With a population of 1,073,000 in the year 2008, the region of
Leipzig-Halle is an important agglomeration in Central Germany.
It is partly located in the federal state Saxony and in the
state of Saxony-Anhalt and covers a total of 4,390 km². Its main
urban cores, Leipzig and Halle, are encircled by small towns and
rural areas. During GDR times, the Leipzig-Halle region was
developed as a centre for chemical industries. Major town
extensions were realised. Having been part of the former GDR and
its relatively closed economic system, de-industrialisation
occurred after the political transformation of 1989 in
particular, when the region's economy faced national and
international competition. Today, tentative new developments in
the service sector take place, such as in the fields of
education, transportation, local recreation and tourism.
Therefore, the Leipzig-Halle region is experiencing both
population growth and decline side-by-side, with new development
continuing despite pre-existing brownfields and high