HISTORICAL CONTEXT OF AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT - Science for Agriculture and Rural Development in Low-income Countries - page 7

CHAPTER 2
HISTORICAL CONTEXT OF AGRICULTURAL
DEVELOPMENT
H. VAN KEULEN
Plant Production Systems Group, Plant Sciences, Wageningen University,
Plant Research International, Wageningen UR,
P.O. Box 430, 6700 AK Wageningen, The Netherlands
e-mail: [e-mail]
INTRODUCTION
Agricultural development during the last 50 years has been shaped by three
persistent forces of change: globalization, technology and people. Globalization is
the force that is increasingly shifting the focus from domestic to international
opportunities, as world markets become more accessible. Improved technologies
represent forces that are improving the ability to produce and deliver what consumers
want and people are exerting their influence, either directly as consumers, or
indirectly as custodians of the environment in which food and fibre products are
produced. These three forces do not act independently of course, but they interact.
Moreover, the relative importance of the three forces has varied, both, in the course
of time, and in different regions and/or countries. In this chapter, a broad overview
is given of global agricultural and rural developments since World War II (WWII),
the forces that shaped their dynamics and their interactions with society.
GLOBAL CHANGE AND AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT: THE PAST
Schematically three periods are distinguished, the period of reconstruction (1945-
1974), covering the immediate post-war period, with strong emphasis on food