UDC [332.122:338.43]:330.34[339.923:061.1](438)
Kulish, I. M. (2015). Zabezpechennya staloho rozvytku sil's'kykh terytoriy krayin-kandydativ na vstup do YeS: na prykladi Pol'shchi [Ensuring of sustainable rural development of the countries candidates for accession to the EU: the example of Poland]. Rehional'na ekonomika - Regional Economy, 76(2), 96-104. [in Ukrainian].
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Authors

Resume

The article on the example of Poland shows the process of preparing rural areas of the candidate country for accession to the European Union. Priorities that have become major when developing programs and actions, initiated by the EU for leveling disproportions in development of rural areas of Poland are highlighted, and the reasons for changing these priorities are revealed. Dynamics of funding programs of the Polish countryside is showed. The analysis of the EU and Poland programs, which aimed for sustainable rural development, is given. Institutional support for preparation of Poland’s rural areas to functioning in the European Union is researched. The comparative analysis of rural Poland at the beginning of the implementation of development programs of the EU with rural areas in the EU member states helped to identify positive and negative aspects. The necessity of further studies of rural development of the post-Soviet countries, which are members of the EU, is emphasised. The concept of “sustainable rural development” has long gone beyond agriculture, although it remains mainly critical but increasingly gives way to other alternative economic activities. For Poland during preparation for accession the availability of environmentally friendly agricultural production was a factor of great importance, which exceeded the quantitative characteristics, existing in most EU countries. This was a source of not only increasing the competitiveness of rural areas, but also the state economy as a whole. All the countries, which joined the European Union in 2004, during preparation for integration in a sense, were in a better situation compared with the states - EU old-timers, because there have already been elaborated the necessary mechanisms and tools, and the necessary funds accumulated to implement the plans. By funding support for sustainable rural development of the candidate countries, EU institutions pursuing several goals, foremost of which is the major disparity leveling, bringing the quality of agricultural products to the standards adopted in the Community that not only improves food security, but also the newly accessed countries’ competitiveness in the world market and provides the standard of living of the rural population, which is characteristic of the other EU countries, which in turn prevents the massive migration processes that could undermine the employment situation in the former EU-15.

Keywords:

rural areas, sustainable development, European integration, European Union, Poland