BioMatNet Item: FAIR-CT98-4288 - IMPACT: The Socio-Economic Impact of Rural Development Policies: Realities and Potentials

FAIR-CT98-4288
IMPACT: The Socio-Economic Impact of Rural Development Policies: Realities and Potentials

Contacts
Further Information

To find similar Items, click on a keyword below:
FAIR Area 6 - Rural Development

	Type of Project	Shared Cost
	Contract No	FAIR-CT98-4288
	Total Cost	1,400,000 Euros
	EC Contribution	1,400,000 Euros
	Start Date	01/04/1999
	Duration	36 Months

Background

In most regions of the EU, the contribution mad by the agricultural sector to the regional economy as a whole is declining. In the long run, this may well have a dramatic effect on the maintenance of landscapes and the natural values embedded in them,the social fabric of the countryside, regional employment levels and quite possibly on society at large. Within this context, the notion of rural development (RD) is emerging as an interesting alternative. Through RD, the countryside might be revitalised although the extent to which this is possible is subject to debate. It is also unclear what conditions and policies are necessary to realise this effectively. The competitiveness, viability and efficiency of rural enterprises, understood as carriers of RD processes, are not yet clearly understood. The lack of knowledge concerning bothh the possible socio-economic results of RD and its mechanisms might very well become a considerable problem. The appeal and legitimacy of RD are dependent on convincing responses to this lacuna. More specifically, this applies to the balance of effects associated with further liberalisation inthe WTO context and the entrance of new members to the EU on the one hand, and the countervailing effects of RD on the other. Insight into the inter-relations between spe ific RD policy measures and their socio-economic impact is also needed to provide European, national and regional politicians with the tools to select and to justify the most appropriate programmes and policy measures.

Objectives

The proposed research aims to elaborate empirically-grounded responses to these questions. The potential socio-economic impact of RD will be assessed and the policies most adequate to produce and sustain such an impact will also be analysed. The proposed research will be carried out in 6 European countries.

Description

Case studies of the most successful experiences of RD and its impact in terms of employment, income, investment and innovativeness, will form the starting point of the research. Subsequently, possibilities of generalising these experiences over wider areas will be studied, using a range of economic and sociological techniques. A comparative approach that takes the highly diversified interactyion between policies and practice into consideration is basic. Among other things, the outcome includes teh empirically-grounded and quantified assessment of the potential impact of RD and a specification of the policies most capable of securing such an impact.

Contacts

Coordinator

Wageningen Agricultural University NETHERLANDS

Participant