Rural realities in the European Union

Pierre Antoine BARTHELEMY and Claude VIDAL (Eurostat)

Geography, history, culture and economic factors have combined to impart a remarkable range of diversity to Europe's regions. Certain regions are generally deemed to be "rural" — although quite what the word means remains to be defined. Often, "rural" reflects no more than the density of population. But this is only one component. The notion of rurality should take account also of the dynamics of the agricultural population seen from the points of view of employment and upkeep of the countryside, and other socio-economic criteria. The variety of agricultural activities and the differences in level of economic development between regions lead us to conclude that there is not one rural character, but many. Rural development, as a one of the leading components of Agenda 2000, will have to take account of this diversity as Member States prepare their plans for rural development.

Better identification of rural areas

The term "rural" embraces many meanings. An early idea was to use "rural" to describe areas which were not "urban" (Box 1). Such a definition, based on available statistical and geographical data, has at least the merit of simplicity. But it probably also over-simplifies, since rural areas also have their own defining characteristics, and these need to be identified more clearly. Compared with urban areas, rural areas have their own strengths, weaknesses and specific needs.

Rural zones must be closely associated with their resident population, that is, with the people engaged in rural activities, including farmers. Account also has to be taken of other social groups already present or appearing in rural areas of the Union. There is a clear renewal of interest in rural areas. Over time, it could well become a privileged area where beside their work environment, different social groups apply their own system of values, in other words, their tastes in leisure activity, styles of consumption, cultural preferences, etc. (Box 2).

The notion of rurality can also be linked to the landscape. Such an approach is not unconnected with the residential and tourism functions of "the countryside", which are complementary to agricultural production. Recent decades have seen considerable diversification in the way the countryside is used. In addition, low population density regions are very frequently also areas of great natural value.

Various recent studies have attempted to formalise the notions of rural area and rural development. In order to enrich the various definitions, hitherto centred on the single criterion of population density, Directorate-General VI has published a report on rural development, incorporating numerous variables relating to rurality (Box 3).

Population structure and dynamics 

Population density has been widely used as a measure of rural regions. The thresholds generally proposed for urban areas range from 150 to 500 head of population per sq. km, whilst areas with population densities below these thresholds are deemed rural. Some reference scale is necessary to make any sense of these definitions. Since the average population density of the EU is 115 per sq. km, certain definitions effectively classify virtually the entire Union as rural. At national level, Finland and Sweden both have a low population density (respectively 15 and 22 per sq. km in 1995), and even that becomes increasingly sparse the nearer one approaches the Arctic circle, to reach 3.4 per sq. km in Övre Norrland. Their capitals, on the other hand, have 1995 densities of 128 per sq. km for Helsinki and 237 per sq. km for Stockholm. Regional, or even infraregional, analysis thus becomes indispensable to grasping the notion of rurality.

Population change can also be critical. For example, in Liguria (I), Alentejo (P), Asturias and the Basque Country (E), the population fell at an average annual rate of more than 0.5% between 1985 and 1995. But in order to understand this decline, a distinction must be made between natural population change and the balance of migration. Regions such as Madrid and Catalonia (E), though their populations are rising substantially, have negative natural population growth, as a result of a decline in the birth rate. Others, such as the eastern Länder of Germany, have a strong migratory flow towards neighbouring countries and regions offering better quality of life or job prospects. And the analysis can be taken even further by focusing on intra-regional migration. Here, Northern Ireland is a case in point, since it has both a strong interregional migratory flow towards the British mainland, and significant intraregional population movements towards urban centres (notably Belfast) resulting in depopulation of the rural areas. The magnetism of certain regions is a key element in any study of rurality (Map 1). Gravitational analysis models allowing us to highlight the development potential of certain regions are valuable in this respect. 

Account must also be taken of population structure, if only indirectly, when defining rurality. It casts light on a regional population's tendency to ageing, or its capacity for renewal. For example, Flevoland (NL), Ireland and the Azores (P) all show fairly high demographic pressure on the labour market, (defined as the ratio of younger age-groups to age-groups leaving the labour market), characteristic of a rather young population structure. Looking more closely at the agricultural population structure is another instructive approach. If we know farmers' ages, we can begin to imagine their capacity for innovation and how long the farm holding will continue. In the Mediterranean region, a large proportion of farmers are aged over 55. There are 21 regions where more than three farmers in every five are aged over 55, 13 of them in Italy, three each in Portugal and Greece, and two in Spain. (Map 2).

Income and employment as indicators of rurality

Socio-economic variables derived from income and employment cast a valuable light on rurality. First, the average level of income can be estimated roughly from per capita GDP. The variation of an indicator such as this at NUTS III level points to differences due first to national situations and secondly, within individual countries, to whether territorial units contain a major conurbation or not. For example, the average per capita GDP is high in wealthy, densely-populated countries (Denmark, Netherlands, Belgium, western Germany), but lower in most Mediterranean regions (Portugal, Spain, Greece, southern Italy) and in Ireland. In country after country, differences appear between the capital region or certain territorial units containing major conurbations, and the rest (Map 3).

The share of agriculture in GDP also allows us to understand agriculture's contribution to regional wealth. That share is minimal in the capital region, of course, and in regions containing major conurbations, but it can reach a significant percentage in many regions, notably in Greece and in much of Spain, and peaks at 34.5% of GDP in Thessaly, compared with a Community average of 2.6% (Map 4).

