REGIONAL DIFFERENTIATION AND DISPARITIES IN THE AGRICULTURAL SECTOR OF UKRAINE: A CLUSTER APPROACH
Abstract
The primary objective of the research is to cluster Ukrainian regions based on key agricultural sector indicators using statistical classification methods. This approach allows for the identification of regional disparities in agricultural development levels. The relevance of this study arises from the need to develop effective agricultural policies tailored to the specific needs of each region, taking into account their unique levels of agricultural development. To achieve the research objective, cluster analysis methods were applied, specifically hierarchical cluster analysis and k-means clustering. The clustering process was based on normalized data for key agricultural sector indicators: the value of agricultural products, average monthly wages in agriculture, sown areas, grain production, crop yields, and livestock numbers. Two clustering methods were employed: Wards method, which minimizes the distance between clusters, and the k-means method, which determines the average values for each cluster. The cluster analysis results revealed that Ukrainian agricultural sector can be divided into three main clusters, each characterized by significant differences in agricultural productivity, wage levels, and other economic factors. The first cluster includes regions with the lowest level of agricultural development, the second cluster comprises regions with an average level of development, and the third cluster encompasses regions with high agricultural productivity and efficiency. The clustering process successfully identified the most and least developed agricultural regions, highlighting substantial territorial disparities in agricultural development. The findings provide insights into the spatial distribution of agricultural development in Ukraine, offering valuable recommendations for regional agricultural policy and targeted interventions aimed at improving the agricultural sector. This research demonstrates the importance of statistical methods for identifying regional disparities and can inform future strategies for sustainable agricultural growth in Ukraine.
References
Kaminskyi A. B., Nehrey M. V., Zomchak L. M. COVID-19: crisis or new opportunities time for the agricultural sector of Ukraine. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science. IOP Publishing. 2021. Vol. 628. No. 1. Р. 012031
Teixeira D. S. J. A., Koblianska I., Kucher A. Agricultural production in Ukraine: An insight into the impact of the Russo-Ukrainian war on local, regional and global food security. Journal of Agricultural Sciences (Belgrade). 2023. № 68(2). Р. 121-140.
Richterová E., Richter M., Sojková Z. Regional eco-efficiency of the agricultural sector in V4 regions, its dynamics in time and decomposition on the technological and pure technical eco-efficiency change. Equilibrium. Quarterly Journal of Economics and Economic Policy. 2021. №16(3). Р. 553-576.
Shebanina O., Burkovska A., Petrenko V., Burkovska A. Economic planning at agricultural enterprises: Ukrainian experience of increasing the availability of data in the context of food security. Agricultural and Resource Economics: International Scientific E-Journal. 2023. № 9(4). Р. 168-191.
Bal-Prylypko L., Nikolaenko M., Stepasyuk L., Cherednichenko O., Lialyk A. Forecasting the sale price of pork in agricultural enterprises. Agricultural and Resource Economics: International Scientific E-Journal. 2022. Vol. 8(4). 170-187.
Babenko V., Nehrey M. Digital agriculture innovation: Trends and opportunities. Advanced Trends in ICT for Innovative Business Management. CRC Press. 2021. Р. 87-102
Nehrey M., Zomchak L. Digital technology: emerging issue for agriculture. The International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Logistics Engineering. Cham: Springer International Publishing. 2022. Р. 146-156.
Liu Y., Jiang Z., Wang H. S. Spatial differentiation of agricultural regional function in Beijing and its influencing factors. Journal of Natural Resources. 2020. №35(10). Р. 2444-2459.
Koutridi E., Tsiotas D., Christopoulou O. Examining the spatial effect of “smartness” on the relationship between agriculture and regional development: the case of Greece. Land. 2023. №12(3). Р. 541.
Azeez N., Yahya W., Al-Taie I., Basbrain A., Clark A. Regional agricultural land classification based on random forest (RF), decision tree, and SVMs techniques. Fourth International Congress on Information and Communication Technology: ICICT 2019, London, Volume 1. Springer Singapore. 2020. Р. 73-81.
