Commitment to the EU Rural Pact – Ministry for Regional and Rural Development of Hungary

Public authorities across Europe are increasingly demonstrating political leadership and long-term commitment to strengthening rural areas through the Rural Pact.

As part of this growing community, the Ministry for Regional and Rural Development of Hungary has formalised its engagement by submitting a national political commitment to the Pact. This commitment aligns Hungary with the shared goals of the EU rural vision.

Committed actions

In its signed commitment, the Ministry for Regional and Rural Development of Hungary pledges to advance rural development through the following seven concrete lines of action:

Strengthening stakeholder engagement with rural communities: the Ministry will establish structured dialogue with rural stakeholders through a national Rural Pact framework, including regular consultations, an annual conference involving rural communities, and formal mechanisms to inform the development and implementation of the government's rural development strategy and vision.
Ensuring dedicated governance for rural issues across policies: a dedicated Ministry for Regional and Rural Development and a Ministerial Commissioner for EU Rural Development Planning and Coordination will strengthen cross-government cooperation, promote policy coherence and coordinate with Hungary's Rural Pact.
Building capacity and supporting networking: working with the Rural Development Unit of the national CAP Network, the Ministry will strengthen networking, knowledge exchange and capacity building for a broad range of rural stakeholders, while supporting LEADER, Smart Villages and other community-led approaches.
Implementing a long-term, integrated rural development strategy: the Ministry will develop the St. Stephen Programme (Szent István Program) as a holistic framework for rural development, addressing economic development, services, infrastructure, housing, mobility, healthcare, culture and community development while empowering local communities to shape local priorities.
Introducing rural proofing and strengthening the evidence base: the Ministry will introduce rural proofing within the government's rural policy framework and build on existing territorial information systems to support the planning, monitoring and evaluation of rural policies.
Strengthening coordination across governance levels: the Ministry will promote coordination between national, regional and local actors through the national Rural Pact framework and other consultation mechanisms, fostering cooperation between public authorities, civil society, businesses and rural communities.
Coordinating funding and improving access to support: the Ministry will strengthen synergies between the cohesion and common agricultural policies and national funding programmes, coordinate the post-2027 National and Regional Partnership Plan, and develop one-stop-shop support mechanisms, building on the expertise of LEADER Local Action Groups, to improve access to funding for rural communities.

Commitment signing and acknowledgement

The commitment was officially signed by Dr Mátyás Szabó, State Secretary of Regional and Rural Development, on 14 August 2026 in Brussels, Belgium.

Public authorities’ commitments to the Rural Pact

Commitments by public authorities are voluntary actions intended to implement some of the elements identified as key to achieving the objectives of the Rural Pact at national and regional levels, such as strengthened governance, funding coordination, rural proofing and stakeholder engagement.

They help ensure that the ten shared goals of the EU rural vision guide policies across all levels of government.

All public authorities’ commitments to the Rural Pact Submission process for public authorities