Chapter Two
Rural Revitalization
Tapping into New Opportunities
Achim Steiner and Shenggen Fan
Rural revitalization is timely, achievable, and, most important, critical to ending hunger and malnutrition in just over a decade.
KEY FINDINGS
- Rural revitalization requires a transformative approach that considers all aspects of making rural areas a good place to live and work for present and future generations.
- Rurbanomics is a development approach premised on the potential of symbiotic rural and urban systems to transform rural areas. Rural–urban links can spur growth and diversification in the agriculture and nonagriculture sectors, increase incomes, support value chain development, and improve well-being.
- Revitalizing the world’s rural areas through a rurbanomics approach holds the key to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, ensuring that everyone can contribute to and benefit from economic growth and development.
KEY RECOMMENDATIONS
- Adopt rurbanomics as an approach for strengthening rural–urban linkages to promote rural transformation. Strengthening rural–urban linkages, from farms to small towns to megacities, can benefit rural labor, production, distribution, markets, services, consumption, and environmental sustainability.
- Transform agrifood systems to benefit rural areas. Investments—in agricultural research and development, postharvest rural activities, and climate-smart and nutrition-sensitive innovations—have the potential to transform key components of the agrifood system, improve diets, strengthen rural economies, and improve rural livelihoods.
- Scale up rural nonfarm economic opportunities and build capacity for employment. Developing markets and creating clusters and special economic zones in rural areas can leverage economies of scale and increase nonfarm employment. Improving primary and secondary education and vocational training can support a productive rural labor force.
- Improve living conditions in rural areas. Stronger social safety nets, better access to basic services, and a healthier environment can expand opportunities for better livelihoods, protect the most vulnerable, and make rural areas attractive places to live and work.
- Reform rural governance to improve accountability and outcomes. Rural revitalization requires a public sector that is transparent, capable, and responsive to rural needs. Devolution to the local level has potential to support people-oriented governance when local governments have adequate capacity, can raise their own revenues, and mechanisms are in place that ensure accountability.
Browse Chapters
Chapter One
Food Policy in 2018–2019
Chapter Two
Rural Revitalization
Chapter Three
Poverty, Hunger, and Malnutrition
Chapter Four
Employment and Livelihoods
Chapter Five
Gender Equality
Chapter Six
Environment
Chapter Seven
Renewable Energy
Chapter Eight
Governance
Chapter Nine
Europe's Experience
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