The Balkan Rural Development Network (BRDN) was established on March 04, 2011 in Skopje, by the Network for Rural Development of the Republic of Serbia, Rural Development Network of the Republic of Macedonia and Rural Development Network of the Republic of Montenegro, based on the Declaration of Networking signed at the Regional Participatory Planning Workshop on “Establishment of rural development networks in SEE countries”. The need for establishing the organisation was recognised by the constituent organisations, and was supported by the Regional Rural Development Standing Working Group (SWG) in South Eastern Europe.

The existing Statute of BRDN was developed and signed by the original constituent members, and was latter accepted by the rest of the member organisations of BRDN:

• Albanian Network for Rural Development – ANRD;
• Rural development network in Bosnia and Herzegovina – MRRBiH;
• Croatian network for rural development – HMRR;
• Network of organizations for rural development of Kosovo – NORDK.

Ever since its establishment, BRDN acts as an informal association of a civil society rural development networks.

The member organisations are all established in the SEE region, and are themselves member organisations, which represent national rural communities’ interests and rights, and act for rural development. The BRDN member organisations represent more than 200 rural development associations from the region, and advocate for the interests of more than 9 million rural people from the represented countries.