---
id: ch7-policy-landscape
type: spine
title: "The EU policy landscape for rural and urban areas"
readingTime: 3
standalone: true
core: true
teaser: "Cohesion Policy, the CAP, the Urban Agenda and the 2040 rural vision all reach the same village. PoliRural+ mapped 1,500 references to see how they fit."
voice: universal
parent: null
diagram: diagram-policy-cycle
recallQ: "Which main EU policy frames shape a rural-urban region, and what does the OECD say makes rural policy work?"
recallA: "Cohesion Policy (EUR 377.5 billion, five priorities, 2021–2027), the CAP (EUR 387 billion, 2021–2027), the Urban Agenda for the EU and the Long-Term Vision for Rural Areas with its Rural Action Plan and Rural Pact. The OECD Principles on Rural Policy group 11 principles under scale, strategy and stakeholders, including whole-of-government coordination and monitoring."
highlights:
  - "Cohesion Policy: EUR 377.5 billion for 2021–2027, five priorities from 'smarter' to 'closer to citizens'"
  - "CAP 2023–2027: EUR 387 billion for 2021–2027, ten objectives including vibrant rural areas"
  - "Long-Term Vision for Rural Areas: stronger, connected, resilient, prosperous rural areas by 2040"
  - "OECD: 11 rural policy principles under scale, strategy and stakeholders"
status: accepted
concept: eu-rural-policy
conceptTitle: "The EU rural policy landscape"
parents: rural-urban-linkages
lang: en
lens: generic
depth: standard
formalism: none
visuality: balanced
lengthBand: standard
genre: explainer
state: core
carriers: prose|table|diagram
---

A rural-urban region in the EU sits under several policy frames at once. PoliRural+ deliverable D2.2 recorded **1,500 references** on these policies in the project's domain knowledge database and summarised the main frames as follows.

| Frame | What it does | Scale (as given in D2.2) |
|---|---|---|
| **Cohesion Policy** | Reduces disparities between regions; five priorities: smarter, greener, more connected, more social Europe, and a Europe closer to citizens | EUR 377.5 billion, 2021–2027, focused on less developed regions |
| **Urban Agenda for the EU** | Pact of Amsterdam (2016): 12 priority areas for partnerships, from housing to digital transition | At least 6 % of the ERDF reserved for sustainable urban development |
| **Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)** | Farming and rural development through the EAGF and the EAFRD | EUR 387 billion, 2021–2027 |
| **Long-Term Vision for Rural Areas** | Stronger, connected, resilient and prosperous rural areas by 2040, delivered through a Rural Action Plan and a Rural Pact | Draws on all EU funds, CAP and Cohesion Policy first |
| **European Green Deal** | Climate neutrality by 2050, with a stated role for rural areas | Cross-cutting |

D2.2 adds further layers that pilots meet in practice: the Recovery and Resilience Facility (EUR 672.5 billion), the Digital Agenda, the Single Market Programme's support for social enterprises, Gender Action Plan III and the New European Bauhaus.

## Why the layers do not add up by themselves

Each frame has its own funds, rules and timetable. Cohesion Policy, for example, is tied to the European Semester, and the Commission may suspend regional funding to a Member State that breaks the EU's economic rules. Among its recommendations for pilots, D2.2 tells each one to **map the policies that affect it at local, regional and national level**, look for conflicts and synergies, and set up a policy working group to push for coherence between urban and rural policy.

## What the OECD adds

Annex F of D2.2 uses the **OECD Principles on Rural Policy**: 11 principles in three groups.

- **Scale**: unlock the potential of different rural areas, act at the right geographic scale, cooperate across the rural-urban divide.
- **Strategy**: a forward-looking vision, harnessing globalisation and digitalisation, entrepreneurship, public services matched to rural needs, resilience.
- **Stakeholders**: a **whole-of-government approach** that breaks departmental silos, inclusive engagement, and monitoring, evaluation and accountability.

These principles explain how the project works. Its pilots build [regional action plans](#c/regional-action-plan) with stakeholders, plan for [rural-urban linkages](#c/rural-urban-linkages) rather than for rural areas alone, and back their measures with indicators. The next blocks look at the CAP up close, then at the [2040 rural vision](#c/long-term-rural-vision), which is now the common reference point for all of these frames.

**Sources:**
- D2.2 Rural-urban linkages and opportunities post COVID-19, §2 EU Policy Landscape, §2.1, §2.6; Annex H §1–3; Annex F OECD Principles on Rural Policy. [PDF](https://www.poliruralplus.eu/docs/140/Attachment_0_57.pdf)