Trends and Policy Challenges in the Rural Economy: Four Provincial Case Studies
by ALIBER, M. DE SWARDT, C., DU TOIT, A., MBHELA, T. & MTHETHWA, T., 2005Cape Town: HSRC Press
“There are indications of deepening rural poverty since 1994, despite many policies and initiatives that aim to stimulate the rural economy. The trends affecting the rural economy are not understood with sufficient clarity to enable government to formulate an adequate response. National datasets alone are not sufficient to depict these trends; there is a need to amalgamate and generalise across case studies. Aliber et al explore the challenges to rural development and identifies the potency and/or limitations of existing interventions. Areas of complementarity and contradiction between government initiatives are also identified. The research is based on four provincial case studies, drawn from Limpopo, Western Cape, Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal, and focuses on four aspects or ‘sectors’ within the rural economy: • The commercial agriculture sector, in particular its ability to absorb labour • The subsistence or small-scale agricultural sector, particularly within former homeland areas • Non-farming micro-enterprise sector in rural areas, whether in former homeland areas or elsewhere • Government projects, with an emphasis on group-based projects, whether past or present. “
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