Сurrent legislative initiatives in the area of local self-government in the capital of Ukraine. Experience of expert analysis.

The article deals with the status of constitutional and legal support for the realization of the status of the city of Kyiv as the capital of Ukraine, as well as the conceptual problems of the current legislative initiatives in the sphere of local self-government and executive power in the city of Kyiv, using the experience of expert analysis. It is noted that over the years that have passed since the adoption of the legislative acts that determined the peculiarities and specifics of the organization and functioning of local self-government and executive power in the city of Kyiv, the corresponding relations have developed quite contradictory both in terms of the implementation of capital functions and activities of organizational structures of the city authorities, first of all, the Kyiv mayor, the Kyiv city council, the Kyiv city state administration, implementation of management in the districts of cities, etc. The set of objective and subjective reasons, legal, political and socioeconomic, internal and external factors, which necessitate improvement of legislative support of the organization and functioning of local selfgovernment and executive power in the city of Kyiv, are considered. A critical analysis of the drafts of the new version of the Law of Ukraine «On the Capital of Ukraine – Hero City Kyiv» is carried out (Reg. No. 2143 of 13.09.2019; Reg. No. 2143-1 of 19.09.2019; Reg. No. 2143-2 of 24.09.2019; Reg. No. 2143-3 of 24/09/2019). It is proved that these draft laws contain a number of conceptual shortcomings related to the regulation of metropolitan functions, the status of local self-government and executive power in the city of Kyiv, their tasks and competences, the place and role of the Charter of the territorial community of the city of Kyiv in the process of solving urban issues values, etc. The general conclusion is that the mechanism of implementation of local self-government and executive power in the city of Kyiv is extremely contradictory and inefficient, and modern legislative initiatives in the sphere of ensuring the status of the city of Kyiv not only eliminate the existing gaps and defects, but also create new problems of political, legal and socioeconomic, functional and institutional nature. Key words: capital of Ukraine, metropolitan functions, local selfgovernment, executive power, territorial community.

Typology of Czech non-metropolitan regions based on their principal factors, mechanisms and actors of development

In this article, we propose a typology of Czech nonmetropolitan regions according to their key factors, actors and mechanisms of development. Five main categories of Czech non-metropolitan regions were identified – peripheries, single factory regions, “ordinary” diversified industrial regions, lower-tier satellite platforms and higher-tier satellite platforms, complemented by the cores and hinterlands of metropolitan regions and the medium-sized urban regions with metropolitan functions. Despite the small size and high structural and functional heterogeneity of microregional economies, no significant differences in economic performance between particular groups of non-metropolitan regions were identified. Specialized non-metropolitan regions dominated by large firms perform on average economically somewhat better than those diversified and they also outperform metropolitan hinterlands and urban regions. The analysis showed, however, that the effects of industrial structure on regional economic performance are rather limited.

Metropolitan aspirations of cities in East Poland during the process of their development

Białystok, Lublin, and Rzeszów are the three largest cities in eastern Poland, and the capitals of their provinces. They each have metropolitan ambitions, and based on partner agreements with the authorities of their neighbouring districts they initiated the establishment of metropolitan areas where they became the main centres. This article undertakes an analysis of a number of elements of each of these metropolitan areas in order to compare their position, and to give an assessment of the development of their metropolitan functions. The analysis concerned their demographic, social, economic and cultural parameters. Results of this research show that none of these analysed cities has yet developed sufficient functions coherent with the European metropolitan network. Each of them is a strong regional centre of national importance. Statistical analysis of the data shows no strong leader among these three metropolitan areas. The weak position of the Białystok Metropolitan Area is evident due to its particularly disturbing demographic processes which offer no chance for population development in the area or growth of its social potential. The Rzeszów Metropolitan Area maintains the best social-demographic and economic indices and it is also the most compact, coherent area with the least distance to its metropolitan centre.

Metropolitan Areas in Poland - State of Development and its Barriers

Metropolitan areas are increasingly often regarded as the key drivers of economic growth and the main targets of social and economic development strategies. Those processes are fraught with numerous limitations and barriers. The aim of this study was to identify major problems in the development of Polish metropolitan areas. The key issues were characterized based on a review of the available literature. Attempts were made to propose general solutions to selected problems. In Poland, the identification of metropolitan areas poses a problem, which lowers the effectiveness of management strategies for those regions. Polish urban agglomerations have weakly developed metropolitan functions, which compromises their status in European rankings and European metropolitan area networks.

The Upper-Silesian conurbation on the path towards the “Silesia” metropolis

In its methodological context, the article, expands on the idea of the organization of the “Silesia” superstructure. The idea of establishing a common urban organism emerged with the local governments of the Upper Silesian conurbation cities and was dictated by the need to find a way to change the traditional image of the Silesian region and its post-industrial role in the economic space of the country, as well as Europe. Therefore, in 2009, the Metropolitan Association of Upper- Silesia, an association for the initial institutionalization of “Silesia”, was registered, because “Silesia” does not hold any administrative or legal force. Such an organizational “revolution” of the Upper Silesian conurbation initiated a wide social debate, in which the arguments of both supporters and opponents of such an enterprise in the Silesian region became apparent, together with misunderstandings related to the term “metropolis”, and the idea of establishing “Silesia”. Representatives of local governments chose the more prestigious term “metropolis” as if a complex metropolisation had taken place in the Upper Silesian conurbation. It would be adequate, however, to look only for the first features of metropolitan functions in this de-industrialized and restructured region, which are going to shape the longlasting metropolisation process under the influence of globalisation.