ABSTRACT
Since the 1950s, most governments in Southeast Asia have implemented policies which are intended to increase incomes and improve living standards for their populations. Because in the 1950s and 1960s, the great majority of the populations across the region derived most of their income from agricultural activities, the agricultural sector was often given priority in development plans. In some countries, especially those which had inherited a skewed pattern of land distribution from the colonial era, it was argued that land reform should be a crucial component of agricultural policy. Where rural population densities were already high, and extending the cultivation frontier was no longer possible, settling surplus rural populations in less densely settled areas also became a focus of government policy. In addition, the importance of providing rural non-farm employment (RNFE) was recognized. This could be done by government through employment on labour-intensive public works projects; following models developed in South Asia, a number of programmes were initiated in various parts of Southeast Asia.
