RECI
The Regional Economic Capacity Index (RECI) is a decision support tool that is an adaptation of multiple criteria evaluation methods (MCE) that are generally used to develop composite scores based on multiple inputs for the purpose of assessing the suitability of a location for some predefined activity such as public services, industrial location etc.
However, in this application the methods are adapted to assess the demographic structure, location, economic structure, and governance and service characteristics of a community and assign a relative score to reflect its economic capacity as well as assessing its labour market.
In addition, the RECI tool also does a pseudo comparative analysis at 4 levels of geography (Provincial, Rural Secretariat Region, REDB and Functional Region) whereby one can assess at what level of geography a community has a pseudo comparative advantage (PCA). The application is also modular whereby one can assess the overall composite scores or get detailed information on the inputs that make up the composite scores. The model is also flexible whereby new inputs can be added or old ones removed as new information becomes available.
More importantly, the RECI is a diagnostic tool that can be used to assess the strengths and weakness of the local labour market as well as the economic structure of a community and its overall socio-economic well being. This information can be used to identify potential for economic development as well as a decision support tool for the development of policy and governance models.