The FAO Working Party on Women and the Agricultural Family in Rural Development is emphasizing its programme on the direct response expressing the needs of the individual countries in Europe, either at its Sessions or at the International Summer Schools or Workshops organized by the Working Party.
Rural Development has to be seen as the process:
- which provides for sustainable, economic and social progress for community members through
- their active participation in exploring and developing local and outside resources in order to capitalize on opportunities for their self-development and hence their social, economic and cultural well-being.
The programme of the Working Party focuses on economic development of rural communities through wealth creation and employment. It encompasses extension service and training and a global management approach to rural development through:
* Competitive agriculture and diversification;
* Entrepreneurship culture for the development of small business and pluriactivities such as Agri-Tourism, Rural-Tourism, Handicraft businesses;
* Community Building and Leadership Development and Training;
* Village Revitalization;
* Project Development.
The overall objective of the programme is to help all Member Countries who ask for FAO support, particularly those most affected by the changes in agricultural policy and those in transition to a free market economy.
Affected by those changes are rural families and especially women and young people. The specific activities of the Working Party within the REUR-Rural Development Programmes focus on the socio-economic aspects with particular emphasis on the integration of Women in Rural Development, family well-being and improving the quality of life.
The following activities of the Working Party on Women and the Agricultural Family in Rural Development contributed to this development.