Unemployment is one of the key social aspects of rurality. Spain's unemployment is already high, but reaches 32% in Andalusia in 1997. In the Italian regions of Campania, Calabria and Sicily, more than 60% of young people are affected by unemployment. These regions, and other from the Mediterranean area, are also amongst those with the highest levels of long-term unemployment. 

In addition, the share of employment taken by agriculture is, of course, also a determinant of rurality. In the Greek regions of Peloponnese, Western Greece, and East Macedonia and Thrace, agriculture provides more than 40% of employment (Map 5). The trend in agricultural employment is also fundamental. Although the general tendency is a decline as industrial and especially tertiary sector occupations take over, some 40 regions of the United Kingdom and Finland saw their agricultural employment stabilise or even rise between 1983 and 1997.

Part-time working provides further scope for evaluation. The agricultural income of certain small farmers is such that a second activity is worth while. Part-time working seems more widespread in certain northern countries such as the Netherlands, Finland and Sweden, and less in the Mediterranean countries. The high number of small agricultural holdings, together with the low percentages of part-time working, suggests that in the Mediterranean areas agriculture has a significant role as a social buffer.

Territory and rurality

Any analysis of rurality must also include a territorial dimension. The structure and organisation of the territory are key factors in terms of amenities and the "consumption" of rural areas. The extent of land under agriculture (44% of Europe's land area) to which must be added other land tended by farmers (woodland, areas not under agriculture, buildings and infrastructure) mean that farmers are responsible for managing more than half Europe's land area. But it should be noted that the area under agriculture has been falling significantly over the past two decades. Certain zones in the Union have been abandoned, because they are hard to reach, or unsuited to agriculture, or under pressure of urbanisation. The area under woodland, on the other hand, has grown slightly.

The size of farm holdings, in economic terms, is an important aspect not only in maintaining employment but, in many regions, also in the upkeep of the land. The smallest holdings (i.e. those below 8 ESU ¹) bring little added value to the agricultural sector, but they still represent a significant pool of employment, and contribute to the upkeep of both land and landscape. In some regions, such small holdings make up the entire agricultural sector. Many tourist regions offer part-time employment, such as the Portuguese North and Centre regions, and Madeira, in Greece the Ionian Islands, North Aegean, South Aegean, West Macedonia, Atttica, Epirus and Crete, in Spain, Valencia, Galicia, the Balearic Isles and the Canary Isles, and in Italy the Valle d'Aosta, all of which have more than 90% of small farm holdings (Map 6).

The isolation of certain regions is an essential indicator of rural development. Easy access to the countryside has in the past been one of the brakes on the flight from the country, and nowadays is a major asset in facilitating a return to nature for city-dwellers. The development of transport infrastructure (road or rail) in the Union lies at the heart of the Trans-European Networks policy. One of the main objectives of this policy is to strengthen the Union's economic and social cohesion.

Environment and rurality

The final aspect to be considered is the link between rurality and the environment. In this respect, a distinction is frequently made between the various functions of agriculture:

• The function of agricultural production (primary production);
• The productive function of open space, used to designate the effects which produce benefits for third parties;
• The function of production of services, including the farmer's traditional work on the environment (maintenance of hedgerows, footpaths, etc.), on or beyond the holding.

Economic pressures have generally led farmers to cut back or even abandon the last two of these, which correspond to services to society. It should be possible for such services to be remunerated, as is proposed in Agenda 2000.

This production of services responds to a rising demand covering different domains:

• the environment, through conservation of biodiversity, integrated ecological management, conservation of ground and water quality;
• the development of leisure and tourist activities, resulting in production of landscape, through upkeep of heritage sites and structures (whether agricultural or not);
• prevention of natural risks e.g. by grazing of fire-breaks and woodland; maintenance of seasonal watercourses and minor drainage works, and hedge renewal;
• the countryside's recreational vocation with footpaths, picnic areas, the rural heritage, etc.

Rural development is occupying an ever larger place in political debate. To date there is no integrated policy at European level. For the present the countryside is the subject of both the Common Agricultural Policy and of the structural policies (Box 4).

Article 130A of the EU Treaty as amended by the Treaty of Amsterdam recalls the objectives of economic and social cohesion throughout the territory of the Union, referring explicitly to rural areas: "In order to promote its overall harmonious development, the Community shall develop and pursue its actions leading to the strengthening of its economic and social cohesion. In particular, the Community shall aim at reducing disparities between levels of development of the various regions and the backwardness of the least-favoured regions or islands, including rural areas". These objectives already figured in the Maastricht Treaty, minus the reference to the least-favoured islands.

Under Agenda 2000, the Commission has made a priority of implementing a sustainable rural development policy. This is based on the observation that at present "On the whole, as a result of these different developments, rural policy in the Union still appears as a juxtaposition of agricultural market policy, structural policy and environmental policy with rather complex instruments and lacking overall coherence" notwithstanding a few initiatives such as the Leader programme (Box 5).

That said, it is recommended that "Over the coming decade, [...] rural areas [will] have increasingly important environmental and recreational functions to fulfil, and requirements linked to these functions may well imply additional adjustments for agriculture, as the main land user. Conversely the increasing importance of environmental and recreational needs will also offer new development opportunities from which farmers and their families should be able to benefit. The Commission suggests that these developments should be encouraged and supported by a reorganisation of the existing rural policy instruments." [i.e. the EAGGF and the structural funds] (Box 6).

As a source of tools for decision-making in the implementation and evaluation of rural development policy, it is essential to construct indicators of rurality covering the different aspects out above.

[ Agriculture ] - [ Contents ] - [ Agricultural landscapes: over half of Europe's territory maintained by farmers ] - [ Thanks ]