APPROACHES TO RURAL DEVELOPMENT IN TAIWAN (A CASE STUDY)

The purpose of this paper is not to inquire into the role of agricultural sector in the economic growth of Taiwan. That has been done by many in the past. Rather, the main purpose of this paper is to review and discuss a few institutional approaches to agricultural and rural development on Taiwan which are considered to have played more significant roles, viz. The Joint Commission on Rural Reconstruction, the Farmers' Associations, Land Reform Program, Research and Education and the Four Year Economic Plans. An attempt also will be made to identify the effects of these institutions on the socio-economic life of the people in the rural Taiwan. Agricultural and rural development has been a subject for study and discussion among those who have focused their attention and resources for the economic development of the emerging nations in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. There have been several attempts and approaches to the problem. There is a growing consensus among economists regarding the vital importance of agricultural and rural development in developing countries for the fact that many of these countries are predominantly rural and agricultural. Abundant is the literature dealing with developmental strategies for under-developed countries and the role of agriculture in total economic development. Still there is no satisfactory explanation of why some countries at one time or another have emerged into and sustained the cumulative growth process while others have failed. Japan has been, quite for some time, often quoted as an example of sustained economic growth for which its agricultural development strategy is considered to be a major factor. Another country which is fast approaching the level of Japan is its one-time colony, Taiwan