Strategic Planning As A Factor Of The Sustainable Agricultural Development

Abstract

In modern conditions, the relevance of strategic planning is undeniable. The development of strategic planning is necessary in all sectors, including the agricultural sector. Strategic planning helps to ensure the sustainability of agricultural development, which will allow agricultural producers to produce not only high-quality products, but also highly profitable ones. Regional farmers need new changes aimed at addressing issues in the field of sustainable agricultural development, which cannot be done without good strategic planning. The authors studied the regulatory framework in the field of sustainable development of agriculture; the article indicates strategic documents that consider aspects of sustainable development of agriculture. In addition, the analysis of the current state of development of agriculture in the Republic of Buryatia was carried out, during which the main problems of agricultural development were identified. On the basis of the study, the authors proposed a process for strategic planning of agricultural development. The proposed process of strategic planning for the development of agriculture will allow agricultural producers to effectively use the strategic plans for the development of the agricultural sector, with the exception of this permission for the use of agriculture and determine its prospects for territorial development and, of course, the strategy for the development of the agricultural sector.

Keywords: Agricultural producers, integrated development, strategic planning, strategic planning process

Introduction

The sustainable development of agriculture is determined by many factors that make it possible to determine the goals, objectives and the future state of the industry in the region and the country as a whole. One of the factors of sustainable development of agriculture is strategic planning, which allows the agricultural sector not only to timely solve the problems that have arisen, but also to predict them and avoid them in the future.

The effective development of the agrarian sector ensures the dynamic development of the agro-industrial complex, an increase in the level of labor productivity and production profitability. In a modern economy, no process is possible without a well-functioning system of strategic planning, and agriculture is no exception.

For many years in the Russian regions a narrow-sectoral agrarian approach was used to develop the agricultural sector, which led to the fact that today we observe a low level of income of the rural population, rural areas are below the poverty line, young specialists do not associate their future with agriculture, destruction of labor and the genetic potential of the village. All of them together cause great damage to the development of agriculture.

As a result, there is a need for new changes aimed at solving issues in the field of sustainable agricultural development, which cannot be done without high-quality strategic planning. To ensure high-quality strategic planning for sustainable development of rural areas, it is necessary to concentrate efforts of agricultural producers, efforts and resources of the state, representatives of agricultural education, as well as to ensure the transition of the agricultural sector to sustainable development.

Problem Statement

The problems of agricultural development and sustainable strategic growth have been considered and are being considered by many scientists, among them Bautin et al., 2004; Bannikova (2007); Lichko et al. (2015); Nekhlanova and Tumanova (2012); Trukhachev, (2016); Ushachev et al. (2016) and others. Each of these authors in their own way defines the solution to the problems of strategic planning of agricultural sustainability, while many aspects require additional elaboration and new sustainable approaches. In the modern world, agriculture functions in a tough competitive environment.

Agricultural producers direct all their efforts towards solving the problem of survival and ensuring the continuity of development. Depending on the capabilities of the organization, these problems are solved in different ways. Most of the leaders of agricultural organizations carry out painstaking and time-consuming work to create and realize competitive advantages, which together allows them to reveal strategic planning. The possibilities of strategic planning are inorganic, which, when used effectively, can bring agriculture to a new level.

Research Questions

Strategic planning for sustainable agricultural development is a rather complex process, with the help of which the image of the future state of an organization is established and stages of achievement are based on the capabilities of the organization itself (Afanasyev, 2010). At the same time, despite the broad system of strategic planning, sustainable development methods are still being solved “as before”. For the development of strategic planning for the sustainable growth of agriculture in the region, it is necessary to create an effective system for the development of strategic plans for the development of agriculture, which allows agricultural producers to ensure a continuous process of functioning of the organization and the production of competitive products (Dareev, 2019).

