing in the region. First of all, it will be fuel and energy industries and industrial sectors. But the development will not change the structure of their expenses. In order to evaluate the effects of the demand impulses of gas processing, we apply the dynamic model of economic interactions FrEEDM (Far Eastern Economic Dynamic Model). Information on costs and output of the new industry is included in the model a priori in the form of latent technology. According to the simulation results, if the new industry is created in the regional economy by 2030, the annual increase in GRP will be 8,3 %; in households’ incomes, it will be 4,4 %; in regional budget incomes — 2,8 %. At the same time, gas processing products will be just petrochemical feedstock and fully supplied for export. That is why the operational phase effects produced by technological changes are the half of the investment phase effects.

The paper is devoted to the development of general methodological approaches to evaluate and identify the possibility for creating IT clusters in Kazakhstan regions. The present study considers the formation of IT clusters as growth poles. These poles are based on the establishing the groups of interconnected companies and institutions in IT industry linked by commonalities. The analysis of previous literature has shown that this approach is a novel approach to IT clusters formation. The study employs methods, which focus on analysing and identifying IT clusters in the interests of innovative development and the possibility of spreading information technology in Kazakhstan regions. We propose the methodological tools for presenting a standard form to assess innovative potential and industry specialization. This assessment allows to objectively and realistically define a potentially important region for creating IT cluster. The empirical analysis has identified certain trends in possibilities to create IT clusters in the cities of Almaty and Astana. Therefore, these regions play the role of specialized platforms for a new generation. This platform is to provide a multiplier effect on the development of the agglomeration and located in close territories or periphery. The results of this research can be used to elaborate important strategic documents in the field of the development of the IT industry, digital technology, knowledge-based and high-tech sectors in Kazakhstan on the way to Industry 4.0.

The article deals with the relevant issue of the influence of information space on the current state of economic security of Russian regions. In the modern society, the information space is an objectively existing phenomenon, which performs a number of constructive and destructive functions and has a direct impact on the economic security of regions. The research of Russian and foreign scientists in the field of information theory, philosophy, mathematics, economics have become the theoretical and methodological basis of the paper. Transition to the information society has changed the status of information resources. The analysis of the statistical data of authoritative Russian and foreign sources has allowed us to reveal the main tendencies of modern society. Information processes have the most significant impact on such areas as health and safety, education, science, culture, socio-political sphere, as well as the quality of life. However, threats to economic security are under transformation. Therefore, there is a need for changes in the assessment of the economic security of regions. We proposed a technique for the evaluation of economic security based on the comprehensive assessment of several groups of indicators. The number of groups and a set of estimated indicators can be defined by experts. The results of the proposed method are demonstrated on the example of eight Federal Districts of Russia. The authors used official statistics, since they covered different spheres of citizens throughout the whole state territory. The assessment includes 32 indicators distributed into nine groups: economy, food, information resources, etc. Calculations have revealed the regions with lower security level — Siberian and North-Caucasian Federal Districts. The proposed methodological approach and quantitative estimates can be used to predict and improve economic security management in regions.

The article considers the migration mobility in the regions of Eastern Siberia and Russian Far East. The purpose of the study is to analyze and characterize the migration mobility of the population of the Siberian Federal District (SFD) and the Far Eastern Federal District (EFD) as well as to identify the interregional migration factors that determine the geography of its directions. The main hypothesis of the study is that interregional differences in the social and economic development of regions play a primary role in the formation of the repulsive and attractive factors of migration. We used statistical analysis and mathematical methods, as well as their geographical visualization. We have analyzed data from the Rosstat databases and have shown that migration losses in the SFD regions are significantly higher than in FEFD. However, for FEFD, these losses are more significant. Therefore, poorly populated and depressive regions deserve special attention. In these regions, even minimal migration losses considerably increase socio-demographic risks. We revealed that the indigenous population prevail in these territories. At the same time, the increasing territorial mobility of native inhabitants is observed. In most of the regions, there is a low migrant’s adaptation level. We have proposed the authors’ approach to the study of migration repulsive and attractive factors. It is based on the integration of the methods of multidimensional cluster analysis and geo-information analysis. This approach has allowed to classify the Russian regions in terms of their migration attractiveness as well as to show the geography of the prevailing migration movements for each region of SFD and FEFD. The results of the study have confirmed the dependence of migration mobility on the quality of life in different regions. These data may be applied to elaborate mechanisms for an effective policy of regional socio-economic development in the country. The promising direction for the further research is the application of our method at the municipal level. It may allow structuring regional economic spaces depending on the growth poles and the periphery.

