Agglomeration refers to the concentration of people or economic activity in a particular location. When firms and industries locate near each other, they benefit from economies of agglomeration through increased interactions and lower transportation and coordination costs. This can lead to the formation of manufacturing clusters connected by transport corridors. Concentrating industry provides economic advantages like access to skilled labor and suppliers, but also disadvantages like increased unemployment if demand falls for a specialized industry. Quality of life is an assessment of an individual's well-being that considers factors like health, income, education, environment, and social relationships. It differs from economic measures of living standards and various indicators are used to measure and compare quality of life between places.

1. THEORIES & CONCEPTS
Agglomeration. & Quality of Life
Nor Suzylah Sohaimi, PhD.
School of Government
Universiti Utara Malaysia
Kedah, Malaysia

2. Agglomeration Concept
Key point : Concentration / Put
together
A

3. ”Agglomeration" as an act of forming a group or pile.
Agglomeration is used in urban economies to describe the benefits that firm/ industries obtain
when locating near each other.
In the context of urbanization: is a form of concentration of whether the goods, buildings,
organizations, population, industry, services, or culture in a particular place (ie city, region or
province), which leads to the generation of specific competitive advantages
Increasing Returns Theory - Theory of Increasing Returns - due to the city of effectiveness (efficiency) may
be the basis of the formation of the city
Agglomeration, Centripetal, Centralization, Core, Convergence
vs
Dispersion, Centrifugal , Decentralization, Periphery, Divergence

5. Industrial Agglomeration
It refer to high concentration of industrial activities in an area.
When a specialized industry is established in any area it builds up a body of trained workers, and this tends
to attract to the area industries of same type or of subsidiary type.
The subsidiary industries may likewise attract another type of major industry
The resulting growth of population itself then attract diverse and lighter type of industries and snowball-like of
population and industry occurs
With the growth of population, improvement in transportation, in education and in professional services
follows, and all rendering conditions yet more attractive for further increase in population and industry.
It often occurs that the establishment of an industrial center may owe its existence to some special
advantages of the site, such as the existence of cool, or iron, or a port, or nearness to a market, have been
major determining factors in the selection of sites for many existing industries.

6. ● Agglomerated production. Represents industrial activities taking advantage of increased
interactions when they locate close to one other, also known as economies of agglomeration.
This leads to the setting of manufacturing clusters where transportation and coordination costs
are lower.
● Linkages between zones of agglomeration are generally serviced by high capacity transport
corridors between terminals such as ports, airports or rail yards. If this process occurs over a
period of time, manufacturing clusters may emerge through cumulative agglomeration.
● Diffused production. Represents industrial activities gaining from numerous but specific local /
regional advantages, such as access to resources or labor.
● Its main drawback resides in the linkages between the elements that can be difficult to
maintain if transport costs are high and/or if transportation has insufficient physical capacity.
This system can also be a reflection of relative autarky.

7. Agglomerated production. Represents industrial activities taking
advantage of increased interactions when they locate close to one other,
also known as economies of agglomeration.

8. Advantages
● Concentration of industry have certain economic advantages. The finished product of one
industry is often the raw material of another industry.
● Reduction of operating cost such as transportation, communication, infra & facilities and
the administration.
● Access to skilled labor and technology: The concentration of work-people having specialized
skill and training is advantageous to the employer.
● Grouping of similar industries thus tends towards industrial activity, which attracts partly
dependent lighter industries, and these in turn other and different industries.
● The concentration of diversified industries is advantageous to the workers, because there is
a choice of occupation to suit different tastes, and also if one trade goes slack they may be
able to obtain work in another.

9. ● Grouping of like industries has disadvantages to the employees. Demand for goods rises & falls, and when in falls
in specialized areas unemployment results.
● E.g: A permanent change of public demand, for example for rayon instead of cotton, for electric motors instead
of steam engine, may be disastrous for specialized industrial area. Both workers and employers will suffer & the
community which serves them will also suffer.
● Concentration of industries in large cities almost inevitably suffer economically as a result of street traffic
congestion
● The growth of city result in a rise of land values
● When concentration of industry occurs in an underdeveloped area, industries will demand to the public
authorities to supply roads, water supply, electricity, gas, sewerage, schools, workers housing & other community
facilities
● May result adverse effect on the health of workers caused by the congestion of houses, over crowding within the
houses, air and noise pollution .
Disadvantages

10. Quality of Life Concept
• Quality of Life term generally used to assess the level of life of the individual or society.
• The term is used in a variety of contexts, including in the field of international
development (ie the index of quality of life - for the purpose of comparison), health
care, politics, and others.
• This term is different from the concept of Living Standards is more a measurement of
the level or economic status such as income level of the community. [ Economic]
• Also associated with concepts such as freedom, happiness, rights, happiness, life
satisfaction, etc.. [ Social ]

11. The World Health Organisation:
Quality of life as
“ individuals’ perception of their position in life
in the context of the culture and value system
in which they live and relation to their goals,
expectation standards and concerns (WHO,
1997)

12. Carr, A. J., Thompson, P. W., & Kirwan, J. R. (1996).

13. Quality of Life Concept
Indicators:
1. Income & Distribution
2. Work Environment.
3. Transport & Communications.
4. Health.
5. Education.
6. Housing.
7. Environment.
8. Family Life.
9. Social participation.
10. Public Safety.
11. Culture & Leisure.
WHY MEASURE QUALITY OF
LIFE ?

14. Advantages Disadvantages
• Health care performance
• Economy performance
• Social performance
• The indicator choice @ indicators
inappropriate
• Too many aspects that need to be
considered. Easily measured objective
aspect but as a measure of subjective
perception is difficult to measure and can
study different socio-economic
backgrounds are different.
• Cultural differences can also lead to
different perceptions about quality of life.
• There is a tendency to manipulate the data
for a particular purpose. (i.e. politics)

15. Success
factors
Abundant in natural resources
Quality of human resources
Encourage in foreign investment
Political stability and social harmony
Effective government and business friendly
Good physical and social infrastructure
Good economic management
Macroeconomic management
High savings rates
Competitive industrial strategy

16. Better Quality of Life . . .
Malaysian Quality of Life Index . . .
110.93
100.0
109.82
95
100
105
110
'
9
0
'
9
2
'
9
4
'
9
6
'
9
8
'
0
0
'
0
2
• Working life
• Culture & leisure
• Housing
• Transport & comm.
• Health
• Education
• Income & distribution
• Social participation
• Family life
• Environment
• Public safety
MQLI
% Change
1990/2004
Indicators
22.1
21.2
18.9
18.1
18.1
15.9
8.0
6.6
4.2
-0.3
-21.5
10.9
The Malaysian Quality of Life Index (MQLI) is an aggregate
measure of the quality of life using forty-two indicators,
representing eleven components of life

17. Selected Indicators Of Quality Of Life
. . . reaching the level enjoyed in advanced
economies
61.6
65.6
39.4
4,302
58
17
48
44
1970 1990
Life expectancy (in years) :
• Male
• Female
Infant mortality rate / 1000
Population / Doctor ratio
Literacy rate (%)
Telephones / 1000 population 1
Utilities :
• Pipe water (% of population)
• Electricity (% of households)
68.8
73.5
13.1
2,533
85
131
80
80
2005
71.8
76.2
5.9
1,387
95.1
907
95
98
Note : 1/ Include mobile phones 2/ Universal coverage in urban areas
2
2
9