Introduction

Peru is an important country in the discussion of agrarian reform. In the case of rice, a major rice-producing area such as Lam-bayeque in agrarian zone II in Northern Peru, the area sown with rice has undergone wide fluctuations since the thirties. The size of Peru made many believe that there were large untapped resources available for development. Concurrently Peru was rapidly being transformed from a predominantly rural country, with its population concentrated in the Sierra, to an urban society with a major shift of the population to the Coast. Peruvian agriculture was thus characterised by oligarchic land ownership and limited opportunities for expansion of cultivated surface due to natural barriers. The Peruvian experience is unique, when compared with the agrarian reforms of Latin American countries, such as Mexico, Bolivia, Cuba and Chile. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.