Articles

• Market trends and consumer demand for fresh berries

  11-14

  Kristina Sobekova

  Michael R. Thomsen

  Bruce L. Ahrendsen

  Views:

  502

  We present an analysis of markets for fresh strawberries, blueberries, blackberries and raspberries in the United States during 2008–2011. We use weekly panel data covering supermarket purchases in 52 cities. The primary goal is to estimate demand elasticities for fresh berries and thereby provide a better understanding of consumer behaviour in response to price changes and the nature of competition among these crops. We estimate fixed and random effects models for double log demand equations and a complete demand system, the Almost Ideal Demand System. The latter specification can be used to estimate demand relationships that conform to utility maximising behaviour. The elasticity estimates are very robust across the different specifications and estimation methods. This increases confidence in our findings and provides some assurance that choice of functional form or estimation method is not driving our results. We find that retail demands for all berry crops are in the elastic range and that the different berries are substitutes for one another. The demand for strawberries was the least elastic with an own price elasticity of –1.26 and blackberries were the most elastic with a demand elasticity of –1.88. Blackberry demand was also the most responsive to the prices of competing berry crops. The study provides clearer insight into markets for berries in the United States. In addition, it fills a gap in the present lack of up-to-date consumer demand elasticities for these crops and will be useful for growers, decision makers and consumers.

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  448

• Swot analysis and identification of the needs, potential and development strategies of the fruit and vegetable sector in Montenegro

  15-20

  Radislav Jovović

  Dragoljub Janković

  Views:

  195

  Fruit and vegetable production in Montenegro benefits from naturally favourable conditions in terms of climate, soil and water resources. Such conditions enable high quality fruit, vegetables and vines to be grown, and fruit and vegetable production and viticulture have a long tradition as well as the cultivation of a wide assortment of produce. A significant number of Montenegrin households therefore deal with horticultural and wine production, although on a small-scale. Along with the global market trends, the level of domestic consumption, the expected evolution of the distribution system in Montenegro and the planned dynamic developments in the tourist sector, these natural conditions contribute to creating basic conditions for the development of the considered sector. Market opportunities are favourable and represent an additional contributing factor towards its development. In spite of the favourable climate for production in this sector and the supportive market opportunities, the real value of Montenegrin products at sector level is quite low. We conduct a SWOT analysis of the sector aimed to find out its potential as well as the needs of the sector. Our starting hypothesis is that the potential of this sector in Montenegro is greater than current activity/production, and that suitable strategies can provide higher results in this sector. The main outcome of this paper will be our suggestions for improvement within the sector. The SWOT analysis will be completed according to the PESTEL categorisation, after which Opportunities and Threats will be grouped into three major strategic categories: “New market trends”, “Sector financing” and “Structure and functioning of the value chain”. The SWOT analysis outcomes, when regarded alongside a review of global market trends and domestic production potential, lead to strategies for the improvement of the sector.

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  367

• Economic effects of fairs – a complex approach

  21-25

  László Kárpáti

  Views:

  139

  A complex economic evaluation of fairs / exhibitions can be considered as a novelty in the current literature. In this novel approach, each stakeholder group involved in a fair is evaluated in numerical terms, taking into account the specific cash inflow and outflow categories of that group. The net cash flow is considered as the economic value since it filters out the accumulations. Adding together all the categories, the so-called complex economic value and effectiveness is established regarding the fair surveyed. A numerical model entitled KAVA was developed in order to carry out the calculations for the complex economic effectiveness of the fair. A practical example of using the model is also shown in the paper.

