POVERTY REDUCTION AS A FACTOR OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF RURAL AREAS IN THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA

Poverty is a multi-dimensional phenomenon that, in addition to insufficient income to meet the subsistence needs of the population, also involves difficult access to labor market, inadequate housing, inadequate access to cultural and educational institutions, social protection and health care institutions, utility services, as well as inability to access important institutions and participate in decision making processes. Being a largely rural phenomenon, poverty is the result of inadequate management of rural development, which results in long term stagnation of rural communities' well-being. The subject of this paper is poverty in rural areas, while its main goal is to identify the most common causes that significantly impair quality of life and motivation of people to stay in their villages. Given the level of development of a country and regional disparities, the paper analyzes the structure of household income, looks at the demographic and socio-economic characteristics and presents the data on absolute poverty in rural areas of the Republic of Serbia. Based on the research results, the paper suggests measures that should be implemented in order to reduce rural poverty.