Regional Formation and Development Studies

Economy operates in a broader social system, composed of households and enterprises but also by all institutions created by people. Law and politics is created and introduced in institutions in parallel to educational, administrative activities as well as any other social activities, including those related to the natural environment we live in. These institutions operate thanks to the social capital i.e. interconnected human resources. The quality of the social capital is dependent on mutual trust and relations in the society. For this reason, social capital is of key importance for sustainable development, both as a controller of the impact of the economy on the environment as well as the basis for the future development. The environment evolves continuously, there are rapidly changing economic processes and, in consequence, their impact on the environment is changing rapidly, tool. This brings some specific challenges to the resource and quality of human knowledge and the competence level of the human capital, as the only tool for a possible reduction of all imperfections.

For successful economic transition to the new stage of development improvements in business environment, as also the entrepreneurswho are ready to start your own business and to set up new companies. One of the main challenges the EU Member States face isthe need to boost their level of entrepreneurship and to become more competitive in the global market. That was one of the mainobjectives set by the Lisbon European Council, in March 2000, with a view to improving the Union’s performance in terms of employment,economic reform and social cohesion. Entrepreneurship is not only a driving force in the creation of new jobs, but it alsoincreases and enhances competitiveness and growth, personal fulfilment and the achievement of social objectives. The authors payspecific attention to the need to examine factors that affect the business environment development and entrepreneurship in regions ofLatvia, which determinethe complexity of the existing conditions and factors in each region in Latvia.

We are living in world of dynamic changes, and transformations of global systems and the environment around us leave an impact

The self-evaluation of health in Latvia has recently gained a special awareness, due to the financing for health being among the lowest in the European Union. Latvia has recently faced various difficulties, such as problems paying the salaries of medical personnel, and medical personnel emigrating to work in other countries.The aim of the study is to analyse the self-evaluation of health by inhabitants in the regions of Latvia.Research methods used in the preparation of this paper: the analysis of scientific publications and results of previously conducted research; the analysis of the results of a survey on household income and expenses conducted by the EU-SILC and the European Central Bank, compared with the results from other EU countries. The results of the survey are analysed using descriptive statistics indicators and cross-tabulations for the regions of Latvia. For areas, urban-rural living and ANOVA analysis of variance are used. To analyse self-evaluations by regions, the correlation of the relationship between health self-evaluation and educational level is used. The results of the analysis indicate that the situation of the regions of Latvia in the context of health self-evaluation is very different, and that there are very big demands on decision makers to find the best possible solution.

An aging population is defined in the scientific literature as changes in the structural age composition of the population, which leads to growth in the population of those who are 60 years and older. The aging of population is a social and economic problem that needs to be understood and addressed. Aging of the population has a significant impact on national economies, as well as within individual regions of the country. The old age index has a significant impact on regional supply of services. It is worth stressing that in order to improve a community’s quality of life and reduce disparities between regions, it is necessary to continually assess the level of development and regional development opportunities. Evaluation of the regional socio-economic situation should be performed periodically, so that regional policy measures can be directed to the areas of greatest need.