ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the sources of inter-country variations in productivitgy and growth rates of total agricultural output and food production, with special emphasis on technological change. It also discusses why in a few countries sustained agricultural growth has taken place, why and where it has not, and the different degrees of distributive equity which the patterns of growth have produced. The chapter focuses on the countries' varied investment rates in technological change and the resulting contribution to agricultural growth. It examines the effects which the fragmentation of farm size have on food production, and addresses the question: are Islamic principles of inheritance to blame. The chapter also examines the variations in land concentration, poverty levels and quality of life, relating them to agricultural growth. In the inter-country comparison the assessment of rural development performance is two-dimensional with distributive equity and agricultural output growth occupying the central concern.
