RURAL DEVELOPMENT BY STIMULATING AGRO-TOURISM ACTIVITIES

Abstract

The article defines the development directions of rural territories in EU countries by stimulating the agricultural sector and tourism. The reasons for the development of the agricultural sector in EU countries have been definitively stated, namely: urbanization, industrialization, reduction of employment in the agricultural sector, labor productivity, which has remained at a constant level in EU over the past ten years. It has been established that the share of the agricultural sector in GDP remains at a stable level, and the growth of value added is consistently low, which is caused by the lack of investment in capital to ensure the growth of productivity of the agricultural sector. Agrarian sector’s management of EU countries is provided by a complex but, at the same time, flexible financial support system. The reduction of the rural population in EU countries has stimulated the development of the agricultural sector by financing research and development, which ensured the growth of labor productivity in the agricultural sector. The rural development depends on the size of the rural population and its level of growth, labor productivity and the level of state support for innovations, ensuring productivity growth. The tourism industry has made a major contribution to the development of rural areas of EU countries, while the agricultural sector is characterized by stagnation of labor productivity, wage levels, low growth rates of value added products. Despite this, the tourism development policy is aimed at solving environmental problems, the competition of European tourism, increasing the demand for services, improvement of tourism products, and technological development of the industry.