The impact of the agricultural sector on the sustainable development of rural territorial communities
The agricultural sector is one of the key components in achieving a higher level of sustainable development goals in Ukraine. Consequently, examining the interaction between these two aspects, including at the regional level, remains highly relevant. This study aimed to assess the impact of Ukraine’s agricultural sector on the country’s ability to achieve sustainable development at the regional level. The research focused on the agricultural sector of Mykolaiv region. Based on available statistical data for the region and Ukraine as a whole, the study summarised trends indicating a decline in livestock production and identified the underlying causes of this trend in the country. In particular, it was noted that contributing factors include climatic conditions (such as droughts and water shortages, exacerbated by the destruction of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant), technological constraints, outdated equipment, and insufficient breeding programmes. It was shown that while there has been an overall increase in crop productivity across the country, the trend has been inconsistent: productivity initially rose but began to decline following the full-scale invasion in 2022. Additionally, examples of corporate social responsibility initiatives aimed at developing rural territorial communities were presented. The complex interplay of economic, environmental, and technological factors shaping the current development characteristics of the Mykolaiv region was also highlighted. The findings of this study may be utilised by national and local authorities in formulating strategies for achieving sustainable development goals, as well as by agricultural enterprises in developing their own long-term growth strategies
[1] Ali, E.B., Anufriev, V.P., & Amfo, B. (2021). Green economy implementation in Ghana as a road map for a sustainable development drive: A review. Scientific African, 12, article number e00756. doi: 10.1016/j.sciaf.2021.e00756.
[2] Areas of agricultural activity of enterprises and households in the region in 2023. (2024). Retrieved from https://zabolotiv-rada.gov.ua/news/1718888424/.
[3] Astarta. (n.d.). Community development. Retrieved from https://astartaholding.com/rozvytok-gromad/.
[4] Berxolli, A., Potryvaieva, N., Dovgal, O., Kuzoma, V., & Pavliuk, S. (2023). Innovation in Ukrainian agriculture to mitigate the impact of invasion. International Journal of Environmental Studies, 80(2), 307-313. doi: 10.1080/00207233.2022.2160080.
[5] Carmela Annosi, M., Brunetta, F., Capo, F., & Heideveld, L. (2020). Digitalization in the agri-food industry: The relationship between technology and sustainable development. Management Decision, 58(8), 1737-1757. doi: 10.1108/MD-09-2019-1328.
[6] Chopra, R., Magazzino, C., Shah, M.I., Sharma, G.D., Rao, A., & Shahzad, U. (2022). The role of renewable energy and natural resources for sustainable agriculture in ASEAN countries: Do carbon emissions and deforestation affect agriculture productivity? Resources Policy, 76, article number 102578. doi: 10.1016/j.resourpol.2022.102578.
[7] Dovgal, O., Potryvaieva, N., Bilichenko, O., & Kuzoma, V. (2024). Circular economy development in the context of war: Global challenges. Interdisciplinary Journal of Applied Science, 8(13). doi: 10.18226/25253824.v8.n13.04.
[8] Dziamulych, M., Shmatkovska, T., Petrukha, S., Zatsepina, N., Rogach, S., & Petrukha, N. (2021). Rural agritourism in the system of rural development: A case study of Ukraine. Scientific Papers Series Management, Economic Engineering in Agriculture and Rural Development, 21(3), 333-344.
[9] European Commission. (2019). Supporting policy with scientific evidence. Retrieved from https://knowledge4policy.ec.europa.eu/publication/subsidies-sustainable-agriculture-mapping-policy-landscape_en.
[10] European Commission. (n.d.a). European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD). Retrieved from https://commission.europa.eu/funding-tenders/find-funding/eu-funding-programmes/european-agricultural-fund-rural-development-eafrd_en.
[11] European Commission. (n.d.b). Horizon Europe. Retrieved from https://research-and-innovation.ec.europa.eu/funding/funding-opportunities/funding-programmes-and-open-calls/horizon-europe_en.
[12] Galluzzo, N. (2022). An exploration of the agro-town in the Italian countryside and rural districs. Trakia Journal of Sciences, 20(3), 181-188. doi: 10.15547/tjs.2022.03.003.
[13] Hromov, O. (2022). Agriculture during the war: Changing priorities. Retrieved from https://ukurier.gov.ua/uk/articles/silske-gospodarstvo-pid-chas-vijni-zmina-prioritet/.
[14] Hrustek, L. (2020). Sustainability driven by agriculture through digital transformation. Sustainability, 12(20), article number 8596. doi: 10.3390/su12208596.
