Large cities in the regional economic space

Currently, cities as centers of concentration of the main production factors are the most important element of the economic space. In many ways, they determine the socio-economic development of the region. In most countries of the world, the processes of urbanization and agglomeration of territories are increasing, which is due to agglomeration effects and the desire of people to live in large settlements, since they have a much higher level and quality of life than in rural areas, and there are also more opportunities for self-realization. However, concentration of the population in urban agglomerations and major cities leads to such negative effects as the growth of spatial asymmetry of the country’s socio-economic development, an increase in the negative impact on the environment, an increase in national security risks. In this regard, the purpose of the work is to study the role of large cities in the region’s economy (case study of the Vologda Oblast), their development and management to achieve the goals of socio-economic development of territories. We study theoretical aspects of the importance of large cities for the region’s socio-economic development; the role of cities of this type in the development of the territory is substantiated using the calculated Herfindahl - Hirschman indices. In the course of the analysis of the theoretical foundations, we present Russian experience and identify problems, the directions of the development of large cities to solve the strategic tasks of the region’s development. The information base consists of the works of foreign and Russian scientists, specialists in the field of regional and municipal economy, data from Rosstat and offi cial websites of the constitute entities of the Russian Federation. We use methods of comparison, analysis, generalization, sampling and grouping. The scientifi c provisions of the work are useful to government offi cials and researchers interested in the development of large cities in the economy of the region.