The current state of agriculture in the Republic of Buryatia and strategic documents in the field of its development

Considering the main aspects of strategic planning of agricultural development, it is necessary to focus on economic development. Consider the development of agriculture in the Republic of Buryatia. Despite the fact that the share of agriculture in the structure of the gross regional product is small (9.5% in 2019), the industry plays an important role in the economy of Buryatia, since 32% of the republic's population lives in rural areas. However, unfavorable natural and climatic conditions in 2016-2019 again led to a significant change in the structure of agricultural production, since the shortage of crop production was accompanied by the slaughter of livestock not provided with fodder, and, consequently, an increase in crop production. All categories of agricultural producers are engaged in the production of agricultural products in the region.

At the same time, in the context of the categories of rural producers, a certain specialization has developed in the production of certain types of agricultural products (Timofeeva, 2019).

Municipalities within the region are complex territorial and sectoral formations, significantly differing from each other in terms of geographic location, natural and climatic conditions, population density, level of economic and social development and other parameters. Analysis of the dynamics of agricultural production in the context of regions shows that the highest growth rates of production volumes in 2016-2019 belongs to Zaigraevsky district (2.1 times), mainly due to the development of production activities of the pig breeding complex "East Siberian", and Kyakhtinsky district (32%).

The share of rural municipalities in the total volume of agricultural production varies considerably and depends on the climatic, soil and socio-economic conditions of specific regions. The leaders in agricultural production are the Zaigraevsky, Dzhidinsky, Bichursky, Mukhorshibirsky, Tarbagataisky and Kyakhtinsky districts. The level of development of crop and livestock industries in rural municipal areas of the republic can be judged by the size of the sown area and the number of farm animals.

Bichursky, Dzhidinsky, Kabansky, Kurumkansky, Kyakhtinsky, Mukhorshibirsky and Tarbagataisky districts are leaders in the share of sown areas in the total sown area in the republic. A significant increase in the size of sown areas for the period from 2016 to 2019 among these districts occurred only in Kurumkan district - by 58.8%. The Okinsky region, where the largest increase in the cultivated area took place - almost 3 times - on the contrary, is a high-mountain remote area with a harsh climate and, on average, for three years it has a share of 0.4% in the total cultivated area in the republic. In most regions, there has been a reduction in acreage, which in some regions is more than 50%.

One of the key indicators of the level of development of animal husbandry in the republic is the number of cattle. The increase in the number of cattle during the period under review took place in Bichursky, Ivolginsky, Kabansky, Kyakhtinsky, Muisky and Tunkinsky districts. In other districts, there is a decrease in the number of cattle. The maximum reduction in the number of cattle (by 26.1%) was noted in the Pribaikalsky region, and the maximum growth (by 8.5%) - in the Kyakhta region.

Most of the cattle livestock is concentrated in the Bichursky, Dzhidinsky, Yeravninsky, Zakamensky, Kyakhtinsky, Mukhorshibirsky and Tunkinsky districts, where 55.3% of the total cattle livestock in the republic are kept.

Livestock and poultry production is also developed unevenly across the regions of the republic. The largest share of livestock and poultry for slaughter was produced in the Zaigraevsky district - 21.2%, where the largest pig farm in the republic "East Siberian" is located. The share of livestock and poultry production for slaughter is more than 5% provided by Bichursky, Dzhidinsky, Zaigraevsky, Zakamensky, Mukhorshibirsky, Tarbagataisky and Tunkinsky districts. Together, the share of these areas is 58.3%.

The maximum increase in production volumes took place in the Zaigraevsky district due to the development of production activities at the East Siberian pig farm - 3.2 times. The maximum reduction in production volumes by 63.2% occurred in the Pribaikalsky region. A slight increase in milk production was noted only in three districts - Bichursky, Kizhinginsky and Mukhorshibirsky, in most districts there is a decrease in milk production, which is undoubtedly associated with droughts and a low level of feed supply in the industry in the analyzed period. The maximum reduction in milk production occurred in the Bauntovsky District (by 33.3%).

