Agrarian sustainability in Bulgaria – evaluating economic, social and ecological pillars

Bachev, Hrabrin and Ivanov, Bojidar and Toteva, Dessislava and Sokolova, Emilia (2021): Agrarian sustainability in Bulgaria – evaluating economic, social and ecological pillars.

Abstract

Sustainable development has become a major topic not only for economic science but in economic policy development. There is substantial literature dedicated to analyzing the different aspects of sustainability - economic, social and/or ecological. Agriculture has been recognized as one of the economic fields that has a multidimensional impact not only on the incomes and well-being of the employed but also on the rural population as a whole and the environment. This article presents a holistic approach for assessing agrarian sustainability in Bulgaria based on its economic, social and ecological aspects on sectoral macro-level. It is based on official statistical and other information as well as on expert evaluation. Our study has found that Bulgarian agriculture on the macro-level has good sustainability. Some of the sustainability aspects have higher levels (e.g. the economic aspect) while others (social and environmental) are inferior. Study results could help in focusing the political efforts, so that agrarian sustainability, in its social and ecological aspect, could be increased. However, a further research is needed to evaluate the level of sustainability at the micro-level, so that the major issues and problem areas are addressed accordingly.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: agrarian sustainability, sustainability indicators, economic, social, ecological aspects, Bulgarian agriculture
• Subjects: Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q1 - Agriculture; Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q1 - Agriculture > Q15 - Land Ownership and Tenure ; Land Reform ; Land Use ; Irrigation ; Agriculture and Environment; Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q1 - Agriculture > Q18 - Agricultural Policy ; Food Policy; Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q5 - Environmental Economics

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