The accession of ten countries from Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) has dramatically increased the rural population and territory of the European Union (EU). The success of EU enlargement will thus depend to a significant extent on the resources of rural areas in the NMS and the ability of...

The impact of the introduction of EU Single Area Payments (SAP) on farm strategy in New Member States is investigated for a sample of Lithuanian farms, utilizing farm accounting and survey data. The application of two investment models demonstrates that the credit market in Lithuania was...

In an environment of low returns to agricultural activities and slow structural change, both employment and enterprise diversification have been presented as possible strategies for raising the incomes of farm households. This paper focuses on the barriers to taking up off-farm employment and...

This paper analyses expert attitudes to managing rural development in both established (EU15) and New Member States (NMS). It draws on case studies of five regions in the EU15 that have undergone, at least in some respects, successful rural development post-accession. Lessons of best practice...

Drawing on Nahapiet and Ghoshal's (1998) distinction between the structural, relational, and cognitive dimensions of social capital, this paper analyses the performance of Water Communities (WCs) in the Bregalnica region of the Republic of Macedonia. WCs are farmer-managed local irrigation...

The dairy sector is an important component of rural economies in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), providing vital employment and income, in an environment of weak social security and scarce job opportunities. Dairy farming in the CIS encompasses a wide diversity of farms: from 1 and...