46 Finance & Development / September 1998 OVERTY is both more widespread and more persistent in the Philippines than in neighboring ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) countries. While the poverty rate has decreased in the Philippines over the past 25 years, the decline has been slower than in other ASEAN countries. Some of the blame for the Philippines’ slow progress in reducing th...

Australia is undoubtably a nation rich with opportunities, with extensive social and economic infrastructure, stable and responsible government, and abundant natural and developed resources. But Australia also faces some significant challenges, including reducing unacceptably high levels of unemployment, managing environmental concerns, and responding effectively to global competition and struc...

Policy reforms outside agriculture in the early 1990s accelerated growth in per capita incomes and food demand and also improved the terms of trade for the agriculture. Agricultural policies and institutions, traditionally focused on achieving food grain self sufficiency within a closed economy, have, however, been slow to adapt to a new environment of diversifying demand, more open markets, an...

In order to study the causes of weak agricultural base in China, the income gap between urban and rural residents, agriculture and the obvious insufficiency in agriculture, rural areas and farmers, we analyze focal and difficult points in the simultaneous development between Chinese industrialization, informatization, urbanization and agricultural modernization and seek for ways and strategies ...