Socio-economic peculiarities of sustainable development of rural areas of the North Caucasus federal district

The North Caucasian Federal District (NCFD) historically has an agricultural specialization due to the favorable climate, economic and other conditions. The region has not only significant natural resource potential (land, water, optimal climatic and weather conditions), but also human capital with historically well-established agricultural traditions. At the same time, agricultural industry here is significantly inferior in terms of economic efficiency to other regions of the country, despite its competitive advantages. Moreover, there is a fairly high differentiation in the effectiveness of the agrarian economy. The aim of the present article is to study the specifics of socio-economic problems of rural areas development and to find ways to solve them on the example of the North Caucasian Federal District. The structure of agrarian production in the region by categories of farms is assessed, the predominance of small forms is established. The conclusion is justified that the most important social institution of the regional rural areas, capable of ensuring the dynamism of their development, is the individual-family agricultural industry. Nevertheless, the main condition for improving the socio-economic productivity of rural development is the effective realization of the multi-layered agrarian economic potential and resources of the territory.