Page 105 - Azerbaijan State University of Economics
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Saulė Augaitytė: Sustainability aspect of economic development
Beyond direct subisidies, agriculture is often exempted from measures applied in other
sectors to address environmental damage, despite being a major contributor to these same
problems. Organic farming would be a partial solution as it helps to solve the basic problems in
the countryside. It is based on modern, environmentally friendly technologies. The economic
goals of organic farming are the following:
to maintain density of populated territories;
to provide citizens with high quality food products;
to diversify farming activity;
to apply preventive measures for social crisis;
to create new jobs;
to enhance the market.
Sustainable farming must seek for profitability (income guarantee), social (economic
justice for current generation and between different generations) and ecological (environmentally
friendly approach) cohesion. All participants of this system are responsible for sustainable
agriculture –from farmers through producer and institutions to consumers.
4. Key challenges for sustainable economic development
The world’s centre of economic gravity is changing and developing economies are among
the key drivers of global economic growth. There is a growing diversity of growth and
development models which underscores that there are no one-size-fits-all solutions.
The nature of development financing is also changing. Many developing economies are
becoming important actors in international finance, trade, investment, innovation and
development cooperation, and are contributing to changing the architecture of development co-
operation.
Changing geography and nature of poverty raises important questions for traditional
approaches to development. A growing proportion of the world’s poor live in middle income
countries and urban areas today than in low-income countries and in rural areas. This highlights
the important role of institutions and policies overall in those countries, and the need to
continuously improve policy making and implementation to address these persistent challenges.
Inequality is an increasing challenge in advanced and developing economies alike,
potentially undermining further growth and social cohesion. It has become clear that the benefits
of growth do not automatically trickle down and generate more equal societies. It will be
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