Aspects for Assessment of Sustainable Rural Development in Latvia

The research aim is to identify and to systemise into a unified system the main criteria for the assessment of sustainable rural development in Latvia. It is necessary for the achievement of complete awareness of the opportunities for improvement rural competitiveness as well as attractiveness and economic importance. The research hypothesis – rural development assessment is a strategically important tool for the prevention degradation of human settlements in rural areas, for the strengthening and improvement of the existing socio-economic potential of the rural areas as well as for the management of rural infrastructure. Sustainable development in the scientific paper is considered as a continuous process to reach sustainability on a global level. In order for this transition to take place, human societies need to deal with new complex problems demanding the adoption of new principles, new ways of thinking and new tools. This challenge will have to be met by all levels of society, including organisations such as government bodies and private companies. The authors present a model for diagnosing rural development based on a set of different criteria. The developed model could be applied for the socio-economic and spatial planning of rural areas in the context of sustainable development. It will provide the planning and implementation of scientifically based rural management policy oriented on the sustainable development