The article deals with the problems of implementation of the new rural development policy paradigm in Lithuania. The new rural paradigm was born as reaction to challenges of postindustrial stage of society evolution and aims to identify and exploit the varied potential of rural regions. The article presents the comparative analysis of the main features of the traditional, “agriculture based” and the new, “place based” rural paradigms. The arguments why Lithuania would seek to apply the new paradigm in the nearest future are discussed. The focus is on the very quick changes of the employment structure in the Lithuanian countryside with the shift from the dominated agricultural sector to the obvious dominating service sector from 2006. Because the agriculture is no more the backbone of Lithuanian countryside, agricultural and rural objectives would be pursued through a different policy models. The identification of the political, legal, economical, social and informational obstacles to paradigm shift in Lithuania based on detailed analysis is presented. Proposals offer possible solutions how identified obstacles would be eliminated. At the moment Lithuanian rural development policy is focused on the small settlements of the rural population. The first step to implement the new rural development policy paradigm in Lithuania must be done by defining rural regions and to introduce the classification by rurality into official admin istrative territorial system of Lithuania. Only in this case the holistic placebased strategies that aims to find ways how to exploit unused resources and to valorize local assets of Lithuanian rural unicipalities would be design ed. The main changes in social and economical Lithuanian approach to rural development would deal with a shift from the aim to reduce regional disparities into the aim to improve the competitive abilities of rural regions because the new rural paradigm draws attention on local resources and core abilities of population. Financial redistribution is not enough to develop rural places. A strategic development of rural municipalities of Lithuania with greater focus on local assets and knowledge would be effective alternative to traditional focus on exogenous investments and subsidies to agriculture. The informational bases provided by Lithuanian Department of Statistics must be strengthened also. Additional indices are required for the economical and social environment assessment of the rural regions on LAU 1 level for analyses of the factors influenced the competitive abilities of rural and semirural regions.
Keywords:rural development policy paradigm, postindustrial stage, rurality, rural region.
Vidickienė, D. Perėjimo prie naujosios kaimo politikos paradigmos kliūtys Lietuvoje. Ekonomika ir vadyba: aktualijos ir perspektyvos. 2010. 3(19). p. 137-146, Mokslo darbai: Kaimiškųjų vietovių socioekonominė plėtra, I tomas. ISSN 1648-9098. EBSCO sąrašas (Business Source Complete; Central & Eastern European Academic Source).
