COMPETITIVENESS AS THE MAIN CONDITION OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF MUNICIPAL TERRITORIES
The article highlights the methodological foundations of sustainable ecological and economic development; the challenges and contradictions of the current stage of the analysis and assessment of the sustainable development of municipalities are studied in accordance with the concept of sustainable development. The system of indicators of sustainable development at the municipal as well as the international level is considered. The directions for achieving the goals of sustainable development in a competitive environment are substantiated. The issue of territorial competition is studied, the factors influencing its development are determined. The criteria and indicators enabling to assess the sustainability of the ecological-economic system are systematized based on a study of the methodology of the United Nations, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the World Bank. The international experience of the sustainable development of municipalities is summarized and analyzed. The suggestions for improving methodological approaches to the analysis and assessment of the level of sustainability of the ecological-economic system in its various aspects are made taking into account the foreign experience. The criteria and indicators that allow assessing the economic, social and environmental situation at various levels of the social system are defined in accordance with the guidelines of the fundamental international documents. The issue of the competition of municipalities is studied. A number of tasks necessary for the implementation of the sustainable development of municipalities in a competitive environment is formulated. The factors and indicators of the competitiveness of municipalities allowing to assess the economic, social situation at the municipal level are determined in accordance with the definition of the territorial competition.