The paper is devoted to the development and the new application of the mathematical model of effective capital funds (ECF) formation, which has been offered earlier. These funds are understood as a part of the capital funds of a macroeconomic object (a branch, a sector, a region, a country) used in the current conditions of market economy. The initial data for the model are gross output, production investments, and labour expenses. The model uses a macroeconomic production function (PF) and the dynamic equation for ECF, which reflects the investment control and depreciation processes. On the basis of this model, we address the problem of a simultaneous assessment of the PF parameters and reconstruction of ECF. This problem increases the adequacy of the PF method assuming rationality of the used production factors as well as solves a new problem — ECF quantitative assessment. Complication of the substantial problem leads to complication of computing process. We overcome this complication attracting the additional information, which reflects the specificity of a concrete entity. We apply this method to a new object covered by the new method of economic analysis — small business (SB). The peculiarity of this sector of the regional and national economy is that its capital funds have no clear definition, and, respectively, there is a lack of their regular and reliable statistical record. The Federal State Statistics Service documents, available to researchers and analysts, characterize small business by the yearly indicators of a turnover, investments into capital funds, and the average number of workers. For the estimation of SB’s capital funds, we offer to use the indicator of ECF. The specified method of ECF estimation and PFs design is applied to the sector of “legal entities of SB” of the Volga and the Ural Federal Regions on the interval of 2005–2014.

The environmental problem concerns everyone. We cannot live in isolation, human activity affects the environment. The article describes the model of modern mechanisms of standardization for successful implementation of the state policy in the sphere of environmental protection in the Russian Federation. As a methodological basis, the authors considered the concept of sustainable development stimulating to implement the nature protection measures. We have analyzed the pollution level in the Russian regions by the man-made impact. The analysis is based on the Russian Meteorological Service data published in the state report. We have defined the most environmentally disadvantaged federal districts. The article considers the environmental problems at the level of the territorial subjects of the Russian Federation. We focus on the influence of demographic problems connected with environmental pollution on the growth rate of regional economy. The article reviews the Russian laws and regulations concerning standardization process, including the procedure for determining the best technology of manufacturing process and/or rendering services. This technology has to be based on the scientific and technological innovations and meet environmental objectives. We have described the international experience in this field, and defined the aspects of environmental regulation from the international practice, which can be applied in the Russian regulatory documents. We have considered the institutional structure as a part of Federal Agency on Technical Regulating and Metrology, which provides expert advice and opinions concerning the drafts of compendiums on the best available technologies. We classify compendiums, which are being currently developed. We have identified the fields of economic activity, which need the development of environmental standards and technology compendiums, which will take into account the volumes of the waste that are subject to neutralization and utilization. We have developed a universal model for the implementation of standardization mechanisms. This model may solve the environmental problems in any region within the developed technical regulation and the nature protection legislation. The universality of the presented model consists in the integrated use of the general system of measures for environment protection in any region. In summary, the results show the need to introduce the standards and the best technology compendiums. It is necessary for the successful implementation of ecologically friendly business practices including power and resource-saving.

The competitiveness of individual companies is related not only to their own characteristics, but also to the institutional and economic characteristics of the home countries of these companies. How the business environments of countries affect the results of applying management practices in different companies is a complex research issue, as managerial practices have many characteristics. Nevertheless, Russian enterprises have to use new technologies to increase competitiveness in the world market. We analysed both the sector of transportation where geographic closeness is a key indicator of competition, and transportation facilities where incremental costs and savings can be implemented to build variables of the market structures. The research sample includes 210 specialized logistic firms with variation of ownership structure and collateral agreements. We have examined firms in two markets: Russian and German ones. The analysis is based on the data from 7 Russian regions, and 6 German federal states. We have found that the quality of managerial practices — estimated by using a new survey instrument — is strongly linked with commercial ratios such as a rate of fail to deliver and a rate of consumer satisfaction. A high level of competitiveness is demonstrated by a greater number of companies in the same region. We have found that this is positively correlated with increased quality of managerial capabilities. This correlation is reinforced when we quantify the number of local firms with local logistic infrastructure. This paper reveals that the increasing the effectiveness of managerial practices are due to the characteristics of the country of origin. The results allow to develop recommendations for policy-makers to improve the business environment.