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  85

• The marketing strategies of Serbian honey producers

  27-31

  Vlade Zarić

  Zorica Vasiljević

  Nebojša Nedić

  Danijela Petković

  Views:

  187

  Serbian honey producers are exposed to the increased international competition of recent years. To face up to the new changes, producers are progressively using diversification strategies, such as direct sales and production diversification. The direct sales strategy allows the producers to increase the product added value, while diversification aims to offer new products to the consumers. The aim of this paper is to analyse the honey marketing strategy of Serbian honey producers. The first part of the paper analyses the structure of production costs, production performances as well as the determinants of the honey supply. In the second part of the paper, analysis is focused on the determinants of direct sales. Finally, in the third part of the paper, diversification strategies are discussed. The data for this research has been obtained on the basis of a representative sample consisting of 84 Serbian honey producers interviewed in 2011 and 2012. The results show that the Serbian honey producers operate with more or less similar production costs and with production performances that do not differ significantly. They use direct marketing for two reasons: firstly, it affords personal contact with consumers, and secondly, they aim to decrease the transaction costs, thereby keeping a higher share of the product’s final value. Offering new products to consumers is an attempt to create additional product demand.

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  102

• The influence of direct support under common agricultural policy on farm incomes in Poland

  33-37

  Agnieszka Judzińska

  Views:

  163

  The main objective of the paper is the analysis of changes on the level of income of agricultural producers, which took place in Poland in the early years of the accession to the EU, as well as a determination of the scale of the impact of financial support under the Common Agricultural Policy on the farm income situation. Poland’s membership in the EU gives rural farms opportunities to improve their economic situation. Financial aid, mainly in the form of a direct payment, has been the main factor determining the economical status of rural farms, whilst the other income making factors, such as improved productivity and increased agricultural production have played a much smaller role. The increase in revenue has enabled farmers not only to increase current expenditures, but also to carry out modernization efforts, which will determine the future economic and structural situation of the Polish agricultural sector and its competitiveness. However, a strong differentiation in terms of the economic situation of rural farms according to their size and specialization in production was also noticed. As a result, there is a still large number of farms in which the revenues received by farmers are insufficient to assure them adequate life standard. Therefore such farms are not able to both develop and invest. Only economically strong rural farms with high production potential have such opportunities, meaning that EU support will never be able to fully minimize the effects of small-scale production or to offset the insufficient efficiency and productivity of production factors.

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  86

• Exploring the value of brands on the montenegrin bottled spring water market

  39-41

  Marija Jankovic

  Views:

  141

  The branding strategy is based on future goals relating to clients, aimed at increasing awareness of the brand, creating a positive brand image and establishing a preference for the brand and ensuing brand loyalty. A brand is a very important factor for competitiveness and establishes a leadership position in the market, given the major impact that this form of intellectual property has on the perception of consumers and the success of innovative products on the market. The bottled water market has increased by about 35% in the last five years on the global level, dictated by young consumers who are becoming increasingly aware of the significance of proper nutrition in maintaining health. The research presents qualitative information on the market value of bottled water brands, the general characteristics of retailers, as well as on their target customers. The main task of this paper is to confirm the usefulness of marketing research in modern business as well as to present the benefits of brand value measurement to current or future brand owners. It is to be hoped that the results presented in this paper may serve as a good basis for upgrading marketing activities, based on a better understanding of target customers and their particular needs, through better communication for the purpose of stronger corporate branding.

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  98

• An incubator model based on the territorial value chain

  43-47

  Francesco Contò

  Felice Adinolfi

  Mariantonietta Fiore

  Piermichele La Sala

  Views:

  170

  Policies to promote and encourage local foods may take many different shapes depending on both the specific targets and strategies. Some policies, especially at a local level, promote supply-chain vertical and horizontal integration as a comprehensive strategy which aims to help firms pursue several of the promoting policies. A business model that focuses its attention on the consumer of the product and territory can be a crucial driver in generating a ‘land fecundation’ as a response to globalization. The aim of the paper is to investigate the link between rural development and territorialisation, exploring the role of Local Action Groups Integrated Projects of Food Chain and Rural Development Programmes from 2007-2013 in a region in Southern Italy. The article makes use of a value chain approach, starting with Porter’s value chain model and five forces model of competition; it proposes a methodological framework for the development of an organisational model that includes and builds networks between the several stakeholders and local programmes, creating a shared strategy to revitalising the area and the food choices of its residents. This revitalising process takes place through the implementation of a multi-purpose incubator establishing strong partnerships that are able to foster complementarities among all rural stakeholders. Conclusions and implications for policy makers are drawn: a model of territorial organisation could link territorial capital and local stakeholders, and therefore the programming carried out under the entire RDP.

