Abstract

The essay reviews the literature on Italy's «growth poles» policy in the 1950s-1980s. The first part discusses the 4th Siderurgical Center and the opening of the Alfasud car plant, while the second part summarizes the rationale, the limits, and the successes of the Italian experience with growth poles, providing extensive notes on the chemical poles. Although Italian poles policy limits are well known, their successes have scarcely been mentioned. Three main results emerge: a) many large, profitable plants have been stably embedded in the Southern economy; b) the growth poles have proven to be vital and capable of significantly increasing incomes in the areas where they have been established and of stably attracting investments; c) in some cases the poles have induced the start-up and development of new firms.