Экономические науки/13. Региональная экономика

Barlybaev A.A., Nasyrov G.M.

Bashkir state university

Sibajsky institute (branch), Russia

Development of rural territories as a nationwide strategy

The rural areas and agricultural economy occupy a significant place in Russian society. About 27% of the Russian Federation population lives in the countryside, 11% of the able-bodied population is employed in the agricultural sector, and the share of the agriculture in the country’s gross domestic product is more than 5%. This is why the processes taking place in rural areas should occupy the full attention of politicians and scientists. However, what is happening in the agricultural society at present can be defined as deepening systemic degradation. Though there are some safe rural territories, “islands” in the country, the general picture does not lend itself to optimism.

Until recently, in public opinion, state policy, and science, a limited approach to determining the role and value of developing agricultural areas has unfortunately dominated. On the whole, the concepts “development of agricultural territories” and “development of the agricultural sector” have been considered identical: respectively, the role and value of agricultural areas for the country amounted only to provision with foodstuffs and agricultural raw materials. Not detracting from the importance of these and other economic functions of rural areas, we would like to focus the most attention on the fact that the strategic value of political, sociocultural, ecological, and recreational aspects of the development of the agricultural territories for the country is not being considered to the proper degree, neither theoretically nor practically. In modern conditions, this is inadmissible, in our opinion, for two reasons. First, due to the objective character of the multifunctionality of agricultural territories, and, second, their special significance for political and socioeconomic development. Each function can be adequately understood and efficiently implemented only in the case when it is considered as systematically connected with other functions in the context of implementing a unified strategy of state development. Second, the current situation in the country (demographic and ecological crises, decreased quality of life and human potential, decay of villages and depletion of agricultural lands) created threats for nationwide development. This is why a strategic approach to solving the economic problems of rural areas can be developed only by prioritizing the development of agricultural territories as a whole. Development of the agricultural sector should be considered an organic component of this state strategy [1, 2].

The political aspect of developing agricultural territories consists primarily in maintaining state territorial integrity and political stability in the country. A sturdy and dynamically developing economy in rural areas – this is the basis, a down payment on sustaining the population of large rural territories. Its decay leads to the disappearance of villages and economic devastation of lands. Under conditions of a lack in agricultural lands worldwide, lands in Russia capable of production will not remain neglected for long. They will be populated by immigrants from countries with a surplus of farmers. As a result, entire enclaves of territories can appear, populated by immigrants who, due to peculiarities of the rural communities, will most likely have all of the conditions for maintaining their language, culture, customs, affinities, and other specific social connections characteristic to a particular nationality. If such territories were to appear along state borders, then a situation reminiscent of the current conflict between Serbia and Kosovo may be possible [2].

The sociocultural aspect of developing agricultural territories includes a quite diverse complex of problems. For example, production and labor in the countryside supposes they active involvement of children therein and thereby the task of socialization of the younger generation is solved. Performing work on the family farm since early childhood, children gradually accumulate knowledge, skills, and experience necessary for independent life and develop a culture of labor and labor relations. It is possible to speak not only about the function of reproduction of rural labor potential, but also about formation of the country’s human assets. As history shows, the largest part of the intellectual, political, and scientific-engineering elite of the country consists of people who spent time farming in childhood and youth [1].

Considering that the economy of rural areas is mainly based on the family farm patterns, it is necessary to note that a stable family farm unit is characterized by the presence, on the one hand, of a sufficient number of conscientious and professionally trained workers – not hired labor orientated to standardized work, but workers with economic motivation and an owner’s attitude toward labor, property, and animals; and on the other hand, inheritors able to continue the family business. Therefore, the economic interests of such a family presuppose that it will be large, united, and healthy. The greater the number of such farms in the countryside, the better the demographic situation of the country. In this way, it will be precisely in the countryside that the matter of extended population reproduction will be solved.

Extended reproduction of the rural population in turn is an essential condition for maintaining and developing a peoples’ distinctive character, their language, culture, customs, and traditions. The interaction between the functioning of extended population reproduction and of maintaining the material and economic culture of a people, cultural heritage, and ethnic identity is obvious.

The most important agricultural aspects tightly connected with each other are recreational and ecological. Agricultural labor is, especially for town citizens, a kind of active rest and promoter of health, since it includes a change in the type of activity, connection with animals and nature, and physical work in the open air. Agrotourism, a kind of tourist business, is based on the combination of agricultural work with active rest in rural conditions. In some regions of Northern Europe, up to 60% of people working in the local economic sector work in agrotourism.

Agrotourism can be successfully combined with (and added to) other, quite profitable kinds of entrepreneurial business, for example, game breeding on an industrial basis, fish breeding and fishery, beekeeping, and horse and sheep breeding. The possibilities appear of commercial profit from such strictly noncommercial, at first sight, spheres as the ethnic economy, ethnic traditions, and ethic culture.

The significance of the countryside for society grows with actualization of environmental protection and production of ecologically clean and safe foodstuffs. Incredible as it may seem, the demand for foodstuffs produced under extensive farm management is constantly growing in the world: many consider that it guarantees the parameters of quality and ecological safety to a greater degree. Here losses from low productivity are compensated by high prices, and the main problem is arranging effective marketing and sales mechanisms. Russia has all the conditions for becoming a major world supplier of ecologically safe foodstuffs, thus becoming a very significant player in the world foodstuffs market. Using ecologically safe traditional and modern agricultural, as well as other, technologies, Russian businessmen can smoothly fit into local eco-areas and correspondingly use their agricultural resources effectively and form highly productive and ecologically stable agrosystems and agrolandscapes.

The growth in prosperity of the population of developed and developing countries has been accompanied by a shift in market demand not simply for high-quality goods, but exclusive goods and services, including recreational. From this, wide possibilities appear for diversification of the rural economy in the formation of a prospective unified system: production of ecologically safe foodstuffs-recreational activity-maintenance of nature and landscapes–maintenance of ethnic identity.

Development of rural territories in such wide context is of strategic importance for the country, on whose success directly depends the country’s geopolitical position, as well as its role in the world economic system.

References:

1. Barlybaev A.A., Aidarbakov F.F., Rakhmatullin I.M. Development of Agricultural Territories during the Post-Soviet Period: Institutional Aspect // Studies on Russian Economic Development. – 2009. – Vol. 20. – No. 5, P. 529-536.

2. Калугина З.И., Фадеева О.П. Контуры будущего сибирской деревни // Регион: экономика и социология. – 2006. – № 4. – С. 141-158.