ABSTRACT
The studied communities have experienced important physical and socioeconomic transformations. Easy access from urban to rural areas has played an essential role in this process as well as in local socioeconomic development. Among the most important such changes are the diversification of rural economic structures towards the increased rate of non-agricultural employment and income. Some of the studied communities are strongly linked to the urban areas, not only in terms of flow of labour but also of commodities. Traders of Kembang, for instance, sell agricultural products such as bananas, banana leaves, jack fruit, coconuts, and cassava to Yogyakarta regularly. Pick-ups rented by these traders regularly enter Yogyakarta in the evening so as to avoid traffic congestion. These products are sold in the market directly to the urban consumers or to retail traders. Growing regional integration, in particular in the Yogyakarta Special Region (DIY), bears a considerable impact on rural development at the local level.
