SUMMARY
In "France and Its Regions 2026," INSEE seeks to explain why French regions are developing at different rates. The study analyzes four growth factors: demographics, human capital, infrastructure, and intangible capital (research and innovation). Their spatial concentration produces divergent trajectories, the effects of which “tend to intensify over time.”
Four key findings emerge. Territorial inequalities are cumulative: demographics, skills, employment, and innovation reinforce one another. The concentration of R&D is increasing, with 13 of 287 employment areas at the heart of the system. Infrastructure is a real but conditional lever, since its effect depends on the city’s size, the neighborhood’s location, and housing support. Finally, prosperity comes at a cost (high housing costs and housing shortages, increased social inequalities, and land development), while rural and industrial areas in the center and north face a combination of an aging population, deteriorating labor markets, and recruitment challenges. In the long term, the sluggish growth in employment raises fears of lasting polarization, which only targeted policies (training, health care, infrastructure) can reverse.
Keywords: accessibility, attractiveness, human capital, concentration, demographics, economic development, Grand Paris Express, infrastructure, innovation, regional inequalities, logistics, metropolization, Research and Development, R&D, tram, employment zones.