The issue to assess the activity of universities by the various interested parties (stakeholders) is relevant. It is caused by the reforming processes of higher education regarding the transformation of institutions into entities of special type. These entities are able to meet the needs of labour market applying lifelong learning according to the requirements of enterprises to realize the intellectual potential in industries of the country. The research includes the analysis of the existing definitions of the term “education service” and criteria for universities performance assessment used in various ratings. I have conducted a survey, which is based on the collection of data from students, graduates, university entrants, industrial leaders and other potential employers as key stakeholders. The opinion of these stakeholders should be considered by universities when planning a strategy to improve their activity. I wondered whether preferences for characteristics of universities differ for the representatives of various groups of stakeholders or not. The research results have showed that preferences of both the representatives of business and the society, in general, have the same direction, though by a number of criteria they significantly differ. As a result of the analysis, I have developed a model for defining a programme of actions, which increase those performance indicators, which are significant for the main stakeholders of the education market. Therefore, the increase in universities performance finally will contribute to the socio-economic development of regions. The research results can be applied to eliminate a number of controversial issues concerning the requirement for universities to process a strategic potential to address major problems of innovative development of the country

The purpose of this research is the assessment of the competitive environment in the Russian oil market. The subject-matter of the study is the Russian oil and gas companies as a basis of the Energy market. We check the hypothesis about the development of the mechanism of corrective condition in the sphere of preliminary control of market concentrations in the fuel and energy complex (FEC). The basis of this research is the modern theory of industry markets studying various structures of the markets, the behavior of their participants, probable consequences of their functioning and interaction, as well as the impact of the state on the functioning of markets, its participants, and the results of their activities. We calculated and analyzed the key indicators characterizing the processes of market concentration in the oil industry. We also considered the competition policy of the Russian Federation in mergers and acquisitions deals (M&A deals) concerning oil and gas assets. The authors estimated over 460 decisions made by the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Russian Federation for the period from 2011 to 2015 in the control on economic concentration in fuel-and-energy industry. Based on the data characterizing the development of competitive environment, we have proved that the considered goods market belongs to markets with insufficiently developed competition. The results of the research will make a certain contribution to studying the efficiency of M&A transactions in the oil and gas industry, and also can be applied for the implementation of anti-monopoly actions by the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Russian Federation.

Green infrastructure is considered as a factor for the sustainable development of a city. The indicators of urban greening as well as the state and resistance of plantings to the urban environment are the indicators of the sustainable development of the cities and towns. Greening is the basis for green infrastructure, because it develops ecologically safe, esthetically attractive and comfortable urban environment. The purpose of the article is to assess the role of greening Khabarovsk as the main component of green infrastructure. We have used the method of forest estimation, the population and statistical methods. To assess the effectiveness of the municipal programme for the enhancement of the urban environment, we have analyzed the “cost-benefit” on the example of a city park. The territorial planning was based on the priority of economic development, and financing was insufficient. These facts lead to the problems in the protection and reproduction of green plantings of Khabarovsk. The strengthening of economic development caused the deterioration of the ecological status of the territory. The assessment of the current urban plantation has revealed a constant decrease of urban greening, a high percent of old-age plantings as well as a decrease in plant life because of urban stress. Extending the range and lands for greening during urban renovation is a positive trend. Green spaces except for socio-economic infrastructure are the major ecosystem services. The methods for their assessment are still in the early stage of development. The preliminary assessment of ecosystem functions using the “cost-benefit” method on the example of the city park has allowed increasing the economic value of the green space, drawing attention to the reduction of the area for greening as well as to the need for maintaining the high viability of plants. The cities are priority territories to develop a system of payments for ecosystem services, which provide sustainable development of a region. The results can be applied in the ecological planning of urban space, regional environmental policy, and municipal management. The green infrastructure is a multipurpose infrastructure, which improves ecological situation in Khabarovsk, creates favorable conditions for both the citizens and investment climate as well as promotes domestic and inbound tourism.

