Innovation-driven development of the Russian economy requires a consistent national policy aimed at boosting scientific and innovative activity in the regions, which would facilitate the development of entrepreneurship and technology. It also plays an important role in ensuring the socio-economic progress of the regions and efficiency of income distribution.Aim. The presented study aims to examine the potential directions for optimizing scientific and innovative activity in regional socio-economic development and to identify factors that facilitate the intensification of innovative activity in the regions.Tasks. The authors conduct a correlation analysis between scientific and economic development of the regions with allowance for such factors as the level of education of the population and the number of researchers engaged in research and development (R&D). They also assess the current state of scientific and innovative activity and the national policy on the formation of the scientific and innovative potential of the regions.Methods. The methodological basis of the study of the scientific and innovative aspects of regional economic development includes correlation-regression analysis and abstract logical methods.Results. This study substantiates the role of scientific and innovative activity in regional economic development; determines a positive correlation between regional economic growth and the number of researchers; establishes an inverse correlation between scientific and economic development based on the dependence of innovative activity in the regions on the accumulated scientific potential; empirically assesses the impact of innovative factors on regional economic growth and proposes directions for improving the efficiency of the regional system of science and innovation.Conclusions. Concentrations of knowledge are analyzed as agglomerations of expenses on research and development, science and technology. This leads to an increase in the number of scientists, engineers, scientific and technological personnel of innovative enterprises in various Russian regions. A correlation analysis between scientific and economic regional development shows that per-capita GRP growth rate by the number of researchers is statistically significant, which means there are several factors affecting this dependence: geographical accessibility of higher education, university expenses on infrastructure and services, job creation, additional revenue from students from other countries and regions. It is established that efficient regional higher education systems and innovative development have a positive effect on regional economic development. The conducted analysis shows that a policy on the innovative development of resource regions should be based on government support that would facilitate the creation of innovations and strengthening of scientific potential.
Regional higher education systems and sustainable regional economic development: functional approach