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  136

• The impact of the “greening” of the common agricultural policy on the financial situation of Polish farms

  49-55

  Stefania Czekaj

  Edward Majewski

  Adam Was

  Views:

  351

  This paper presents an assessment of the impacts of introducing the greening scenario of the CAP, proposed by the European Commission as an alternative for the reformed CAP after 2013. In the past, the CAP has undergone numerous transformations in response to the changing macroeconomic environment and in reaction to developments in the farming sectors in EU countries. On the 12th of October 2011, the Commission presented a set of legal proposals designed to make the CAP a more effective policy to encourage more competitive and sustainable agriculture and vibrant rural areas. The proposal brings various new elements under consideration, some of them raising strong controversies such as introducing “greening” as a component of direct payments. Changes in the direct payments scheme in line with the EC proposition include forcing adjustments in the cropping pattern and creating ecological focus areas (EFA) on 7% of the farm land ; the consequences of such a proposal on the size and structure of agricultural production, and thus on the economic performance of farms and the whole agricultural sector are uncertain. The authors analyse historical changes to the CAP with a focus on a growing importance of the environmental component of the CAP, discuss different scenarios of shaping the direct payments system and present the results of modelling the impacts of greening the CAP on the Polish farming sector with the use of the LP optimisation model. The study was based on Polish FADN data. Results show that the majority of farmers in Poland comply with the crop diversification constraint of greening. However, establishing the required EFAs and necessary diversification on farms with simplified cropping structures will have a negative impact on the volume of agricultural production as well as on farm incomes.

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  165

• Diversification strategies and their impact on farm performance

  57-61

  Cristina Salvioni

  Lara Fontanella

  Views:

  166

  The objective of this study is to identify factors determining the economic performance of agricultural holdings in Italy, with specific attention to the impact of the adoption of on-farm diversification strategies, namely income diversification and product differentiation. The adoption of these kinds of strategies has been increasingly recognised as a viable business option in agriculture as they allow better allocation of farm resources and an increase in the quota of value added retained on farms and therefore not passed on to other agents operating at the end of the food supply chain. By using a panel of professional Italian farms over the time period of 2003-2009, we estimate random effect, ordinary least square and quantile regression models to estimate the impact of income diversification and product differentiation strategies on the levels of farm income per unit of labour income. Our findings show that scale economies are important positive determinants of farm economic performance. On the contrary, when the family play an important role in the farm business, economic performance is worse. Finally, we do not find evidence of a statistically significant impact of the adoption of income diversification and product differentiation strategies. This latter result may be interpreted as a signal that farms use these strategies as risk management tools rather than as income increasing ones.

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  92

• Research on the natural features of karst water, on the example of some water intakes

  63-67

  Slobodanka Krivokapic

  Neda Devic

  Stanka Filipovic

  Views:

  134

  The existence of safe and abundant raw water sources is a priceless treasure for any country. Water resources are of particular importance for Montenegro, especially for the development of tourism and agriculture which represent the backbone of its economic development. With respect to water potential, Montenegro is at the top of Europe. However, it is not a sufficient factor, but the very way it is used and protected, as well as the improvement of its valorization. Economic development which is not based on the conservation and good governance of natural resources may have negative consequences for the overall development. The aim of the paper is the study of natural properties of karst ground waters and their changes through interrelation of some ions, as indicators, on the example of five intakes in use. The paper presents the results of the research on the said waters and the values of indicators which point to their exceptional benefits for the water supply. However, the effects of the anthropogenic factor are evident, which are reflected in the range of the mole ratio of Ca /Mg ions ranging from 5.4 to 9.6, and the values (eqv.SO4/Cl) ranging from 0.3 to 2.0. Protection of the environment, especially preservation of the quality of water resources of Montenegro, imposes the urgency of implementation of the objectives of the Water Framework Directive.

