The role of the Cassa per il Mezzogiorno in the Italian economy during the second half of the 1900s.New digital accounting sources and research prospects

The history of the Cassa per il Mezzogiorno and its role to counter the regional inequality in Italy during the second hal of 1900s has been the subject of numerous studies and in-depth studies. From a purely quantitative point of view, the overall analysis of the financial statements highlighted how the Cassa managed to allocate between 1950 and 1986 over € 104,180 million (at constant 2011 prices). The results of this important financial mass were variable and different were the tools and models of interpretation adopted by historiography. Particularly important is the question of territorial analysis of interventions and their regional and provincial distribution. The aim of the essay is to present a model of study of the role and strategies of the case of the Cassa per il Mezzogiorno between 1950 and 1992 on a territorial level based on the use of a new series of quantitative character developed through the reorganization of the Cassa electronic accounting sources recently deposited at the Central State Archive of Italy. The research thus makes it possible to deepen some aspects of the Cassa activity, its account management and to make a comparison with the main evidences demonstrated by the historiography on the intervention strategies adopted by it.