Introduction to rural development

– Rural development paradigm, rural development approach, term; objectives and priorities

– Rural space of EU and specific country– RD policies, legal and strategic framework

• Policy, institutions and organizations of importance for socio-economic development

• Sectorial and umbrella strategies important for RD in concrete country;

• National strategic documents and legislation for RD, CAP and rural development, national RD measures and history of RD support

• EU RD legislation and institutions; • EU and WTO Integration Policies, IPA/IPARD EU funds

– Institutional and development of RD support Development of national support structures

• Community development: Local PPP partnerships (LAGs, LEADER), forms of organizing rural population, organizing of farmers, NGO organization

• Development of decentralized system of support

– RD activities in present and future• Development projects in concrete countries and

the region• Regional RD initiatives (SWG and its activities)

Rural sociology – Demography, population structure, ethnic groups, social groups, habits, norms,

regions, traditions – Social inclusion and gender issues in rural areas– Poverty and battle for eradication of poverty, MDG goals, national policies for rural

areas– Administration and social services - health, education and social policies and

services in rural areas– Strengthening of cooperative structures and PPP partnerships– Rural labor market– Rural psychology and ethno-psychology for rural development workers; Psychology

of masses, – Rural cultural heritage and its role in rural development (including multi-cultural

issues, rural architecture, music, customs, literature, religions, languages etc.)– Specifics of knowledge transfer in rural areas (formal, non-formal and informal

education, methods for transferring knowledge, diverse types of assistance and tools, consultancy, agriculture advisory services, extension etc.)

Skills– Socio-economic research including participatory methodologies – Communication; Modern information technologies and media in service of rural

development, promotion of rural areas and products, public appearance and presentation (PR etc.)

– Facilitation and moderation, negotiation, leadership, lobbing, motivation techniques and negotiation

– ToT

Rural ecology

– Rural natural heritage and its role in rural development

– Sustainable management of natural resources

– Rebewable energy– Nature and environmental protection and its

role in rural development; including LFA, Nature 2000 areas, EIA

– HNVNF etc.

Rural economy

– Principles of rural and regional development,– Value of natural capital – Agriculture, forestry, collecting practices and para-agriculture their

importance in rural economy (including conversion from subsidence traditional farms to modern farms - farm based development planning, marketing of products, introduction of new technologies, farm business management, FADN

– Multi-functionality of agriculture and environmentally friendly agriculture productions and their role in rural areas

– Food processing and other industries and their importance for rural development (with emphasize on SMEs and traditional handcrafts, standards and branding of products and regions, adding value)

– Tourism and services in rural development – Sustainable diversification of rural economy– Social employment and entrepreneurship, – Good practices in rural development– Banking and insurance, taxation, laws

Rural development management

– Strategic and action planning on the national and local levels - Data collection and analytics, mapping of resources and needs/situation analysis of rural areas, participative work (SEAGA, PLA/PRA), GIS and data management, documenting, reporting Territorially specific programming; Strategic and action planning;

– RD organizations management: Organizational skills, team work, team building, staff, conflicts,), managerial skills, leadership, human resource management, multitasking thinking; change management;

– Support to PPP: Models of making local public-private partnerships (LAGs. And LEADER approach), civil society development, NGOs (nonpartisan, non-profit organizations), cooperatives (profit organization) and their role in RD; Networking for rural development support, good practices

– Institutional building: Local governance and role of local self-governments in rural development, National level structures for rural development support

– PCM (with examples of the logic needed to be followed for writing projects for IPARDP and other calls; use of for instance PRINCE methods, M&E, Pilot projecting and implementation; Operating of strategic plan/implementation of strategies

– Fund rising in RD, IPA/IPARD EU funds, national funds