Agricultural Reforms

Abstract

As discussed in Chapter 1, agricultural growth was modest and the living standards of farmers stagnated for more than two decades before 1978 although national income grew rapidly and the production structure was greatly transformed. By contrast, economic reforms in the 1980s have resulted in rapid agricultural growth and vast improvements in the living standards of the whole rural population: per capita income and food production have increased steadily; the share of labour engaged in the traditional agricultural sector, especially crop production, has been substantially reduced; the production of non-food crops has experienced much higher growth; and rural industries have become the most important production and incomegenerating sector of the rural economy in most fast-growing regions, especially the coastal areas.