Recent findings about agriculture and the economic transformation

Rapid agricultural growth causes substantial increase in the rural non-farm expenditure on the rural non-farm sector that eventually increases the rate of growth of market towns and hence a dispersing of urbanization away from the small number of large urban centers. That effect is greater for low income countries than middle income countries. Thus, the effect in low income countries sets the stage for longer term dispersion of urbanization. Rapid agricultural growth is the major cause of poverty decline in both low and middle income countries. The impact is greatest when it starts as a low income country and continues in middle income status. One of the down sides to modernization of agriculture is the common exclusion of women, including farmer s wife s, from reedy access to the new information require to take advantage of income increasing technological change in agriculture. The problem is easily solved by making extension demonstration the core of information spread and ensuring participation of farmer s wife s ae well as female headed farm households. That inclusion then facilitates women playing a major leadership role on the institutions of modernization such as rural cooperatives. Acknowledgement