The healthcare system in Bangladesh suffers from many shortcomings. This drives not only the affluent and the middle-class, but also the poor Bangladeshi to travel cross-border to India, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia for medical treatment. In Bangladesh, there are an over-crowded public healthcare system, the paucity of funds, a lack of medical expertise and technology, and few quality private hospitals to service the local high-income population. For this paper, Bangladeshi patients (n=113) who had undergone medical treatment in Thailand during February 2017 to June 2017, completed the survey. Statistical findings suggest that the medical costs are high in Thailand and hiring personal attendants for older patients is expensive. Apart from the language barrier with no interpreting services, the patients are also required to purchase sample medicine from the hospital dispensary at a higher price. On the positive side, the physicians in Thailand were overseas qualified, caring, trustworthy, honest and straightforward while dealing with patients, and had the expertise to provide diagnostic results for several diseases. Results also show that compared to Bangladesh, Thailand has less waiting-time for surgery with state-of-the-art medical facilities, and excellent healthcare service, resulting in an increasing outbound medical travel from Bangladesh. Healthcare policy implications are that the public and private hospitals in Bangladesh need to provide the quality of accredited and timely healthcare to the locals, so that the poor and middle-class Bangladeshi do not have to travel cross-border for healthcare. Unless Bangladesh improves its healthcare system, the outbound medical travel to Thailand and other neighboring countries will continue, and can it dream to develop a medical tourism market to attract foreign patients. Doctors, nurses and lab technicians along with health management personnel must be ethical and corruption free. Improved excellence in healthcare delivery, international accreditation, and elimination of dishonest performs in Bangladeshi healthcare will steadily decrease outbound medical travel by the poor and middle class Bangladeshi, save medical travel costs, medical travel-risk and anxiety of being away from home and relatives, resulting in more and more Bangladeshi patients preferring to trust and use their healthcare system. Future research directions will explore the quality, access and affordability of inclusive healthcare in both public and private hospitals of Bangladesh.

The article is devoted to the extension of boundaries of scientific ideas about the economic nature of rent relations in mesoeconomics. The article develops theoretical ideas on both the impact of globalization on the rent economy and the localization of rent relations. In this regard, I research the relations between the concepts of «raw economy» and «rent economy». Moreover, I consider a number of methods of the influence of rent relations on the economic development. The type of the rents in the economy corresponds to the directions of the globalization of these rents and is interconnected with the specific types of rent relations. The article reveals functional patterns as well as the tendencies of modern rent relations in local economic space. Integrating the specified tendencies, I have determined the tasks of rent economy at the regional level. The localization of rent relations in the globalizing regional economy will reveal the best ways for the regional development. The increasing value of the rent in regional economy has allowed the author to define the factors, which are common for both the globalizing rents and localizing rents. As a result of the research, I determine the directions of the transformation of the rent relations at the level of the regional economy. Firstly, the specific concentration of rents, which arose and localize in the territory of a region, transforms in a territorial rent. Secondly, the forms of rent relations are modified in their geographical localization in the economic space of a region. The third group of tendencies is connected to the comprehensive nature of changes in the development of rents in the territory of a region. And the last direction consists in the objective limitations of the development of the rent relations in the regional economy.

The study analyzes the relationship between the diversification of industry in its certain fields and characteristics of regional innovation systems. The relevance of this topic is due to a need to identify and verify the structural factors of sustainable development of the industry according to innovation scenarios. The study clarifies the methodological frameworks and the role of diversification as a factor of regional economic development. The purpose of the study is to assess the impact of diversification on innovative activity in the manufacturing industry. I present an empirical analysis of both the level of diversification of regional manufacturing industry and the selected indicators characterizing innovative activities. I define positive and negative trends of development. The level of diversification is characterized by high heterogeneity. It allows selecting the most and the least diversified regions. The analysis shows the significant regional difference in the level of innovative activity in the manufacturing industry, as well as in the share of the output of innovative products. On this basis, I assessed the regions taking into account the dynamics and the level of innovative activity in the manufacturing industry. The study has revealed a positive relationship between the level of diversification of manufacturing industry, innovative activity and the share of the output of high-tech products. This positive correlation is observed in all specifications and indicates the presence of externalities in industry development of the regions. The identified trends are more common for regions with a lower level of per capita gross domestic product. At the same time, I noted the limitations of using the diversification effects for the growth of innovative activity in the manufacturing industry. The results have both the theoretical and applied significance. Therefore, they may be applied when making strategic decisions related to the choice of directions for the territorial and sectoral development.