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  71

• The efficiency of porkers production of intensively and extensively feeded

  69-74

  Benedykt Pepliński

  Karol Wajszczuk

  Rafał Baum

  Dariusz Majchrzycki

  Jacek Wawrzynowicz

  Dariusz Lisiak

  Piotr Janiszewski

  Views:

  162

  The aim of this study is a comparative analysis of the costs of production of intensively and extensively fed porkers in view of the qualitative parameters of meat obtained after slaughter. The production experiment, which involved the parallel fattening of 3 groups of 30 porkers (fed intensively up to a weight of about 120 kg and extensively up to weights of about 100 kg and 120 kg), was carried out between 2011 and 2012 in a deliberately selected farm. The researchers assumed average prices of the means of production and prices of livestock pigs in individual meatiness classes noted in Poland in 2012. The fattening started when the animals weighed about 40 kg. The feeds used for extensive fattening contained less total protein, energy and basic exogenous amino acids, but more raw fibre. The analysis proved that the extensive production of porkers up to 100 kg in 2012 was not profitable. The most profitable production was the intensive production up to 120 kg (a profit of €0.100 per kg, whereas in the extensive feeding up to 120 kg the profit was €0.072 per kg. The porkers which were fed less intensively had a higher slaughter value, thinner fatback, higher dressing percentage and smaller content of fatback in the half-carcase, whereas their meat contained more water and less protein, fat and ash than the meat from the group of porkers fed with the mix richer in protein and energy.

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  65

• Innovative training methods in business higher education

  75-78

  Georgina Árváné Ványi

  Tímea Gál

  András Nábrádi

  Zsolt Csapó

  Károly Pető

  Views:

  186

  A unique business-oriented educational method was launched in 2010 at the University Of Debrecen, Hungary, in the Faculty Of Applied Economics and Rural Development; the method has existed in the JAMK University of Applied Science in Jyväskylä (Finland) since 1993, and is called Team Academy. The gist of this training is that the students learn entrepreneurship through their ‘living’ organisations with the application of the principle ‘learning-by-doing’. Besides developing the students’ entrepreneurial competencies and skills, this educational model also offers team coaching tools to develop teams of 12-13 students that can cooperate in an efficient way. The key point of Team Academy, which has been launched in several European higher education institutes over the past years (e.g. Spain, France, the Netherlands, etc.), is that the most efficient way of learning how to operate a successful company is to learn it in practice. During the professional and project trainings, the cooperation of the team and their company’s efficiency is continuously developing with the help of team coaches. A quite wide variety of team coaching tools is used in this system, e.g. 360◦ evaluation, which is a very important tool of human resource management. Feedback from students also plays an important role in developing team cooperation; the professional frame for this is also given by the above-mentioned methodology. This method is used successfully at the Debrecen Team Academy which / and (do you mean that the a) Team Academy or b) the above-mentioned methodology will be presented? If B), then write ‘and’ instead of ‘which’) will be presented in this study. A database of 150 questionnaires is analysed through qualitative research methods.

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  93

• Making agricultural support objective-oriented: a linear programming approach for Ukraine

  79-83

  Taras Vysotskyi

  Olena Kovtun

  Views:

  117

  The overall aim of the paper is to analyse the distribution of state agricultural support in Ukraine with the purpose of drawing up proposals on how to make it more objective-oriented. The investigation is based on the results of a case study conducted in Zdolbuniv district3, in the Rivne region of Ukraine, where interviews with local agricultural experts were held. The research is founded on the Linear Programming (LP) methodological approach, which is applied to calculate an objective-oriented agricultural budget allocation. This approach also integrates judgements from district agricultural experts. The outcomes show that agricultural support should have been redistributed in a slightly different way from the district perspective. However, the calculated changes in most cases match with the overall development directions in the Ukrainian agricultural support policy. Furthermore, the developed model has proved to be a useful and, at the same time, quite simple tool in application support, and one which could have been used by the agricultural decision-makers in the process of the distribution of agricultural support.

