Successful Rural Development Research Articles

Youth Roles In Developing Village Economies

This research aims to analyze the role of youth as dynamic, motivating, and innovative forces in rural development planning, as well as to identify the obstacles they face. The study employs a descriptive method with a qualitative approach, using three data collection techniques: observation, interviews, and documentation. Data analysis involves data reduction, presentation, and conclusion drawing. However, there are several obstacles that hinder the youth's ability to carry out village area development, including the government's lack of concern for the development of Pegagan Julu youth and the high ego nature of the youth. The research findings indicate that youth in villages play a crucial role as dynamists, motivators, and innovators in rural development planning. However, there are several obstacles that hinder the youth's ability to carry out village area development, including the government's lack of concern for the development of Pegagan Julu youth and the high ego nature of the youth. However, there are several obstacles that hinder the youth's ability to carry out village area development, including the government's lack of concern for the development of Pegagan Julu youth and the high ego nature of the youth. It is important to address these obstacles to ensure successful rural development planning.

Innovation as a factor in successful rural development

The article presents the results of a study devoted to key aspects of the development of rural areas and the agricultural sector of the economy, which are innovative in nature and directly affect the country’s food security in the context of modern challenges and threats. The purpose of the study comes down to the specification of the most important innovations (including digital ones), which are, in fact, necessary prerequisites for achieving local security in terms of, firstly, providing the population with affordable, high-quality and healthy food products, and secondly, the implementation of social and environmental challenges in rural regions. The tasks set to achieve the goal formulated in the work were solved through the use of research methods such as comparative analysis of existing theoretical research in this direction, assessment of the effectiveness of international and domestic practices, as well as relevant political initiatives, forecasting promising trends in the innovative development of the rural economy and rural areas taking into account the existing internal potential and external factors. Important scientific generalizations that have both theoretical and practical significance include the conclusions that (1) the dynamic development of the agricultural sector of the economy in the unfavorable circumstances of climate change and deteriorating geopolitical situation is possible through the active implementation of organizational and technological innovations (including digital) , (2) social innovation and digitalization are important for providing the rural population with essential social and ecosystem services, (3 all types of innovations (technological, social, organizational) are of high importance for the effective involvement of the rural population in the management of local development.

КОМПЛЕКСНАЯ ТИПОЛОГИЯ СЕЛЬСКОЙ ЛОКАЛЬНОЙ ЭКОНОМИКИ И ФОРМИРОВАНИЕ НА ЕЕ ОСНОВЕ СТРАТЕГИЙ РЕГИОНАЛЬНОГО РАЗВИТИЯ КИТАЯ

In many countries, rural areas are experiencing development difficulties due to depopulation, population aging, lack of economic opportunities, etc. Analysis of examples of successful rural development strategies is timely and in demand, but in recent years it has focused on European and North American publications. Solving serious problems of its rural areas, our southern neighbor, the People’s Republic of China, developed a rural revival strategy in 2017. Due to significant territorial differences, the rural revival strategy in China had to be formed in accordance with local conditions and needs. The article considers different approaches of Chinese scientists to the development of complex systems of indicators for measuring the level of development of rural local areas in terms of resource availability, natural and climatic conditions, and socio-economic level of development in order to obtain an adequate platform for substantiating their development path. The development of a comprehensive typology of rural areas in China made it possible to substantiate the fact that natural resource potential is still a decisive factor in the differentiation of rural areas, and socio-economic factors play an important role in their transformation and development. Of course, the author considers that a sustainable development strategy should be based on a scientifically developed typology of territories, which allows taking into account their potential and accumulated problems in a comprehensive manner. The Chinese experience of typology is original and interesting, since the strategy developed on its basis allows the People’s Republic of China to achieve great success in the development of rural areas, which is strategically important for one of the largest agricultural powers. The purpose of this study was to create an important theoretical basis for decision-making on the development of rural areas. The work developed a system of indicators and expertly assessed the importance of each of them.

Population growth and Rural Development in the interface of Climate Change in Nepal: A review

The objective of this paper is to analyze the relationship between population change and rural development in connection with climate change in Nepal. Climate change has two directional relationship with climate change. Firstly, population growth and rural development act as anthropogenic factors for climate change. On the other hand, climate change and extremities impact population pyramid and damages the rural infrastructures. It is based on secondary data and published and unpublished literatures. The study reveals that there is a strong relationship between climate change, population change and rural development. Many rural people are migrated into the urban areas and young people are trying to shift in abroad for employment where climatic factors are increasingly push factors. Lack of skill oriented education entrepreneurship programs, agricultural extension program people are suffering from different problems. Self help program is needed into the rural areas. So government should rethink to implement the rural development program in Nepal. Poverty become the main sensitive issue of rural areas. Though the government has given emphasis on the rural development of Nepal, so the policy makers should do the research about the successful rural development program in Nepal.

