From CAP to CARPE: the state of the question - 中欧社会论坛 - China Europa Forum

From CAP to CARPE: the state of the question

Authors: Franco Sotte

There is a contradiction in Europe affecting the design of an efficient and effective rural development policy. It originates with the fact that the discussion on rural development is discussed prevalently in agricultural circles and influenced by sectorial interests. The outcome is that CAP reform proceeds too slowly and concentrates prevalently on agricultural aspects, neglecting to take into due consideration the wider complexity of rurality. Thus the integration with the other European structural policies is scarce. The paper first presents an analysis of the role of rural areas in the elaboration of non-agricultural specialists and in the definition of a sustainable development and cohesion policy across Europe. It continues to examine how the CAP reform process has still only partially converged towards an integrated rural policy, maintaining substantially a sectorial character and a redistributive role. The MTR and the Salzburg Conference should be considered as important steps in the right direction but much remains to be done.

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