RURAL POVERTY AND THE STRUCTURE OF FARM HOUSEHOLD INCOME IN DEVELOPING-COUNTRIES - EVIDENCE FROM TAIWAN

Severe inequality in the distribution of land was eliminated as a major source of income inequality in rural Taiwan by land reform after 1945. The resulting small size of farms, however, did not inhibit the growth of productivity. Moreover, the sources of such growth - new seed varieties, chemical fertilizer, credit, mechanization - were generally available through through an effective network of farmer associations. Indeed, the small family farm structure in Taiwan seems to have been conducive to both high productivity and relative equality in the distribution of returns. -B.W.Beeley