ABSTRACT
A major issue that confronts policy-makers in large economies is uneven development in different parts of the country. When economic disparities become entwined with ethnic differences, regional inequality acquires special political significance, as has been the case in Canada, Italy, Nigeria, Spain, the former Yugoslavia, and other countries. Until very recently, however, China has been noticeably absent from the list of countries in which regional disparities rank among the most prominent political issues. Indeed, Maoist China was held to be the paragon of balanced regional development.
