The role of Pécs in the economy
Considering the number of inhabitants as well as its organizational role in the regional structure, Pécs is the largest city and the centre for spatial organisation. Its role as a regional centre is based on the function it has traditionally fulfilled in the hierarchy of urban settlements, its strong intellectual assets provided by its universities, cultural attractiveness and outstanding economic potential.
Pécs is a centre for the service industries, with three quarters of the employed working in the tertiary sector. The majority of jobs have become white collar. Over the past ten years several international companies have chosen to set up business in the city, and, in addition, more companies which cover the whole country have located their warehousing and distribution facilities there. This is all leading to the transition of a traditionally industrial manufacturing local economy to an economy based on business and logistics services.
Given its economic, cultural and scientific achievements, Pécs has evolved into one of Hungary’s most dynamic, developing cities, providing a high quality of life. Its intellectual impact goes far beyond the boundaries of the region and the country.
According to the priorities set in the framework of the general urban development policies, the city endeavours to
1. develop into a national and international pole of knowledge-based economic development
2. emerge as a city of national esteem in the fields of culture, education and science
3. build up an efficient infrastructural framework, able to enhance competitiveness
4. act as a regional hub, respecting the principles of partnership
5. provide efficient public administration and a high quality of life for its citizens
Knowledge-based economic development
Given all the necessary conditions, the aim is to turn Pécs into a competitive regional centre. The city is an intellectual and cultural hub for European science, research and technology development. In the 21 century competitiveness is the foundation for long-term success, and knowledge is the most valuable asset organisations possess.
As the intellectual and cultural centre of the South Transdanubian Region, Pécs intends to play the role of the driver in the process which fosters new development opportunities, thus opening up the region to a new level of international success. The available intellectual capacities can be utilised most efficiently in three sectors:
The culture, the health and the environment industries.
Cultural industry
By winning the title of European Capital of Culture (ECC), the city of Pécs has focused its economic and urban development policies for the forthcoming years on culture and the culture industry. Through the rebranding of the city and putting intellectual values first, the title of ECC will lead to generating further cultural development, the main directions of which are already visible. The first steps for creating a centre for the digital media in Pécs have been taken by involving venture capital. Firstly, suitable production facilities like film and animation studios have been set up, and secondly, a research institute for investigating the practical utilisation of digital media applications has been established.
Under the leadership of the the Faculty of Music and Visual Arts of the University of Pécs, plans for creating an institution aimed at bridging business enterprise activities, creative ideas and technologies are in preparation.
Health industry
The academic and research capacities, as well as the knowledge base accumulated by businesses, cover all processes involved in medical treatment, ranging from prevention and R&D to providing treatment and rehabilitation. The aim is to link public health services and research institutions with local profit-oriented suppliers and service providers, as well as to market the generated know-how. In Pécs, medical biotechnology, neurobiology, food science, implants, kinetics rehabilitation and the treatment of infertility are identified as high priorities of the health industry.
New activities are supported by the multifunctional health industry innovation centre, to be built, with the involvement of European Community funding and venture capital. As a result of innovation activities, besides intellectual products, health service centres representing the city and its immediate surroundings have been established.
Environment industry
The city of Pécs and its surrounding area intends to develop into a leading cultural and health tourism destination. This target can only be based on a sustainable tourism-led infrastructure development process committed to the conservation of the attractive built and natural environment. In order to meet these principles, the city of Pécs is planning to launch investments related to the environment industry targeted at, among others, energy supply, solid and liquid waste management, the maintenance of green areas, creating transport corridors and providing intermodal transport facilities.
The role of the academia
The implementation of the economy development objectives has been supported by the University of Pécs. It is one of Hungary’s largest higher education centres, having an extremely wide range of research and educational programmes. Being home to ten faculties with over 36,000 students and 7,000 employees, the University of Pécs plays a significant role in the region’s scientific, economic and cultural life. Yearly there are 6,000 graduates leaving the university and entering the labour market.
The University of Pécs is recognised as an active member of the international academic community: a great number of international guest lecturers come to the university, and 1038 foreign students attend the different study programmes. In addition to its membership of several regional and international organisations, it has extended partnership agreements with universities in neighbouring countries, as well as with highly-ranked universities in Western Europe and the United States of America.
Besides the research workshops of the university, Pécs hosts the Centre for Regional Studies of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. The institute carries out research in the long-term spatial planning and regional development processes at domestic and international levels, as well as supporting decision-making regarding Hungarian regional development and European integration policies. The Regional Committee of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences is a hub for the scientific activities of the South Transdanubian Region. By providing a forum for intellectual activities in the regional community, the Regional Academic Committee plays a significant role in promoting local intellectual activities, and stimulating public interest in the arts and sciences, (Science to us primarily means the natural sciences nowadays) as well as encouraging professionals to become actively involved.
Labour market
In this region the primacy of Pécs has always been unquestionable. With its more than 160,000 inhabitants it is the most populated city of the region, its economic opportunities are also outstanding, and this is the third biggest cultural centre of the country and also a university city.
The sectoral composition of employment across industrial branches in the region shows that manufacturing employs twenty one percent of jobholders, trade thirteen percent, and education eleven percent. One tenth of employees work in public administration, and nine percent in health care. In the total employment the share of construction is seven percent, agriculture, transport, economic services and real estate business each amounts to six percent. Financial institutions take the lowest share, one percent.
The highest number of job-seekers are among shop-assistants, salesmen, almost six thousand people in the region, half of them are available in Baranya county. Second in the total number of job-seekers are the office workers, their number amounts to three thousand and five hundred. In the regional ranking waiters, masons and metal-workers succeed in decreasing order. These data are valid for Baranya and Tolna county. The following trades take the next places in decreasing order: tailor’s cutter, dressmaker, painter, guard, cook, joiner, car mechanic, electrician, stock-keeper. The number of unskilled workers is more than fifteen thousand. The bottom line of the order is composed of all kinds of guards and truck drivers.