Socio-Economic Polarization of Rural Areas in Russia

The article presents the results following the clustering of Russian rural regions according to socio-demographic and economic criteria by K-average method. We have identified factors for the regional polarization of the agro-food complex. The paper shows that rural areas in Russia are polarized due to climatic, geographic, ethnic, and economic factors that define the potential for rural development. Economic clustering of regions is based on the amount of investment, performance and profitability of agriculture, as well as on the structure by the nature of households. The potential for the development of regions has a substantial socio-economic character. The article demonstrates that the development of human potential and rural development are interrelated and interdependent. The map illustrates how the identified clusters are located in terms of geography. The database of the research comprises statistics and materials of special selected studies carried out by the state statistical agencies of the Russian Federation. The results of our analysis may be of benefit to the executive authorities when designing programs for socio-economic development of rural areas and validating strategies for the reindustrialization of agro-industry.