Abstract:

This work complements the research on the innovative development of the regions of Kazakhstan. In the transition to a market economy, regional differences in the country deepened due to significant imbalances in the territorial organization of the economy, as well as a rupture of existing economic ties. Uneven and inconsistent market reforms carried out by state and regional governments do not allow purposefully implement a unified reform policy. The purpose of this study is to analyze the unequal economic development of the country’s regions and to identify its relationship with innovative development. Calculations of spatial concentration meters showed that in the period 2004-2015, the general regional inequality in Kazakhstan changed in different directions, as evidenced by the diverging series of GRP and employment indices. The results of the study confirm the theoretical position that innovation is an endogenous factor that can explain economic growth. Further disclosure of this problem will help to identify possible “points of growth”, that is, areas in which there may be a high absorption potential for ensuring the economic and social development effect for the development of an innovative economy.