ICT for Sustainable Development: Evidence from Nguruman Community Knowledge Centre, Kajiado County, Kenya

For over a decade, development partners have advocated the application of ICTs as tools for poverty alleviation especially targeting the agricultural sector. To provide an in-depth analysis of the impact of the CKC on the Nguruman community, the participatory ethnographic research methodology, combining participatory techniques and ethnographic approaches, was used. The use of this approach with the potential to feed into action research. I selected certain elements of the Ethnographic Action Research (EAR) developed by Tacchi and others. This research was undertaken in Nguruman, a rural Sub-location situated in arid and semi-arid land within the Olkiramatian Group ranch about 40 kilometers from Magadi town at the foot of the Nguruman escarpment in Kenya. The findings show a general view of Nguruman as being relatively developed. Participants originally from Nguruman compared its current state of development to earlier years and said it is developed. However, participants who are not originally from Nguruman say the area has considerable development when they compare it with other communities in Kenya. Like the participants from the focus groups, those from the interviews described development in terms of infrastructure such as roads, communication services, community institutions, and socio-economic conditions such as an increase in population, cultural issues, and education. Most of the participants, especially those originally from Nguruman, mentioned that the infrastructure of Nguruman has improved when compared to its former state some years back. For all the participants, the perceiving influencers of the development of Nguruman were commonalities in the emerging issues such as gender and cultural issues, illiteracy, and the value of education. A comparison of the participants’ communicative ecologies reveals different communication and information patterns and activities unique to each individual. Each individual uses different ICTs and links these ICTs to his/her social network to enhance communication and information patterns. Based on the findings, it is recommended that development communication that emerges from successful rural development calls for the conscious and active participation of the intended recipients at each phase of the development process. Rural development cannot occur without changes in the attitudes and behaviors of the people concerned. Emphasis should be on the planning of communication initiatives, focusing on dialogue rather than one-way communication as support to development initiatives.

RURAL TOURISM FIRMS IN THE COVID-19 ENVIRONMENT: SOUTH AFRICAN CHALLENGES

One consequence of the COVID-19-induced changing consumer travel preferences is growing demand from urban residents for open spaces and the experiences of rural destinations. This re-focuses attention on the challenges of rural tourism firms and of issues of developing rural tourism destinations. In extant international scholarship only limited studies have been undertaken for sub-Saharan Africa. This paper contributes to research debates on rural tourism change in the Global South and more particularly around COVID-19 and the development prospects for rural tourism in South Africa. Using 25 qualitative interviews undertaken in the rural Thaba Chweu Local Municipality of Mpumalanga province it is shown that the challenges facing rural tourism relate to weaknesses in the local institutional environment that have existed for the past two decades. The core constraints on expansion on rural tourism surround issues of the local government mismanagement and corruption. The consequence has been limited provision of basic services and maintenance of critical infrastructure, most especially roads, water and power supplies, which are essential for successful rural tourism development. It is concluded that the leading challenges facing rural tourism firms in South Africa are markedly different from issues which are highlighted in scholarship concerning rural tourism in the Global North.

The Role of Strategic Leadership in Rural Development

The problems and success of rural development are related to the management aspect, which means it’s also related to its leadership system. Therefore, the aim of this study is to analyze the role of strategic leadership in the success of rural development. This study uses a descriptive survey method, with data and information collection techniques through focus group discussion involving informants related to the problems of this research. This study took three villages in Indonesia as its sample units. The results of the study indicate that village leaders have a strategic role in mobilizing human resources or human capital, and utilizing various other resources in rural development. Therefore, it is important for leaders to possess both managerial and entrepreneurial skills. Participatory approach, strategic role of village leaders, and active involvement of human resources will create an effective way to build empowerment synergy of various resources to achieve successful rural development.