In current geo-economic conditions, we need to consider the foreign economic factor as an instrument for structural changes, for the diversification of regional economy, as well as for the realization of a policy of import substitution, including exportoriented one. The article generalizes and systemizes preconditions and sources of the research of regional foreign economic activity in the works of the scientific school of the Institute of Economics of Ural Branch of RAS since the middle of the 1980s. The Institute was one of the first among the regional centres of the academic science of the country, which has addressed the foreign economic relations of a region. The purpose of the article is to systematize both the evolution of scientific definitions and the development of the Ural school of regional foreign economic research during the 30-years period. We apply the interdisciplinary approach and a broad range of methods: a historical method, an economic and statistical method, a comparative analysis, etc. The paper has systemized and characterized the research directions carried out by the staff of the Institute and in cooperation with Russian and Ural colleagues from other institutions. There are geo-economic shifts; international comparative research; regions’ involvement into global economic relations; realization of Ural export potential in terms of neo-industrialization and import substitution; international economic cooperation in the framework of SCO, BRICS, Eurasian Economic Union, etc. The Academician A. I. Tatarkin played an invaluable role as the Head of the Institute from 1990 to 2016. He initiated, facilitated and led many research directions. Thanks to this, the Institute of the Ural Branch of RAS over the years has being a kind of regional research-communicational platform, where scientists can search the mechanisms and tools for the realization of the foreign economic potential of the region with an account of national priorities. It underlines a high practical importance of the research in this sphere

This paper tests the hypothesis on the presence of common factors in the dynamics of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) countries’ macroeconomic indicators. As the most important factor, the common dynamics of commodity prices in world markets was chosen. We identified key channels of the transmission of commodity price shocks for EAEU economies. These transmission channels include both direct transmission channels, connected with the terms of trade, and indirect channels. The latter ones include labour migration between EAEU countries, money transactions by migrants, high trade linkages between EAEU countries, and preferential pricing for energy resources. The empirical part of the paper studies the influence of commodity prices on EAEU countries’ macroeconomic indicators. We have proposed a factor autoregressive model. Based on this model, we have identified the first principal component price movements in oil, natural gas, aluminum, copper, steel, gold and wheat. The first principal component explains 75 % of oil and gas price growth rate variation, 45 % of the copper price growth rate variation, and more than 25 % of the variation of other series. Further, we used VAR model to estimate the influence of the first principal component on the EAEU countries’ GDP, consumption and investment dynamics. The results showed the significant positive effect of commodity prices growth in all EAEU members. We also revealed a number of shock transmission features. For example, price shock affected Russian economy through the income effect, while the same shock affected Armenian economy through the direct output stimulation. Our results may be useful for the coordination of the economic policy and business cycles stabilization amongst EAEU countries.

The transition to new business conditions in the agro-industrial sector puts forward new requirements for staffing. High qualification of workers in agribusiness is one of the main conditions for creating a platform for the transition from industrialization to environmentally responsible economic growth. However, few existing training and retraining programs for the agro-industrial sector allow to provide the labour market by specialists whose professional competencies include an environmentally responsible context. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the opportunities and prospects for reforming educational programs to train highly qualified specialists for the Russian agro-industrial complex. This article is based on a content analysis of research, economic and statistical data that reliably characterize trends and tendencies in the development of the Russian agro-industry at the present time. One of the most rational approaches to provide the Russian agro-industrial sector with highly qualified human resources, which possess competences in environmentally responsible organization of activities can be based on the Triple Helix Model. The information presented in the article has allowed to make the following main conclusions. Firstly, the environmentally responsible development of the economy as a whole, as well as of its separate sectors, spheres, as well as of the social sector, is the basic condition for the physical survival of modern civilization. Secondly, in the Russian system of training personnel for the agro-industrial sector, the concept of environmentally responsible and innovative-oriented education has not been systematically implemented. Therefore, in practice, the agrarian regions of Russia urgently need skilled personnel with the appropriate level of professional competence in resource-efficient nature management. These conclusions can be used as at the macroeconomic level for the elaboration of development programs of the Russian agro-industry, and at the microeconomic level for the improvement of ways and approaches to corporate training. Within this article, we did not specify the modern techniques of the personnel training and the development of personnel capacity in agro-industriy. This aspect will become a subject-mater for our further research.