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  67

• The problems of regional development in Montenegro

  85-88

  Janko Radulovic

  Views:

  124

  Economic development is a continuous, stochastic process considering that development depends on a multitude of historical, political, economic, cultural, ethnic and other factors. In the process of development, each country puts effort into strengthening their manufacturing potential, increasing the competitiveness of their economy by modernizing technology, and raising the level of education, culture etc. Owing to the accentuated actions of these factors, and different social, economic and other circumstances, there has been emerging polarizations in regional development, urbanization and so on. Proof of a country’s level of economic development can be found in various indicators such as capital equipment; the share of manufacturing, agriculture, and foreign trade; the share of the private sector in total ownership; the development of financial institutions and capital markets; the development and stability of the legal system; the development of transport, telecommunication and other infrastructure; the realized standard of living; the development of democracy and human rights protection; preserved environment etc. Economies of developing countries, including Montenegro, are usually characterized by a low capital equipment and low labor productivity, expensive manufacturing and insufficient share of world trade, high import dependence, uncompetitiveness, high unemployment, undeveloped entrepreneurship, and an undeveloped financial institutions. Polarized countries in an economic and development sense, are therefore those which are unevenly developed, and are constantly faced with highly pronounced problems of disparity in regional development and demographic problems. Solving these problems is a long-term process and necessitates. The design of a regional policy that is more efficient than the previous ones, as well, as building a different procedure for fulfilling the adopted regional policies.

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  96

• The competitiveness of rural areas in the Republic of Tatarstan

  89-96

  Landysh Sitdikova

  Wim Heijman

  Johan van Ophem

  Views:

  133

  This paper analyses the main factors influencing the regional competitiveness of rural areas in the Tatarstan Republic. Firstly, 19 variables related to the socio-economic situation in the Tatarstan Republic were analysed, these having been taken from the Statistics Committee of the Tatarstan Republic. Principal component analysis (PCA) was then used to determine the weights of 10 indicators that have an effect on the level of regional competitiveness. Factor weights are used as weights in the summation of the standardised scores of variables that have an impact on competitiveness. The major factors influencing the level of regional competitiveness are the level of economically active population, investment in housing and the level of education. The following results were obtained: one of the 44 regions is very highly competitive and two are highly competitive; two of 44 regions have a medium level of competitiveness and 39 regions have a low level of competitiveness.

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  63

• Opportunities, problems and pitfalls of nutrition and health claims

  97-101

  Harry J. Bremmers

  Bernd van der Meulen

  Views:

  161

  The provision of reliable food information, for instance by printing an authorised nutrition or health claim on a package of food, makes credence dimensions of a food transparent to the consumer. In Europe, prior­to­use authorisation of nutrition and health claims are mandatory and governed by Regulation (EC) 1924/2006. The aim of this paper is to assess the problems and pitfalls of the European claims regime to food businesses. A legal­economic review is performed, supported by case studies. Strategic factors determining whether or not to claim are of a legal­economic kind. Strategic responses include refraining from the use or application of claims, abstaining from innovation, and/or circumvention of the authorisation procedure. Negative social­economic effects make it necessary to improve the present legal structures with respect to their effectiveness while maintaining the balance between public control and individual freedom.

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  69

• Arguments for the optimisation of using biomass for energy production

  103-108

  István Takács

  Katalin Takács-György

  Views:

  180

  Using biomass to produce energy is not a new idea. In the past, the by-products of energy(?) production processes or naturally grown materials were mainly used for energy production. At the same time, during the production of biomass the conventional sources of energy are used (fuels, the embodied energy of which is used in the production of the biomass and equipment, etc.) which must be taken into account when determining the net energy production. This research aims to examine how to optimise the production and use of biomass energy and its supply chain in the energetic and economic criteria system, as well as how to impact upon the managing models of the processes to the energetic and economic parameters of the supply chain; we ask what criteria characterise the natural (environmental), economic and social sustainability, and how they can be implemented e.g. within the framework of an innovation cluster. This article describes a test model, and analyses the results of the model examinations and the conditions for compliance with sustainability criteria. Arguing the environmental, economic and social sustainability among the criteria of the model for evaluation is not possible at all times by means of direct indicators. The results of the research proved that only multi-criteria optimisation models serve a proper decision-making instrument for the evaluation of biomass utilisation for energy production.

