The article examines variations in the interpretation of the category “rural areas” by various scientists and draws attention to the importance of rural areas for the development of the country’s agro-industrial complex. Theoretical approaches to defining the essence of this concept are characterized, namely: territorial, spatial, systemic, structural, and multi-criteria. The advantages and disadvantages of these approaches are highlighted. Proponents of the structural approach consider rural areas through the prism of their structure, parts, elements, and functional units. Proponents of the spatial approach describe rural areas as a space characterized by population and economic resources. Representatives of this approach interpret rural areas as a system. The systemic approach makes it possible to consider the components of rural areas both in relation to each other and in interaction with the components of other systems. This, in turn, makes it possible to single out a significant part of the properties of rural areas, such as structure, integrity, hierarchy, autonomy, and sustainability. Representatives of the territorial approach emphasize three components of the rural area – content, phenomenon, and result. Representatives of the multi-criteria approach use several criteria to define the category “rural area”. The main functions performed by rural areas are outlined. The definition of the concept of “rural areas” lacks functionality, i.e. the possibility to use it for the needs not only in various branches of the economy but also in social and ecological spheres in order to develop concepts for the development of rural areas and their management mechanisms. Therefore, the article suggests the following definition of the category “rural areas”: rural areas are a complex multifaceted socio-economic system characterized by autonomy, integrity, and sustainable development, which performs production, spatial-communication, socio-demographic, cultural-ethnic, recreational, political, and ecological functions, develops in space and time, is outside urbanized centers, and is under the management of local governments, state authorities, public organizations, and business structures. 

rural areas, system, approach, agriculture, agro-industrial complex, rural development, capacity 

The article identifies the role of agriculture as the foundation of economic development of rural areas. The development and implementation of significant institutional changes in the functioning of agro-industrial production and the development of the rural areas became extremely relevant during the military operations on the territory of our state and will be one of the main tasks of the country’s post-war reconstruction. There is a need for changes in the regulatory and legal field, the use of support tools both at the state and regional levels, the formation of institutions contributing to the development of the agro-industrial complex of Ukraine as the main component of the national economy, which provides the appropriate level of food security of the regions and the state as a whole, and also forms its significant export potential. The main ways of improvement of the institutional sphere of development of rural territorial communities with agro-industrial enterprises are indicated. In many regions with agro-industrial specialization, which have been occupied, the restoration of their ecological, economic, and social capabilities should be redefined, and such restoration should be directed at the creation of a new type of agro-industrial formations in the rural areas, taking into account new values and motivations. For the rural territories of the regions of Ukraine, the agro-industrial sector is dominant. Its condition depends not only on the efficiency of the regional economy but also on the social condition of the rural population. To support the agricultural sector of rural areas, it is necessary to create favorable conditions for increasing the level of competitiveness of domestic market entities. It is necessary to achieve the maximum convergence of legislation with European counterparts, improve antimonopoly regulation, solve the issue of the development of rural areas and environmental problems that we are currently facing, strengthen the protection of property, stimulate the development of consulting and service cooperation, and introduce more effective measures to protect the domestic manufacturer and an improved system of product quality control. The article suggests a mechanism for the development of the agricultural sector as the basis of the economy of rural areas, the implementation of which is based on integration, innovation, and investment. 

rural areas, agriculture, institutional foundations, regional development, decentralization, development of rural areas