Problemi ruralnog razvoja postsocijalističke Srbije u kontekstu društveno-ekonomske krize
The problems of rural development in the context of socio-economic crisis in post-socialist Serbia

Summary/Abstract: The aim of the paper is to answer the question of what problems occur in post-socialist rural development of Serbia in the context of the present socio-economic crisis. More specifically, we focus on following inter-related issues: 1. adverse socio-demographic changes; 2. unfavorable ownership structure in the form of dominance of small-scale property; 3. poverty and social exclusion; 4. increased social inequality; 5. problem of agricultural cooperatives; 6. gender- ownership inequality; 7. predominantly patriarchal, collectivist values of the rural population; 8. uneven development in rural areas and regions; 9. insufficient productivity and competitiveness of agriculture; 10. non-integrated agro-rural development, and 11. problem of foreign ownership over agricultural land in Serbia. Most of the current problems are inherited from the inter-war capitalism and real socialism, in times when modernization (Europeanization) was delayed, slowed down or accelerated, but essentially distorted and incomplete. We conclude that the post-socialist strategic objectives of agro-rural development in Serbia are inconsistent with the principles of the agricultural policy of the EU; reform-oriented laws in the field of agriculture in Serbia are insufficiently applied; the productivity and competitiveness of the Serbian agriculture is weak and that rural development is not integrated. In other words, the Serbian rural development share destiny of serious post-socialist Serbia’s socio-economic crisis, which is, among other things, characterized by various and numerous problems/risks in agro-rural development.

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