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  76

• Recent trends in the Croatian agricultural business sector

  109-113

  Josip Juračak

  Dario Vukalović

  Views:

  133

  The purpose of this paper is to explore recent trends in the Croatian agriculture and forestry business sector and compare it with the Croatian economy as a whole. This topic is considered interesting because recent business years have been heavily influenced by the global financial crisis. Many authors would say that agriculture, as a specific branch of the economy, does not follow general trends, but is affected rather by other factors, especially such as environmental ones. The global financial crisis had the most negative impact on the Croatian economy in the 2008/2009 period, when the GDP growth rate tumbled from 2.4% to -5.8%. Although some positive movements have been recorded since 2009, a recession is still going on. Based on information from the National Financial Agency (FINA) database we found that during the period 2007-2011, agricultural firms experienced the same trends as the whole economy, except in terms of average monthly salaries and employment. However, due to the impact of / on? agricultural products prices and yields, in two year period from 2008 to 2010, agricultural firms recorded an almost linear fall in revenues, while the national business sector on the whole experienced a sharp fall in revenues in 2009 and then only a modest fall in 2010.

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  58

• European cycle tourism: a tool for sustainable regional rural development

  115-119

  Pieter Piket

  Eke Eijgelaar

  Paul Peeters

  Views:

  289

  We present an economic impacts model based on direct expenditures for European cycle routes, originally designed in 2009 as part of a study commissioned by the European Parliament. At its request, the study was updated in 2012, including a refined version of our model which takes some limitations of the former model into account. Our main findings are that cycle tourists’ daily spending is comparable to that of other tourists, and that cycle tourism can contribute significantly in particular to rural economies that have not previously enjoyed mainstream tourism development. (European) cycle tourism thus proves to be useful as an (additional) tool for regional rural development. We arrived at a total estimated direct expenditures in Europe of almost €44 billion (€35 billion from day trips and €8.94 billion from overnight trips). We applied the model to the routes of EuroVelo, the European cycle route network which is currently being developed, showing their considerable economic potential of over €7 billion in direct expenditures. Furthermore, cycle tourism has a far lower negative impact on the environment (in terms of carbon dioxide emissions) than other forms of tourism. Cycle tourism is therefore a good example of a low carbon tourism product which could be developed as a major slow travel opportunity across (rural) Europe.

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  294

• Rural resilience and the role of social capital among farmers in Kirundo province, Northern Burundi

  121-125

  Bonaventure Minani

  Déo-Guide Rurema

  Philippe Lebailly

  Views:

  152

  In Burundi, more than 90% of the active population is engaged in family agriculture, which plays a vital role in food production and constitutes more than 50% of the GDP. Before the civil war of 1993, Kirundo was deemed the “breadbasket of the country”, as the region fed many parts of Burundi through growing particular foods such as legumes and cereals. Family farming was market-oriented. Kirundo alone includes 8 lakes which offer opportunities for field irrigation. Today, this region is the first province in Burundi which shows a high rate of malnutrition, as poverty has increased and a sharp 53.9 % decline in agricultural production has been witnessed between 1996 and 2009. The aim of this article is to analyse the role of social capital through the local association network in improving family agriculture and the resilience to climate change and conflict crisis. In this study, 73 farmers were surveyed in Kirundo province through means of a questionnaire, and the study was completed by collecting secondary data. Analysis of the data reveals that, despite recurrent droughts in that region which caused deaths due to famines and displacement of people to neighbouring countries such as Rwanda and Tanzania, 44% of the farmers who were surveyed were shown to have resilience to climate change. The analysis of data shows that these farmers were members of well organised local associations, and had learned about specific topics such as financial management, processing and storage of agricultural products and livestock. The social capital network positively influences their income and their resilience to climate change and conflict crisis.

