Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development of the Republic of Serbia in the process of ots accession to the EU

Abstract Agriculture is one of the most important activities in Serbia, where the potential for the development of agriculture is underutilized. By comparing the indicators of productivity and profitability, the size of farms, the use of modern technology, the intensity of production, the level of the processing of export products as well as other parameters, it is obvious that Serbia is lagging behind in agricultural development in relation to the achieved level of development in the European Union. The process of the Republic of Serbia’s accession to the European Union requires the harmonization of regulations and standards in agriculture with regulations and standards in the European Union. The harmonization of the regulations in the field of agriculture is in process, while this is one of the most comprehensive processes of the harmonization of regulations. The Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development should contribute to a better use of resources in agriculture simultaneously achieving a higher level of the competitiveness of agriculture. The Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development would also have to provide a way to adjust the regulations of the European Union and a harmonization with the Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union. In the Republic of Serbia, the Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development for the period from 2014 to 2024 has been adopted. The strategy has welldefined objectives; however, the description of the current situation in agriculture, the ways to achieve the defined objectives, the sources of funding for the purpose of achieving them as well as other parts of the Strategy have certain shortcomings, which leads to the attainment of the goals of the Strategy. The research done for this paper was accomplished by contemplating the situation in agriculture and rural areas, an analysis of the Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development of Serbia as well as strategies, regulations and directives of the European Union. The aim of this paper is to point out some of the shortcomings and the weaknesses in the strategy and highlight the potential for the development of agriculture and rural development in Serbia, in the areas in which they are not sufficiently represented. Keywords Agriculture, rural development, farm, agricultural cooperatives