What is Rural Entrepreneurship (RE)? Erasmus+ Rural Rules!

Content Unemployment: rural vs urban Funding for rural business Some examples Task

The employment rate between rural and urban areas differ a lot: Bulgaria (12.8% difference) Croatia (10.9% difference) Finland (8.4% difference) Lithuania (6.6% difference) Rural areas account only to 15.3% of GDP on average There is a need to solve that!

Another problem: The proportion of people over 65 years living in rural regions is increasing all the time!

Subsidies for Rural Entrepreneurship - Mostly through EU programmes (e.g. EU Rural development 2014- 2020) - the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) dedicated €100 billion - There are 118 different rural development programmes (RDP) in the 28 Member States for this period

Funding for rural businesses focus on: - Innovative farming and sustainable forest management; - Shift toward a low-carbon economy - Promoting social inclusion, poverty reduction in rural areas & more.. More info: http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/rural-development-2014- 2020/index_en.htm (simply Google: “EU help for rural areas”)

Funding is usually a perfect kick-off for a rural business Is it possible for a rural business to be profitable without EU funding? Funding is usually a perfect kick-off for a rural business

Examples of rural businesses

Traditional food

Producing? Labour force and land is much cheaper in rural areas

Organic farming and food Hipsters love it. The rich love it. Everyone loves it

Rural tourism And cool events, like the one above

What rural business examples do you know?

Task for you (25 mins) In groups: Try to find an innovative entrepreneurial solution to one of the following problems in rural areas: Youth is massively leaving for urban areas or migrating abroad; Alcohol consumption is skyrocketing; There are lots of unused dangerous buildings; Elderly people are too far from necessary social services; The local infrastructure is in a terrible condition; There is a lack of cultural, sport and social activities; or think of another social problem, that you would like to tackle. Draw how this rural business would work/eliminate the social problem. Be creative - there are no limits this time!