Rural development in Bavaria – options for Ukraine

As part of the German-Ukrainian Agricultural Policy Dialogue (APD), which is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) and implemented by IAK Agrar Consulting GmbH, a Ukrainian delegation visited the Free State of Bavaria on a fortnight-long expert information tour to learn about perspectives and approaches for the development of equal rural living conditions. Members of the Ukrainian delegation included decision-makers from the Ministry of Food and Agrarian Policy of Ukraine, the Ministry of Veterans Affairs, as well as professionals from the All-Ukrainian Association of Municipalities, the pilot municipalities of APD Ukraine and the National Association of Agricultural Extension Services of Ukraine (Dorada).

Bavaria is predestined to share experiences on rural development: Around 85% of the Free State is rural. Today, the Bavarian Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Forestry (StMELF) successfully implements strategies for regional development and land resource management, supports the positioning of the region as a brand, including for agricultural products. The participants of the Ukrainian delegation discussed these and other measures, e.g. during their visit to institutions leading in Bavarian rural development, such as the StMELF, the School for Rural and Village Development in Thierhaupten and the Weihenstephan-Triesdorf University of Applied Sciences.

The main topics of the two-week exchange also included the organisation of the administrative system for rural development, further training measures for the development of regional structures and the administration of state or municipal land.