Zhou Z., Duan J., Li W., Geng S. Can rural road construction promote the sustainable development of regional agriculture in China? Sustainability. 2021 №13(19). Р. 10882.
Arsyad M., Darma R., Fahmid M., Fudjaja L., Rukka R. M. Analysis of agriculture based sector in regional development of Gowa Regency. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science. IOP Publishing. 2021. Vol. 807. No. 3. Р. 032083.
Зомчак Л. М., Умриш Г. Т. Моделювання залежності валового регіонального продукту від сільського господарства України на основі лонгітюдних даних. Економіка і суспільство. 2018. №16. С. 972-977.
Chiaraluce G., Bentivoglio D., Finco A. The circular economy model in the agri-food sector: A new strategy for the regional development. AIMS Agriculture and Food. 2023. №8(3). Р. 851-872.
Calegari E., Fabrizi E., Guastella G., Timpano F. EU regional convergence in the agricultural sector: Are there synergies between agricultural and regional policies? Papers in Regional Science. 2021. №100(1). С. 23-51.
Andriushchenko K., Kovtun V., Shergina L., Rozhko O., Yefimenko L. Agro-based Clusters: A tool for effective management of regional development in the ERA of globalisation. TEM Journal. 2020. №9(1). Р. 198-204.
Shpak N., Kulyniak I., Gvozd M., Vveinhardt J., Horbal N. Formulation of development strategies for regional agricultural resource potential: The Ukrainian case. Resources. 2021. №10(6). Р. 57.
Chivu L., Andrei J. V., Zaharia M., Gogonea R. M. A regional agricultural efficiency convergence assessment in Romania–Appraising differences and understanding potentials. Land Use Policy. 2020. №99. Р. 104838.
Вдовин М. Л., Любовецька Д. І. Таксономічний аналіз інвестиційної привабливості різних видів економічної діяльності України. Підприємництво і торгівля. 2023. №37. С. 5-11.
Vdovyn M., Zomchak L. Multidimensional Ranking and Taxonomic Analysis of the Regional Socio-Economic Development in Ukraine. International Conference on Computer Science, Engineering and Education Applications. Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland. 2023. Р. 361-370.
Dobrovolska O., Schmidtke K., Lastovchenko P., Odnoshevna O., Tkachenko O. Clustering countries of the world according to their business practices in agriculture. Problems and Perspectives in Management. 2024. №22(2). P. 352-364.
Державна служба статистику України. URL: https://www.ukrstat.gov.ua/ (дата звернення 1.12.2024)
Kaminskyi A.B., Nehrey M.V., Zomcha L. M. (2021). COVID-19: crisis or new opportunities time for the agricultural sector of Ukraine. In IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, vol. 628, no. 1, p. 012031/
Teixeira D. S. J. A., Koblianska I., Kucher A. (2023). Agricultural production in Ukraine: An insight into the impact of the Russo-Ukrainian war on local, regional and global food security. Journal of Agricultural Sciences (Belgrade), no. 68(2), pp. 121-140.
Richterová E., Richter M., Sojková Z. (2021). Regional eco-efficiency of the agricultural sector in V4 regions, its dynamics in time and decomposition on the technological and pure technical eco-efficiency change. Equilibrium. Quarterly Journal of Economics and Economic Policy, no. 16(3), pp. 553-576.
Shebanina O., Burkovska A., Petrenko V., Burkovska A. (2023). Economic planning at agricultural enterprises: Ukrainian experience of increasing the availability of data in the context of food security. Agricultural and Resource Economics: International Scientific E-Journal, no. 9(4), pp. 168-191.
Bal-Prylypko L., Nikolaenko M., Stepasyuk L., Cherednichenko O., Lialyk A. (2022). Forecasting the sale price of pork in agricultural enterprises. Agricultural and Resource Economics: International Scientific E-Journal, no. 8(4), pp. 170-187.
