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13 (1) 2023

Delineation of city-region boundary in Vietnam: The empirical case of ‘Can Tho City-region’


Author - Affiliation:
Le Minh Son - Vietnam Institute for Development Strategies, Ministry of Planning and Investment, Hanoi , Vietnam
Corresponding author: Le Minh Son - sonlm.vids@mpi.gov.vn
Submitted: 21-12-2021
Accepted: 08-02-2022
Published: 29-07-2022

Abstract
In recent years, city-regional development has received increasing attention from the media, policymakers as well as the academic spheres but yet ‘city-region’ remains a relatively understudied subject in Vietnamese literature. Contemporary works have appealed to how city-regions are functional economic areas, but the development of Vietnamese city-regions has been rather normative and politically guided. More empirical works are much needed so that city-regional policies are more evidence-backed and, therefore ultimately, more effective. With particular scope into the delineation of city-regional boundary, this paper contributes to that growing body of literature in two ways: (1) to provide an overview of methodology to define boundaries of polarized regions - of which city-region is a special form - and (2) to present an original attempt to empirically delineate city-regional boundary in Vietnam, with ‘Can Tho City-region’ as a case study. The article is both empirical and experimental which, the author hopes, would ignite further interest in this growing field.

JEL codes
O18; P25; R11; R12; R58

Keywords
boundary; Can Tho; city-region; delineation; gravity model; Mekong

Full Text:
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Cite this paper as:

Le, S. M. (2023). Delineation of city-region boundary in Vietnam: The empirical case of ‘Can Tho City-region’. Ho Chi Minh City Open University Journal of Science – Economics and Business Administration, 13(1), 32-52. doi:10.46223/HCMCOUJS.econ.en.13.1.2121.2023


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