Problems and prospects of the socio-economic development of rural territories

Rural areas are important for the country’s socio-economic development. The issue of improving the efficiency of using the potential of rural areas, which remains low despite the fact that rural areas have great potential, is being reviewed by both domestic economists and public authorities. However, significant progress has not yet been made. As a result, there emerged a number of problems and negative trends in the socio-economic development of rural areas, reducing the villagers’ quality of life and standard of living. These problems, first of all, include the remaining crisis phenomena in the rural economy expressed in decreased agricultural production, its narrowed resource base, lack of highly qualified personnel; concentration of economic activity in sub-urban areas and, as a consequence, the declining possibility of developing the periphery; a high level of differentiation in the socio-economic development of rural areas; and underdeveloped social and engineering infrastructure in rural areas. The result of this is the strengthening of destructive demographic processes, the destruction of the existing system of settlement, and desertification of previously developed lands. However, there are certain prospects for the devel-opment of rural areas. They are seen, first of all, in the improvement of the regional policy, the ability of regional authorities and local governments to expand the range of applied methods of managing socio-economic processes, to activate the business structure and the local population in the search for solutions to the problems of rural areas. It is also important to adjust the fiscal policy of the federal center in terms of ensuring financial independence of territorial bodies, as well as to improve the regulatory framework of local self-government, strengthening this institution of power which can realize the potential of rural areas, thereby ensuring effective solution to the problem of their comprehensive development. The practical implementation of the proposed set of management methods will contribute to sustainable development of rural areas and improve the quality of life in these areas.