A Systematic Review of EU-Funded Innovative Agri-Food Projects: Potential for Transfer between Territories

This article presents a systematic review of innovative projects funded by EU Rural Development Programs that were designed and implemented in rural areas of the European Union to facilitate the territorialized production of foodstuffs and their sale through alternative networks. On the basis of the results obtained in this review, we designed a model for the transfer of knowledge to the local community in the Alpujarra Granadina (Granada, Spain) within the framework of the LifeWatch project. This study uses two consecutive methodological approaches. We began by developing a protocol for the systematic search and analysis of successful rural development projects carried out in the European Union between 2007 and 2020. After that, we created a model for the transfer of results using a participative methodological approach. The results of our analysis of the group of projects selected for review show that the main innovations were made in different aspects of the product, process, sales and distribution. These innovative ideas were implemented by rural communities with a high degree of collective initiative and intelligence and could potentially be replicated in other areas. The sample analyzed contains a wide array of novel, alternative formulas, which are transversal to the projects, so provide significant contents that could be used to activate a space for participation and debate, which could itself become fertile ground for the creation of new projects. In conclusion, this study provides the stakeholders in rural areas, in particular farmers, with a wide, systematically organized knowledge base that proposes solutions to shared challenges.

Tájhasználati érdekek és ellenérdekek az Alföldön – a természetvédelem, a mezőgazdaság és a turizmus kapcsolata a Kiskunsági Nemzeti Park példáján

Protecting nature and conserving biodiversity in habitats are now important principles worldwide. However, the use of conservation areas in many cases are affected by agriculture and tourism, too. In this paper, we aim to summarise the cooperation and conflicts between nature conservation, agriculture and tourism in the Kiskunság National Park (KNP), looking back over the past decades. Based on document reviews, in-depth interviews and GIS analysis we scrutinize how the economic interests are reflected in the use of the conservation areas. Our results show that the 'margin of manoeuvre' for nature conservation is continuously narrowing and many factors – such as the EU’s agricultural and rural development support schemes – influence the processes in protected areas. Thus, the recognition of the interdependence of the three sectors and the necessity of cooperation provide the basis for successful rural development in the areas of nature conservation.

Участие местных сообществ в развитии сельских территорий: опыт Европейского союза

Abstract. The use of the experience of implementing the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in the member states of the European Union (EU) is relevant both for Russia and for other countries of the world interested in the successful development of the agrarian sector of the economy and rural areas. The role of rural areas in achieving national security of countries and regions (food, biological, environmental and other) is increasing significantly due to the current challenges and threats (climate change, COVID-19 pandemic, aggravation of the international situation). The purpose of the study, the results of which are presented in this article, is to scrutinise the special approach implemented under the CAP. This approach is referred to in European law as LEADER/CLLD and refers to a close combination of comprehensive cross-sector interaction with active involvement of local communities in rural development. In the work, analytical and review research methods were used, with the help of which (1) the current (relevant to the research topic) legislation, (2) programs implemented in the EU member states, (3) significant scientific publications were subject to scrupulous study. The result of the work is a review and analysis of the findings and practical recommendations for the future use of the various aspects of LEADER/CLLD in domestic political and economic practice. The application of this approach takes into account the fact that the experience of local residents, combined with the opinions of other stakeholders, can help to better adapt rural development policy to real needs and opportunities, and to form a specific (unique) human capital within the boundaries of rural communities. Human capital includes, in addition to specific skills, (1) the ability to take constructive initiatives, (2) a sense of local identity and ownership, (3) the ability to participate as equals with other partners in defining local development strategies, (4) trust between people, private enterprises, public institutions and sectoral communities interested in successful rural development, formed through constant interaction. Theoretical and practical conclusions regarding the content of LEADER/CLLD initiatives, as well as findings related to the possibilities of introducing tools and mechanisms to support rural areas, implemented directly with the involvement of local communities with financial support from the state, are of scientific novelty.

Agriculture Biomaterial Industry in Romania

Rural areas in Romania are underdeveloped, with the main economic activity being agriculture. Urban-rural income gap and poverty levels are indicative of an underdeveloped rural area. Urban-rural absolute income gap for average monthly income increased from 352 RON in 2007 to 663 RON in 2017. Moreover, the work poverty rate is higher in rural areas than in urban areas. Economic rural development can be achieved by improvements of the labour market and introduction of new value-added products. Agricultural and non-agricultural activities are dependent on each other for a successful rural development leading to poverty alleviation. An industry that combines the two types of economic activities is agriculture biomaterial industry. In this paper, the authos investigates the factors influencing rural poverty and analyses the current stage of the bioplastics market in Romania and its economic implications. Bioplastics industry can reduce urban-rural income gaps and poverty in rural areas.

