Rural policy-making came under increasing pressure during 1990 and 1991 as a rural downturn rivalling the 1982-83 drought eroded farm incomes. International trade reform was stalled, the government procrastinated during the wool crisis and continued to be tardy in delivering the benefits of...

An emphasis on the public provision of health and education in Thailand assisted both sectors to make a substantial contribution to the consistently high growth rates achieved during the 1980s. However, a review of development goals is opportune. Three types of reform are recommended: (a)...

Discussion of rural poverty has tended to emphasise farm poverty at the expense of rural urban poverty. There are serious problems in measuring the former but the evidence suggests that there is a sizeable group of chronically poor farm people. Only the Rural Adjustment Scheme appears to have...