Rural Development Policies and Mountain Areas: The 2014/2020 Rural Development Program in Alto Molise

Most of the SNAI Inner Areas are located in mountainous environments, characterised by economies based on primary production, worrying depopulation phenomena and remoteness from essential services. Rural development policies have not always been decisive and many mountain areas continue to face these challenges. In Molise, also because of its territorial conformation, 80% of the municipalities are located in a SNAI Inner Area. Considering the Inner Area Alto e Medio Sannio (AMS), an exploratory analysis was conducted on the outcomes of participation to the area-based and investment measures of the RDP-Molise. This study sheds light on the ineffectiveness of rural development policies in these vulnerable contexts: it seems that heightened involvement in measure 13 predominantly leads to the preservation of the status quo, rather than fostering alternative proactive initiatives, like transition to organic agriculture or facilitating the emergence of young entrepreneurs. These could contribute more significantly to the mitigation of the negative effects of depopulation. Such an approach is fundamental not only to guide the post-crisis recovery, but above all to support territories in identifying and valorising the elements that can favour the creation of a long-term resilience strategy.