A cluster analysis of the Dutch-German borderland: An exploration of cross-border economic opportunities

In recent decades, the level of scale in urban regions has become increasingly important for economic development. The characteristics of the specific economy in an area must be identified first in order to develop policy for regional economic growth. All kinds of measuring instruments have been developed to measure the strength of a region in practice. To date, these instruments have hardly ever been applied in relation to cross-border regions. Despite the fact that cross-border economic interdependence is still very limited in most regions, a good cross-border analysis can reveal new perspectives. This study is a cluster analysis of the Dutch-German Rhine-Meuse-North Euroregion and, as such, is part of the ‘intergovernmental field lab’ project. It presents a cross-border view of the regional economy, which leads to new insights and opportunities. The study highlights the extremely varied composition of the economy in this cross-border region. There is no clearly defined profile. In addition, the analysis shows that there are untapped economic opportunities for cross-border cooperation in some economic segments such as StartUps, High Tech Systems and Materials as well as sustainable business. Consequently, the study forms the basis for further policy development in this cross-border region.