Shapor M.A., Shakhov O.F., Shakhov M.O. Kompleksnaya ocenka perspektiv razvitiya regionov Rossii (na primere Irkutskoj oblasti) [Comprehensive assessment of development prospects of Russian regions (using the Irkutsk region as an example)]. Gorizonty ekonomiki [Horizons of Economics]. 2025. No. 4 (91). P. 26–42 (in Russ.), EDN: BVQZGO

Abstract

The current geopolitical situation requires greater attention to the development of Russian regions due to the need to develop new markets, as well as the urgent need to diversify Russian exports and increase the share of finished products. In this regard, the aforementioned team of authors decided to present another article on this issue, related to the development of another Russian region - the Irkutsk region. The purpose of the presented study, similar to the study on the Altai Territory, is to apply the author's methodology of an integrated approach to assessing the development prospects of Russian regions, which was originally created to assess the prospects of modern trade unions. The empirical basis of the practical part of the study, similar to the previous article in the series, was the data from the analysis of general and specific indicators of the development of the region under study. During the study period (from 2007 to 2023), the foreign trade turnover of the Irkutsk region increased from 8836.2 to 10 313.88 million US dollars, which amounted to 16.72%, respectively. In turn, net exports had multidirectional dynamics associated with a decrease in prices for hydrocarbon energy resources and the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The ratio of export coverage by imports, it should be noted that the results of the analysis revealed that this indicator had multidirectional dynamics. In the period from 2014 to 2017, there was a drop in this indicator from 255 to 249%, then in 2022 this indicator of the Irkutsk region reached its maximum value of 261%, after which a downward trend began again. The comprehensive assessment of the socio-economic development of the Irkutsk region for the period from 2007 to 2023 showed that the region as a whole passed the test of the crisis and strengthened its economy.