[15] Hu, S., Yang, Y., Zheng, H., Mi, C., Ma, T., & Shi, R. (2022). A framework for assessing sustainable agriculture and rural development: A case study of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, China. Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 97, article number 106861. doi: 10.1016/j.eiar.2022.106861.
[16] Idoje, G., Dagiuklas, T., & Iqbal, M. (2021). Survey for smart farming technologies: Challenges and issues. Computers & Electrical Engineering, 92, article number 107104. doi: 10.1016/j.compeleceng.2021.107104.
[17] Kharchenko, T. (2021). Conceptual approaches of sustainable development of the agricultural sector Ukrainian’s economy in the system of state policy. State and Regions. Series: Public Management and Administration, 1(71), 69-74. doi: 10.32840/1813-3401.2021.1.11.
[18] Kim, S.-C., Chung, J.-K., Trusova, N., Akhmetova, Z., & Musayeva, N. (2025). Simulating global supply chain reverberations from Ukrainian grain shipment interruptions. Revista Iberoamericana de Viticultura Agroindustria y Ruralidad, 12(34), 192-207. doi: 10.35588/3c9rjg57.
[19] Lajoie-O’Malley, A., Bronson, K., van der Burg, S., & Klerkx, L. (2020). The future(s) of digital agriculture and sustainable food systems: An analysis of high-level policy documents. Ecosystem Services, 45, article number 101183. doi: 10.1016/j.ecoser.2020.101183.
[20] Lanchenko, Ye., & Ivchenko, V. (2023). Development of small forms of farming in the agrarian sector of the economy. University Economic Bulletin, 18(1), 19-28. doi: 10.31470/2306-546X-2023-56-19-28.
[21] Laurett, R., Paço, A., & Mainardes, E.W. (2021). Sustainable development in agriculture and its antecedents, barriers and consequences – an exploratory study. Sustainable Production and Consumption, 27, 298-311. doi: 10.1016/j.spc.2020.10.032.
[22] Lazarieva, O. (2022). Taking into account of European experience of socio-economic development of rural areas for Ukraine. Economic Forum, 12(1), 100-108. doi: 10.36910/6775-2308-8559-2022-1-12.
[23] Lehtonen, H.S., et al. (2021). Shared socioeconomic pathways for climate change research in Finland: Co-developing extended SSP narratives for agriculture. Regional Environmental Change, 21, article number 7. doi: 10.1007/s10113-020-01734-2.
[24] Main Department of Statistics in Mykolaiv Region. (n.d.). Agriculture. Retrieved from https://www.mk.ukrstat.gov.ua/stat_inf/oblast/sh/sh.htm.
[25] Martynovych, N., Yemchenko, I., & Kulinich, T. (2023). From the territory of recovery to sustainable development: A methodological concept of effective socio-economic development of Ukraine after the war development. Problems of Sustainable Development, 18(2), 13-25. doi: 10.35784/preko.3923.
[26] National Institute of Strategic Studies. (2023). Ukraine’s agricultural sector in 2023: Components of sustainability, challenges and prospects. Retrieved from https://niss.gov.ua/doslidzhennya/ekonomika/ahrarnyy-sektor-ukrayiny-u-2023-rotsi-skladovi-stiykosti-problemy-ta.
[27] National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition. (2018). What is the farm bill? Retrieved from https://sustainableagriculture.net/our-work/campaigns/fbcampaign/what-is-the-farm-bill/.
[28] Neethirajan, S. (2020). The role of sensors, big data and machine learning in modern animal farming. Sensing and Bio-Sensing Research, 29, article number 100367. doi: 10.1016/j.sbsr.2020.100367.
[29] Nhemachena, С., Nhamo, L., Matchaya, G., Nhemachena, C.R., Muchara, B., Karuaihe, S.T., & Mpandeli, S. (2020). Climate change impacts on water and agriculture sectors in Southern Africa: Threats and opportunities for sustainable development. Water, 12(10), article number 2673. doi: 10.3390/w12102673.
[30] One step closer to the farmer. Challenges, opportunities and directions of agricultural development in Ukraine. (2023). Retrieved from https://biz.nv.ua/ukr/markets/fermerstvo-v-ukrajini-vikliki-maybutnogo-ta-mozhlivosti-2023-roku-50292964.html.
[31] Patkós, C. (2020). Bottom-up rural development movements to support the industrial revolution 4.0 in agro-industry. In Proceedings of the 4th international conference on green agro-industry (pp. 11-21). Yogyakarta: University of Southampton.