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  88

• Using sustainable development tools for solving property rights in Montenegro

  127-131

  Jelena Janjusevic

  Views:

  124

  In recent months Montenegro has been faced with serious budget problems , one proposed solution of which has been to reduce the number of employees in state administration. Additionally, the costs of living are above the disposable budget of most households, in particular the high cost of electricity. While the government warns about a lack of electricity, the citizens are hardly in the position to cover these costs. Montenegro is dealing with the double challenge of inefficient use of space (the country features over 100,000 illegal homes)(I don’t understand the link between inefficient use of space and illegal homes) and inefficient energy use (Montenegro needs an average of 8.5 times more energy per unit produced than an average EU country). How can these problems be solved in a way which pleases both sides? In this paper, an approach is presented which links the solving of the problem of illegal construction with increasing the level of energy efficiency in households, businesses and other facilities. There is a model developed by UNDP Montenegro – an integrated policy solution to the double challenge of providing energy efficiency measures to incentivise households to legalise their homes. The legalisation of illegal buildings by the introduction of mandatory energy efficiency measures in them may at the same time result in an increase of revenue to the central and local budgets, the reduction of negative impacts on the environment, an increase in employment, the engagement of the economy, a reduction of electricity consumption and thereby to reduce the need to import electricity, and ultimately the increased welfare of the population.

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  81

• Education for rural development and agribusiness in post-socialist Slovakia

  133-137

  Danka Moravčíková

  Izabela Adamičková

  Peter Bielik

  Views:

  142

  Agricultural education and training in the former Czechoslovakia has traditionally focused on fostering the position of cooperatives and state farms. The destruction of socialist agriculture and the reduction of commuting opportunities in the urban space during the transition have resulted in the handicapped socio-economic position of the Slovak countryside and its population. The role of education and training in fostering agribusiness growth and rural development could therefore become a crucial strategy. The aim of this article is to analyse the current state of education and training for agribusiness and for rural development in Slovakia using the methods of literature research and document analysis. The article interprets general trends in the development of adult education in Slovakia during the transition period. The main priorities and perspectives formulated in the national strategy for education in agriculture (for the period 2007-2013) are discussed in the mentioned context. With a focus on the leading role of the Slovak University of Agriculture in Nitra, the paper assesses the current status of formal and further agricultural education and training offered in academic and other educational institutions. The paper concludes by discussing implications, recommendations and challenges for developing education and training initiatives for agribusiness and rural development.

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  74

• Spatial urban plans as a basis for agribusiness development

  139-143

  Mirjana Čizmović

  Milica Kovačević

  Views:

  130

  The main goals of the spatial development of rural areas are to protect and prevent degradation of agricultural land, forests and protected areas, as well as to encourage (more) balanced territorial development. Given that the quality and development of agriculture largely depend on the level of consciousness and awareness of the population in rural areas as to the opportunities and benefits of their involvement in the adoption and approval of planning solutions, the aim of this paper is to define a communication strategy to help raise the awareness of the focus groups (landowners, farmers and investors) of the importance of and link between spatial planning and development of agribusiness and rural areas, exploring different techniques and methods of using various communication channels. The methods which will be used in the paper include secondary research, SWOT analysis, and trend and historical analysis. The research results show that it is essential from the very beginning to take the views of various stakeholders into account through frequent thematic dialogues, in order to incorporate a consensus which has been reached together with the expert team of the developer, into planning decisions. Only such an approach can lead to sustainable and enforceable plans as prerequisites for the realisation of realistically planned investment in rural areas. Furthermore, it is very important to legally standardise such an approach so that public participation, as a mandatory legal procedure, can be defined through precisely defined steps and established performance indicators from the very beginning of the process of adopting planning documents.

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  62