Egg production is mainly concentrated at OJSC Ulan-Ude Poultry Farm. On average for 2016-2019 in rural municipalities, 48.6% of the total egg production was produced. This direction of agricultural production is most developed in Bichursky, Dzhidinsky, Kyakhtinsky, Mukhorshibirsky, Selenginsky districts, which in total produced 18.1% of the total egg production. An increase in egg production over the period under review occurred in Selenga (3.2 times), Ivolginsky (2.5 times), Dzhidinsky (7.7%) and Kabansky (5.3%) regions. The decline in egg production occurred in twelve districts, the most significant - in Kizhinginsky (40%), Muisky (33.3%), Zaigraevsky (23.1%) districts.

Repeated droughts in the period under review resulted in a sharp decline in grain production in the country as a whole. The gross grain harvest in 2018 amounted to 19% of the 2015 level and only 4.7% of the 1990 level. The largest share of grain production falls on the Bichursky, Dzhidinsky, Kabansky, Kyakhtinsky, Mukhorshibirsky, Tarbagataisky districts, which in total produced 80.3%. These regions are traditionally leaders in grain production, as they occupy territories with more favorable soil and climatic conditions.

In potato production, the leading positions are taken by Bichursky, Zaigraevsky, Ivolginsky, Kabansky, Mukhorshibirsky, Pribaikalsky, Tarbagataisky districts. In total, 60.3% of the total volume of potato production was produced in these regions on average for the three analyzed years. An increase in production volumes in 2018 compared to 2015 occurred only in the Ivolginsky district, in the remaining rural municipalities there was a decrease in potato production in the range from 3.5 to 40% (Statistical collection, 2019).

An analysis of the development of agriculture in the Republic of Buryatia showed that there are undoubtedly problems in the agricultural sector. These include growing competition for the price and quality of agricultural products; the necessary investments in agriculture are too large, and agricultural producers are not able to independently provide the necessary financing; limited access to knowledge, development experience in other regions. Modern technologies are available only to large farms, leaders among other rural areas; overemphasis on capital-intensive investments in machinery and technology. Everything rests on the lack of funds for the development of rural areas, natural and climatic conditions, low land fertility. Basically, only the leaders in production are financed by the state. There are no subsidies for small agricultural organizations and rural areas (Makovkina, 2014). In general, studying strategic documents in the field of agriculture, it can be pointed out that in many programs the integrated development of agriculture is not traced, which limits the effective development of strategic plans for the development of the agricultural sector.

Analysis of strategic documents made it possible to determine the main principles of state regulation of agricultural development:

  • the principle of prioritizing support and regulation of the development of rural areas;
  • the principle of regulation of relations in the agricultural market;
  • the principle of federal and regional regulation based on the methodology of using program-targeted management and resource support;
  • the principle of financial support for potential regions (Gaponenko et al., 2012).
  • At the same time, these principles also indicate insufficient coverage of the issue of complex and territorial-spatial development of agriculture in strategic documents. We propose to supplement the existing ones with the following principles:
  • the principle of integrated development of rural areas;
  • the principle of a flexible approach to the agricultural sector.

The principle of the integrated development of rural areas is aimed at forming a set of measures aimed at creating a system for sustainable development of rural areas. The principle of a flexible approach to the agricultural sector is aimed at taking into account the specific features of the agricultural industry, the possibility of creating a flexible strategic plan.

These principles should be used in the development of strategic plans; the use of these principles in combination will allow the development of more effective strategic plans for sustainable agricultural development.

Recommendations for the development of strategic plans for sustainable agricultural development

For the agricultural sector to succeed, farmers need guidance on sustainability and how to best strategize and. Today, there are many stages in the process of developing strategic plans, each of them being more theoretical in nature. We propose a process for developing strategic plans for sustainable agricultural development, which, unlike the existing ones, takes into account the factors of integrated development, industry sustainability and natural and climatic characteristics of a particular rural area. In the system of strategic planning for the development of the agricultural sector, it is necessary to highlight the following stages of developing an effective strategic plan (Figure 1).