[32] Petrunenko, I., Pohrishcuk, B., Abramova, M., Vlasenko, Y., & Halkin, V. (2021). Development of the agro-industrial complex for improving the economic security of the state. International Journal of Computer Science and Network Security, 21(3), 191-197. doi: 10.22937/IJCSNS.2021.21.3.26.
[33] Qiu, P., Zhou, Z., & Kim, D.-J. (2021). A new path of sustainable development in traditional agricultural areas from the perspective of open innovation – a coupling and coordination study on the agricultural industry and the tourism industry. Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity, 7(1), article number 16. doi: 10.3390/joitmc7010016.
[34] Qu, Y., Zhang, J., Wang, Z., Ma, X., Wei, G., & Kong, X. (2023). The future of agriculture: Obstacles and improvement measures for Chinese cooperatives to achieve sustainable development. Sustainability, 15(2), article number 974. doi: 10.3390/su15020974.
[35] Roman, M., Kudinova, I., Samsonova, V., & Kawęcki, N. (2024). Innovative development of rural green tourism in Ukraine. Tourism and Hospitality, 5(3), 537-558. doi: 10.3390/tourhosp5030033.
[36] Romanenko, Ye., Boiko, V., Shevchuk, S., Barabanova, V., & Karpinska, N. (2020). Rural development by stimulating agro-tourism activities. International Journal of Management, 11(4), 605-613.
[37] Rounaghi, M.M., Jarrar, H., & Dana, L.-P. (2021). Implementation of strategic cost management in manufacturing companies: Overcoming costs stickiness and increasing corporate sustainability. Future Business Journal, 7, article number 31. doi: 10.1186/s43093-021-00079-4.
[38] Ruml, A., Chrisendo, D., Iddrisu, A.M., Karakara, A.A., Nuryartono, N., Osabuohien, E., & Lay, J. (2022). Smallholders in agro-industrial production: Lessons for rural development from a comparative analysis of Ghana’s and Indonesia’s oil palm sectors. Land Use Policy, 119, article number 106196. doi: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2022.106196.
[39] Shahini, E., Misiuk, M., Zakhodym, M., Borkovska, V., & Koval, N. (2023). Analysis of the economic efficiency of growing pigs for meat and its improvement. Scientific Horizons, 26(6), 110-120. doi: 10.48077/scihor6.2023.110.
[40] Shtogrin, I. (2022). 10 examples of success of territorial communities: From job creation to skateparks. Retrieved from https://www.radiosvoboda.org/a/pryklady-uspikhu-terytorialnykh-hromad/31631448.html.
[41] Shyian, D., Litovchenko, I., & Sevriukova, Ye. (2023). Peculiarities of the formation of human capital in rural areas in the pre-war period. Economics of Development, 22(3), 32-41. doi: 10.57111/econ/3.2023.32.
[42] State Statistics Service of Ukraine. (n.d.). Agriculture, forestry and fisheries. Retrieved from https://ukrstat.gov.ua/operativ/menu/menu_u/ekon/selo_u.htm.
[43] Tiurina, A., Kapelista, I., Omelchenko, A., Obykhod, H., & Pavliuk, S. (2021). Sustainable economic development of Ukraine through the agro-sector growth. Scientific Horizons, 24(12), 92-101. doi: 10.48077/scihor.24(12).2021.92-101.
[44] Trusova, N., Kyrylov, Yu., Hranovska, V., Prystеmskyi, O., Krykunova, V., & Sakun, A. (2020). The imperatives of the development of the tourist services market in spatial polarization of the regional tourist system. GeoJournal of Tourism and Geosites, 29(2), 565-582. doi: 10.30892/gtg.29215-490.
[45] Wang, Y., Umair, M., Aizhan, A., Teymurova, V., & Chang, L. (2024). Does the disparity between rural and urban incomes affect rural energy poverty? Energy Strategy Reviews, 56, article number 101584. doi: 10.1016/j.esr.2024.101584.
[46] War changes the rules: KERNEL has adapted its social responsibility strategy to become a driver of positive change in society. (2024). Retrieved from https://forbes.ua/company/viyna-zminyue-pravila-kernel-adaptuvav-strategiyu-sotsialnoi-vidpovidalnosti-shchob-stati-rushiem-pozitivnikh-zmin-u-suspilstvi-29082024-23238.
[47] Zomchak, L.M. (2023). Sustainable development of Ukraine as a combination of social, economic and environmental components: Structural econometric model of three-pillar approach. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 1254, article number 012125. doi: 10.1088/1755-1315/1254/1/012125.