The OECD Principles on Rural Policy are designed to harness the potential of rural areas in the face of globalisation, trade, and digitalisation. They highlight the importance of nurturing entrepreneurship to stimulate job creation and strengthen resilience in these regions. Coupled with economic development strategies tailored to local conditions that focus on and enhance place-based assets, these principles could promote the growth of recreation, amenity-driven, and service-oriented economies in rural settings. Establishing a framework for economic resilience in rural areas enhances the ability to manage and adapt to unforeseen disruptions, turning these challenges into opportunities for innovation.

The Principles recognise that rural development policies are an effective means of achieving solutions to economic, social and environmental problems. They can better integrate policies, programmes and initiatives that target rural regions and strengthen the competitiveness and resilience of rural areas by embracing rural proofing. Moreover, well-designed rural development policies can raise rural and national well-being by supporting communities to adapt to structural reform in the various sectors when needed.