Regional Formation and Development Studies

Regional policy is a very dynamic and broad concept. As we can see from Lithuanian regional policy, regions can be formed very flexibly, using different spatial areas (counties as well as municipalities). This is justified by the main purpose of regional policy – dealing with social and economic inequality. The aim of the Government is, therefore, to identify the remote territories and to divert certain assistance in time. The Government, however, uses short-handed instruments, namely economic indicators, for the revealing of problem areas in Lithuania. The article argues that this is not enough: peripherality and accessibility indicators could be calculated for Lithuanian regions. Calculations of data using the formulas presented quite clear picture and tendencies of territorial development. They proved the existence of poor development axes and good development nucleus. The trend towards institutional development of 6 potential regions in Lithuania could be envisaged.