Rural development means the development of the villagers/villages. Bangladesh is a land of villages and around 70% of the people lives in village areas. So, prosperity of the country depends on the welfare of the villages not only the urban development. We should give more attention to the people of the remote areas, their lives and activities. Rural development is synonymous as agricultural development.  Although agricultural development constitutes a major part of it, rural development is a much broader process which aims at the development of rural economy as a whole. Farmers are the hub of this economy. So, we must improve their lot by rural development studies and research.

The Department of Rural Development was established in 2012 at the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University (BSMRAU) under the faculty of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development. The department offers a variety of courses for the students of Bachelor of Science (BS), Master of Science (MS) and PhD Degree.