ABSTRACT
Greece is one of the relatively developed countries still facing crucial structural deficiencies. Policies for the development of Greek rural areas must cater for making agriculture more competitive as well as developing other aspects of the countryside. Rural areas in Greece are far from homogenous. Various theoretical approaches have been advanced in the search for explanations of the weak performance of the Greek economy. The prefecture of Kilkis is located in Northern Greece, close to Thessaloniki and the border with FYROM. The degree of attachment of the rural population to their exact place of origin is generally extremely high, since 79.4% of all respondents in Lesvos and 65% in Kilkis continue to live in their place of birth. Regarding the problems and benefits encountered during the start-up period and how these depend on the characteristics of the rural environment, it appears that entrepreneurs from Lesvos have a much clearer conceptualization of the situation, than their Kilkis counterparts.
