Assessing Peasant Farmers’ Challenges for Achieving Sustainable Rural Development in Iran (Case study: Zanjan Province)

The peasant exploitation system is an undeniable fact in the rural economy of Iran. Many rural families’ incomes are based on this agricultural system. Despite many problems, peasant farmers are considered as the most important factor for achieving agricultural and rural developments due to their knowledge of the countryside and agriculture. In this research, we studied the problems and challenges of peasant farmers in Zanjan Province. This research was an applied one in terms of purpose and descriptive and analytical in nature. The data required for the research were collected by using a survey method (questionnaire, interview, and observation). The statistical population of this study included 40 villages from 8 cities with peasant cultivation. Finally, 340 questionnaires were randomly distributed among the rural households by using Cochran's formula and the exploratory factor analysis was used for analysis. Cronbach's alpha coefficient for the entire research questionnaire was obtained to be 873., which confirmed its overall reliability. The results of factor analysis showed that the 5 economic, managerial, infrastructure-environmental, social and local community factors were finally able to explain 66% of the variance of the rural farmers’ challenges. In the above-mentioned factors, farmers’ low incomes from cultivation (773.), lack of timely and appropriate government support of the farmers (715.), destruction and change of using orchards and agricultural lands (746.), the farmers’ lack of self-confidence and skills (695.), and low quality and dispersion of agricultural lands (609.) were the most important and influential challenges for the agricultural operators, respectively. Based on the results, it could be said that most of the challenges and rural problems in Zanjan Province could be solved with principled management and purposeful and practical planning.