Institute of Sociology of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic

This article aims to contribute to the empirical understanding of Czech rural development strategies by means of a critical analysis of the initial definition and formulation, the subsequent policy measures and the final geographical application of the Czech government’s strategic documents and policies. It takes as a case study policies of human resources development in rural areas co-financed by EU economic and social cohesion policies for 2004-2006. The analysis finds significant deficiencies and inconsistencies in all three stages, indicating a low degree of goal-orientedness, adequacy and effectiveness of this seemingly well-structured scheme.