LOCATION ANALYSIS AND REGIONAL-DEVELOPMENT - SUMMING-UP AND MOVING ON

Critiques of the urban functions in rural development approach have ex plored the strengths and limitations of this regional planning process as well as those of the location-allocation algorithms proposed as an alternative. Whatever the limitations of the two approaches may be, h owever, location-allocation algorithms cannot replace the broader plan ning framework of the urban functions method. Continuing the debate ov er the merits of these regional planning methods has become less impor tant than examining the lessons from nearly two decades of experience of applying the urban functions method in developing countries. Those lessons can help regional scientists formulate new methods of regional analysis that will be useful to planners and policymakers in the futu re.