Babenko V., Nehrey M. (2021). Digital agriculture innovation: Trends and opportunities. In Advanced Trends in ICT for Innovative Business Management CRC Press, pp. 87-102.
Nehrey M., Zomchak, L. (2022). Digital technology: emerging issue for agriculture. In The International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Logistics Engineering. Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. 146-156
Liu Y., Jiang Z., Wang H.S. (2020). Spatial differentiation of agricultural regional function in Beijing and its influencing factors. Journal of Natural Resources, no. 35(10), pp. 2444-2459.
Koutridi E., Tsiotas D., Christopoulou O. (2023). Examining the spatial effect of “smartness” on the relationship between agriculture and regional development: the case of Greece. Land, no. 12(3), p. 541.
Azeez N., Yahya W., Al-Taie I., Basbrain A., Clark A. (2020). Regional agricultural land classification based on random forest (RF), decision tree, and SVMs techniques. In Fourth International Congress on Information and Communication Technology: ICICT 2019, London, Volume 1 Springer Singapore, pp. 73-81.
Zhou Z., Duan J., Li W., Geng S. (2021). Can rural road construction promote the sustainable development of regional agriculture in China? Sustainability, no. 13(19), p. 10882.
Arsyad M., Darma,R., Fahmid,M., Fudjaja L., Rukka R.M. (2021, July). Analysis of agriculture based sector in regional development of Gowa Regency. In IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, vol. 807, no. 3, p. 032083
Zomchak L.M., Umrysh H.T. (2018). Modelyuvannya zalezhnosti valovoho rehionalʹnoho produktu vid silʹsʹkoho hospodarstva Ukrayiny na osnovi lonhityudnykh danykh [Modeling the dependence of gross regional product on agriculture in Ukraine based on longitudinal data]. Ekonomika i suspilstvo, no. 16, pp. 972-977.
Chiaraluce G., Bentivoglio D., Finco A. (2023). The circular economy model in the agri-food sector: A new strategy for the regional development. AIMS Agriculture and Food, no. 8(3), pp. 851-872.
Calegari E., Fabrizi E., Guastella G., Timpano F. (2021). EU regional convergence in the agricultural sector: Are there synergies between agricultural and regional policies?. Papers in Regional Science, no. 100(1), pp. 23-51.
Andriushchenko K., Kovtun V., Shergina L., Rozhko O., Yefimenko L. (2020). Agro-based Clusters: A tool for effective management of regional development in the ERA of globalisation. TEM Journal, no. 9(1), pp. 198-204.
Shpak N., Kulyniak I., Gvozd M., Vveinhardt J., Horbal N. (2021). Formulation of development strategies for regional agricultural resource potential: The ukrainian case. Resources, no. 10(6), p. 57.
Chivu L., Andrei J.V., Zaharia M., Gogonea R.M. (2020). A regional agricultural efficiency convergence assessment in Romania–Appraising differences and understanding potentials. Land Use Policy, no. 99, p. 104838.
Vdovyn M.L., Lyubovetsʹka D.I. (2023). Taksonomichnyy analiz investytsiynoyi pryvablyvosti riznykh vydiv ekonomichnoyi diyalnosti Ukrayiny [Taxonomic analysis of investment attractiveness of various types of economic activity of Ukraine]. Pidpryyemnytstvo i torhivlya, no. 37, pp. 5-11.
Vdovyn M., Zomchak L. (2023) Multidimensional Ranking and Taxonomic Analysis of the Regional Socio-Economic Development in Ukraine. International Conference on Computer Science, Engineering and Education Applications. Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland, pp. 361-370.
Dobrovolska O., Schmidtke K., Lastovchenko P., Odnoshevna O., Tkachenko, O. (2024). Clustering countries of the world according to their business practices in agriculture. Problems and Perspectives in Management, no. 22(2), pp. 352-364.
Derzhavna sluzhba statystyku Ukrainy [State Statistic Service of Ukraine]. Available at: https://www.ukrstat.gov.ua/ (access 1.12.2024)
