Sustainable rural development policies to Uruguayan family farming in the face of covid-19

Abstract

The article aims to review public policies for sustainable rural development for Uruguayan family farming in two particular moments: consolidated (contemporary) and under discussion (primordial) policies, in addition to policies that emerged as a result of the covid-19 (ephemeral). For this, official data and cross-sectional readings were used in academic publications. In contemporary policies stand out the norms of agriculture, microcredit, public purchases, harmlessness, gender, young people, technical assistance, decentralization of policies, valorization of production, emergency and development fund; in primordial policies, food and nutrition security, school feeding, agroecology, agriculture stamp and gender equity; and in ephemeral policies, the Covid-19 Solidarity Fund, We Are With You and the Solidarity Camp Project. Uruguay has been building solid policies for rural families, however, during the health emergency there was no institutional innovation. The trajectory of the policies is relevant to living with the covid-19, meantime the pandemic provided a “conceptual window of opportunity”, explained by the exploration of the productive potential, conservation of natural resources, consumption of natural foods and commercialization in short circuits, enhancing the circular economy. The sustainable rural development of family farming is an irreversible and indispensable path... Let's get on with it.