The improvement of state support for the agro-industry in regions is relevant. The purpose of the study is to find the opportunities for increasing investments to the agriculture, as well as to maximize returns from them. At the same time, an optimal structure of the fixed-capital assets of agriculture as well as the acceleration of the new technological wave in the national economy are necessary. Our hypothesis is that investments play the key role in developing the competitive advantages of agriculture. The study is based on Cobb-Douglass production function. The recipients of funds have a tendency to opportunistic behavior, which increases as the volume of support rises. This tendency is an important restriction that influences the investment efficiency. As a promising solution, we propose to grant the status of investment use to the funds received by the agricultural industry within the programmes of support. This status may be changed only when the funds are used many times for the investment purposes including input suppliers. It will provide both a high return from the funds supporting of agriculture and their budget effectiveness. Moreover, It will help to minimize opportunistic behavior of the recipients of funds. For preventing the investment mistakes connected with the choice of sub-optimal technological solutions, we propose to standardize State investment options. These options will include projects, which completely or mainly use the Russian-origin inputs, providing high production efficiency. The authors’ suggestions can be used by both researchers to investigate the increase in efficiency of state support in regional agriculture and universities in educational process.

The article considers one of the important forms of the organization of agricultural production — the rural household. Despite a high share of production of milk, meat, vegetables and potatoes, rural households still lacks official recognition as an equal and necessary form of the organization of social production. The purpose of this research is to test the authors’ hypothesis on a reduced role of rural households in meeting the challenges of import substitution and self-sufficiency of the rural population in food products. The livestock output dynamics in specific household categories throughout the period of reform shows a persistent trend from 2003, among the private households to reduce the output of milk, which is one of the most complex types in the system of the import substitution. Self-sufficiency of the rural population in dairy products is one of the feasible ways to provide adequate nutrition. The authors’ methodology has allowed to define that further reduction of milk production output in rural households will complicate the solution of the problem of supplying the rural population with food products. Low income of the rural population will limit access to the essential food products despite the fact whether the production is of domestic or foreign origin. At the state level, the necessity to preserve and develop rural households is a “can-do” task. Its achieving can be facilitated by the state support in setting up cooperatives and other integrated associations for the production and sales of agricultural products with a high level of rural farms there. Our country has an experience of organizing such cooperatives and associations. On the example of small wholesale distributional centres for processing and sales of vegetables and potato, we consider two models (the integrated and cooperative ones). They promote both the growth of confidence of the rural households to the new forms of organizing sales of their products. Moreover, these models empower rural households to increase the volumes of the production and realization of output. The findings, as well as the methodological scheme of the research, can be used when choosing the priority investment destinations, which are crucial for organizing the import substitution and ensuring food security.

The paper substantiates the possibility and the necessity to introduce the notion of «fiscal sustainability». Fiscal sustainability is the company’s ability to meet its tax obligations and to function normally according to its tasks, despite the influence of economic changes in external and internal environment. The investigation of the introduced category allowed making the following conclusions. Firstly, fiscal sustainability and financial sustainability are interdependent . Secondly, we defined the exogeneous and endogenous factors, which cause changements in the state of fiscal sustainability and predetermine its «contraction» and «expansion». Thirdly, the category of fiscal sustainability has local and global characteristics. And last, fiscal sustainability needs temporal characteristics: operational, tactical, and strategic ones, and quantitative representation. We propose the indicators for assessing the fiscal sustainability of an enterprise. The quantitative assessment of fiscal sustainability can be represented by the following indicators: the coverage ratio of tax payments; structural ratio of tax debt and paid tax payments; as well as the rate of tax debt growth. We present models for calculating these indicators values, and substantiate the possibility of their performance management. We assess planned and actual values for fiscal sustainability on the basis of the developed system of indicators, and then level the resulting deviations. This task is of a complex nature, covering all phases of the management of. Fiscal sustainability can be measured for different time periods. Therefore, the system of fiscal sustainability management refers to strategic, tactical and operational levels. The application of the research results will provide to the enterprises an opportunity to meet their tax obligations.