Towards a modern rural policy in Chile

This second chapter presents the key pillars of “Modern Rural Development Policies” in OECD countries based on 10 dimensions and examines how Chile’s economy could benefit by implementing this framework to its rural areas. The chapter consists of four main sections. The first starts by describing three general types of rural areas, also present in Chile, and how the role of the rural economy changes through the process of economic development. It then follows with a section describing modern approaches to rural policy in OECD countries highlighting the importance of integrating rural with urban polices in addition to promoting rural development based on the New Rural Paradigm and targeting the enabling condition for growth in rural areas. The third section describes the main rural sectors in Chile and identifies possible areas for growth potential. The final section describes the benefits that are associated with adopting a modern rural policy in Chile.