“Teach to adapt or adapt to teach”: qualitative study on the new “special-post teachers” in China’s rural schools

The number of new “Special-post teachers” has decreased considerably, especially at China’s rural schools in recent years. This study applies the semi-structured interview data of new “Special-post teachers” in China’s rural schools to explore their perceptions on the rural new teachers’ problems and challenges at nine developing rural provinces in China. It finds that the new rural teachers were confronted with severe challenges and difficulties for their professional adaptability in rural areas, such as the interpersonal relationship, heavy workload and dissatisfied salary, and unqualified teaching capacities. Those interviewed new “Special-post teachers” also learned lots from those challenges in reality, such as the diversified personality characteristics, professional beliefs and career motivation. It also suggested that, Chinese government should offer sufficient and diversified educational policies to stimulate rural teacher development, especially for new “Special-post Teachers” at rural areas. Chinese central government plays a significant role to guarantee the sustainable funding support for the development of new “Special-post teachers”. In addition, the principals in rural schools should pay close attention to new Special-post Teachers’ personability characteristics, hobbies and needs to create a supportive teaching environment for them to move toward successful rural teacher development.

Exploring farmer perceptions of agroforestry via multi-objective optimisation: a test application in Eastern Panama

Understanding farmers’ perceptions of and preferences towards agroforestry is essential to identify systems with the greatest likelihood of adoption to inform successful rural development projects. In this study we offer a novel approach for evaluating agroforestry systems from the farmer perspective. The approach couples rapid rural appraisal and normative optimisation techniques to determine favourable land-use compositions for meeting various socio-economic and ecological goals, based on farmers’ empirical knowledge and preferences. We test our approach among smallholder farmers in Eastern Panama, obtaining data from household interviews and using hierarchical cluster analysis to identify farm groups with similar land-use and income characteristics. We found that moderate differences in farmers’ perceptions between these groups altered the type and share of agroforestry included in the optimised land-use portfolios that balance the achievement of 10 pre-selected socio-economic and ecological objectives. Such differences provide valuable information about potential acceptability of agroforestry within each group. For example, we found that farmers who derive most of their farm income from crops may be more willing to adopt silvopasture, whereas farmers who are more economically dependent on cattle may benefit from diversifying their land-use with alley cropping. We discuss the potential of this modelling approach for participatory land-use planning, especially when dealing with small sample sizes and uncertainty in datasets.

Investigating community constructed rural water systems in Northwest Cameroon: leadership, gender and exclusion

Many rural communities in sub-Saharan Africa have a long history of community cooperation and local-led development projects harnessed to improve the delivery of water services. This study examined issues of local leadership across various community-built rural water supply (CBRWS) in the Mbengwi, Njinikom and Ndu districts of Northwest Cameroon. The study found that where there was an absence of public water supplies, coupled with high levels of rural poverty, CBRWS projects were able to ensure a water supply lifeline. These projects were effective in communities where local leadership structures were strong, due to their ability to ensure high levels of community participation. Such communities experienced improved welfare and enhanced quality of life. Thus, involving community members in issues concerning their own development, coupled with good local-level leadership are crucial aspects of successful rural development projects. The study also found that, in all cases, local leadership was patriarchal and exclusionary. Labour, cash and in-kind support were donated by the residents but women and youths did not have a voice to participate in decisions relating to the community projects conferred upon them. Thus, community participation in these projects cannot be equated with promoting grassroots or participatory democracy. Rather it reinforced traditional hegemonies.

The role and impact of Local Action Groups in Rural Development of Kosovo. Nol Krasniqi

This research aims to present and analyze Local Action Groups and their role in Kosovo. Improving national wealth and reducing migration, especially from rural areas, is one of the biggest challenges. The LEADER program is considered to be a very successful rural development initiative of the European Union. Hence, this study examined the role of Local Action Groups as a main tool in implementing the LEADER approach. Focus was placed on how they work in Kosovo, their structure and organization, projects implemented, operation and characteristics of LAGs in Kosovo in the context of seven features of LEADER. The research concentrates on four municipalities where LAGs were examined, and the role of international organizations in training them. Descriptive statistics methods were used for the analysis. The study found that the LEADER approach in Kosovo is implemented more in theory and less in practice. Since they have been created, Local Action Groups in Kosovo have remained at an early stage of development. They need support from policymakers and international organizations.

Making a Difference: Reflections on Knowledge Mobilization in Provincial Rural Policy

Governments across Canada struggle to develop and implement robust, flexible, and effective rural policies and programs to meet the ever-changing contexts of rural communities. Critical to understanding how policymakers are addressing this challenge as they design, implement and/or evaluate rural policy and programming is examining if and how they use research evidence – and what kind of evidence – they use to inform this process. This presentation will highlight findings from interviews conducted with policy makers across Canada, which investigated knowledge mobilization processes and relationships between academic research and the public policy process for rural policy decision makers. This research offers insights into improving rural development public policy in Ontario by providing critical information about current challenges to and opportunities for more effective knowledge mobilization in designing, implementing, and evaluating successful rural development policies and programs.

