Abstract

Rural territorial development emerged as an evolution of regional economics and local development, emphasizing strategies adapted to the specific characteristics of each territory. Chile's National Rural Development Policy, enacted in 2020, aligned with this perspective. In 2021, three pilot projects were implemented to develop regional versions of the National Rural Development Policy, including one in the Atacama Region, which is the case study of this research. The purpose was to examine the dynamics and outcomes of translating a national policy framework, based on the contextual approach of the rural territorial development, to a specific territorial scale. The methodology comprised the collection of field information to conduct a gap analysis and the formulation of a regional public policy proposal. The findings underscored the benefits of the rural territorial development approach in understanding the complexity of rural territories, while revealing challenges to its effective application.