The process of developing strategic plans for sustainable agricultural development involves six stages. At the first stage, it is necessary to analyze and evaluate strategic documents in the field of agricultural development, to study modern and relevant regulatory legal acts that allow determining the possibilities of obtaining state support for the agricultural sector. The second stage - the socio-economic analysis of the development of the agricultural sector, involves an assessment of the current state of the development of agriculture. At each of these stages, it is necessary to take into account the principles of an integrated and flexible approach to the development of the agricultural sector. The next third stage is a strategic analysis of the agricultural sector. This stage also plays an important role in the process of developing an effective strategic plan for the development of agriculture, since the further strategy for the development of agriculture depends on the strategic analysis. Along with this, it is necessary to use well-known analytical methods of strategic analysis, which gives a good result when used together.

The fourth stage is aimed at choosing a strategy; the further development of the industry will depend on how correct the agricultural producer makes the choice. The choice of strategy will depend on the strategic analysis of the agricultural industry, on the direction of development of an agricultural enterprise and on the ability of an agricultural producer to make high-quality management decisions. The fifth and sixth stages are focused on the implementation and evaluation of the strategy (Galustov, 2014; Vorozheikina, 2011).

The proposed process for developing strategic plans for sustainable development of agriculture will allow agricultural producers to develop effective strategic plans for the development of the agricultural sector, in addition, it allows one to study the development of agriculture and determine the prospects for its growth, features of territorial development and, of course, the development strategy of the agricultural industry.

Figure 1: Process for developing strategic plans for sustainable agricultural development
Process for developing strategic plans for sustainable agricultural development
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Purpose of the Study

The purpose of the study is to develop recommendations for the development of strategic planning as a factor in sustainable agricultural development.

Research Methods

For the processing of primary information in the study, general scientific methods of synthesis and analysis were used; abstract-logical, economic and mathematical methods of economic research.

Findings

The analysis of the modern development of strategic planning in the field of agriculture is carried out. The socio-economic problems of the development of agriculture in the Republic of Buryatia have been studied. Recommendations on the process of strategic planning of agricultural development are offered.

Conclusion

Thus, the study has shown that there are many problems in the development of agriculture. At the same time, for the sustainable development of the agricultural sector, it is necessary to solve many problems. The existing strategic documents in the field of agricultural development need additional revision. Not all documents show specific features of rural development. The priority is mainly given to the state in rural areas, which are leaders both in production and in the level of development. Basically these are areas close to the capital of the republic. More remote territories, many of which are below the poverty line and generally on the brink of extinction, cannot qualify for state subsidies, since they do not have financial assets. In addition, in the strategic planning of agricultural development, the complexity of the development of the industry is not sufficiently traced. Since the creation of sustainable agricultural development requires huge funding, which cannot be fully provided by the state. Modern sustainable rural development should adhere to integrated development; the state should be interested in preserving endangered rural areas; only the attractiveness of the territory can solve the problems and human resources of the village and the problems of rural areas in general.

The recommendations we have formulated for improving the strategic planning of agricultural development make it possible, on the one hand, to take into account the principles of state regulation of agricultural development, which ensure both the complexity of the development of the agricultural sector and a flexible approach to the development of agriculture. Secondly, to show the need to control and evaluate strategic planning at all stages of the process. At the same time, one should not forget that even the most ideally developed strategic plan does not guarantee the achievement of the set goal. It is equally important that strategic management becomes part of the overall policy of the agricultural sector and agricultural producers realize the importance and necessity of correct implementation and evaluation of the strategy.

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Publication Date

01 July 2021

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978-1-80296-112-6

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European Publisher

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113

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Land economy, land planning, rural development, resource management, real estates, agricultural policies

Cite this article as:

Timofeeva, N. S., Dareev, G. E., Banieva, M. A., & Garmaeva, S. I. (2021). Strategic Planning As A Factor Of The Sustainable Agricultural Development. In D. S. Nardin, O. V. Stepanova, & V. V. Kuznetsova (Eds.), Land Economy and Rural Studies Essentials, vol 113. European Proceedings of Social and Behavioural Sciences (pp. 676-684). European Publisher. https://doi.org/10.15405/epsbs.2021.07.81