Research on a diagnostic system of rural vitalization based on development elements in China

In 2017, the Chinese government implemented a national strategy of "Rural Vitalization" that sought to realize full-scale rural vitalization. However, is it possible to achieve vitalization for all the villages in China? How should their development potential be determined? This paper identified and analyzed the "element-composite" messages of rural development based on 99 exemplary sites of “Beautiful Villages” in China. Combined with the projection pursuit classification method, a diagnostic system of rural vitalization was established; then, Dehua County was taken as a case study for an in-depth analysis. Based on national data analysis, the final results indicated that livelihood resources (LR), agglomeration effects (AE), location and transportation (LT), cultural/natural landscapes (CN), and economic circumstance (EC) are essential elements for successful rural development. Additionally, EC was the only exogenous element, while the remaining elements were endogenous. Furthermore, the villages with better EC presented urbanization rates of 38∼82 % and Engel coefficients of 29∼41 % in their counties; exemplary sites lacking LR, CN, LT, and AE account for 13.13 %, 19.19 %, 26.26 %, and 60.61 % respectively, so the indispensability of these elements decreases progressively in sequence. Only 2 % of villages rely on single element for success, therefore, the composite pattern of development element was also critical; 10 out of 16 types were found to successfully facilitate village development, among which, the type of R-a-L-C (32.32 %) and R-A-L-C (15.15 %) were considered as the greatest potential patterns for vitalization. Finally, by means of the diagnostic system, the ratio of representative villages for high-low potential in Dehua County is evenly split; then, development paths, and land use policies that match with paths were proposed, on the basis of development potential and “element-composite” condition of themselves.

The important role of coffee agroecosystem for rural development

Rural development based on local resources utilization has been promoted as a strategy to achieve people prosperity in Indonesia. Although many studies have found that resource-based strategy is no longer relevant nowadays, for many areas this is still considered an appropriate approach. In order to examine the significance, we conducted a study in Sumba Barat Daya District of East Nusa Tenggara, focussing on coffee as one of the most abundant products in the region. Utilizing a socio-ecological approach, we collected data and information to depict the dynamics of coffee-based activities. A detailed study in Kadi Roma Village of Sumba Barat Daya on coffee ecosystem contribution to local community revealed that despite traditionally managed, coffee plays a significant role socially and economically. As a source of income to almost 17,000 smallholder farmers in Sumba Barat Daya, it can be concluded that coffee can become a gateway to attain successful rural development program. It also provides various opportunities for the community to participate which requires supportive innovation ecosystem to be established systematically by relevant local institutions, including include local government.

Older people's mental health in rural areas: Converting policy into service development, service access and a sustainable workforce.

This paper describes the older people's mental health workforce development, policy development and implementation process and quantifies the rural service delivery and access impacts over a 15-year period in New South Wales. It highlights the factors that are considered to be critical to successful rural service development such as commitment to funding parity, investment in strong local service leadership, and development of innovative, locally adapted rural service models. Building on these foundations, the Older People's Mental Health Program in New South Wales was able to address key challenges relating to service access in rural health and develop new, sustainable specialist older people's mental health service networks. A sustained focus on policy and implementation which explicitly supports rural older people's mental health service enhancement, and development of evidence-based models of care, has significantly improved access to specialist mental health care for older people in rural areas. It has delivered 23 new rural older people's mental health community teams and a 440% increase in the number of people accessing these teams. It has also doubled the number of acute inpatient units and established new specialistmental health-residential aged care partnership services in rural New South Wales. It has resulted in increased access to services for the "older old," while not diminishing older people's rates of access to general adult mental health services. It has also supported innovative, sustainable rural service models such as "hub and spoke" models and step-up step-down inpatient services that build on existing health and hospital infrastructure and link geographically dispersed specialist clinicians and services together in rural service delivery.

The Impact of EU Sponsorship, Size, and Geographic Characteristics on Rural Tourism Development

The main purpose of this study was to investigate the factors that promote successful rural tourism development in light of EU sponsorship of rural tourism hosts. The paper examines the effect of the size and geographical characteristics of rural tourism hosts on their views towards rural tourism development. The paper employs factor analysis, t-tests, and ANOVA to analyze the data from the survey of the hosts. The survey was sent to 652 rural tourism hosts, of whom 174 replied, giving a response rate of 27%. The results show the following. Firstly, subsidies, leadership, and cooperation are viewed by the hosts as important factors. Secondly, sponsorship, size, and peripheral economic conditions influence rural tourism hosts’ views on success factors of rural enterprises.