THE concept of rural development has undergone a metamorphosis during the last three decades as the focus has now shifted from agricultural production to the wider idea of inclusive rural development.

This encompasses the social, economic and political dimensions of human development.

Until the 1970s, rural development was considered synonymous with agricultural development through enhanced productivity. In the 1980s, the World Bank, however, defined rural development as a strategy designed to improve the economic and social life of a specific group of people — the rural people.

Several factors were responsible for this paradigm shift. First of all, concerns regarding the persistence of widespread poverty increased during the last few decades. It was realised that the spread of poverty was predominant in the rural hinterland, despite the dazzling performance of the agricultural sector in certain countries due to the green revolution. Much of the benefits of the green revolution accrued to the non-poor farmers in irrigated areas.

Moreover, views on the meaning of development were also seriously questioned by economists during this period, resulting in the dethronement of GDP as a measure of development. The concept of inclusive rural development is fundamentally different from the traditional concept in the sense that improvements in indicators like growth, income and output are not sufficient for it. Rather, changes in the quality of life, which essentially include improvement in health, nutrition, education and reduction in gender and income inequalities, are the indicators which define inclusive rural development.

There is universal consensus today that the ultimate objective of rural development is to improve the quality of life of the rural people. More specifically, inclusive rural development covers three different but interrelated dimensions, that is, economic, social and political.

Going by the Pakistani pattern of rural development, it appears that the focus has been on the agricultural sector, with the result that the vast majority of the rural poor has not remained the target of the government strategies adopted for rural development. The prevalence of a high degree of landlessness and the monopoly of a small minority over factors of production like land and water further reduced the effectiveness of such policies. Thus their outcome has enhanced the incomes of big landlords at the cost of small farmers, tenants and people associated with the non-farm rural economy. Infrastructural development has also gone in their favour by way of appreciation in the value of their lands.

The social dimension of inclusive rural development requires that social development of the poor and low-income households should occur through the narrowing down of inequalities in social indicators, promoting gender equality and providing social safety nets for the most vulnerable groups of rural society.

The majority of the rural people in Pakistan, comprising small farmers, landless tenants and daily wage workers, are socially ex

cluded. Poverty levels continue to be much higher in rural areas as compared to urban ones. According to an estimate, rural poverty was 41.6 per cent in 2001, while it was 26.4 per cent in urban areas of the country that year.

Educational facilities are deficient in most villages and almost non-existent for girls in far-flung areas. Educational attainment levels and health indicators of the rural population are much lower than those of the urban population due to urban-biased policies adopted in the past. Large gaps exist in primary school completion rates between the rural and the urban populations. The poor quality of education and health has further accentuated rural-urban disparities. The state of public institutions providing these services in rural areas is generally poor. Additionally, the lack of qualified staff and high rates of absenteeism aggravate the problem.

Women who contribute to the rural economy in large measure are excluded from social mainstreaming. They are merely 'invisible farmers' whose contribution to the rural economy is not captured in any account of the state whatsoever. The prevalence of anti-women traditions like karo kari, swara etc., is a reflection on their sad plight.

Without delving deep into the reasons for the fragile political system of Pakistan, it is to be noted that continuity in local government institutions has historically been missing, with the result that these institutions have failed to empower the rural populace. Of late, there has been the introduction of a devolution plan meant to devolve power to the grassroots, with a view to empowering people. However, the perception remains that rather than spreading power, the new local government system has been instrumental in creating political fiefdoms with power getting more concentrated in the same old hands.

It has been a case of old wine in a new bottle. International experience suggests that a high growth rate is not sufficient for inclusive rural development. Economic growth does not lead to automatic improvements in social indicators of the poor and low-income households, particularly those headed by women in countries where social inequalities are higher. Empirical studies on the growth elasticity of poverty have shown that the impact of economic growth on poverty is higher when human capital is better developed. It is lower when the levels of income inequalities are greater.

Effective land reforms, the development of rural infrastructure, growth of effective institutions, rural financial services and focus on rural non-farm enterprises are considered the major drivers of inclusive rural development. High concentration of land ownership has been a major stumbling block in the way of rural economic growth and poverty reduction in Pakistan.

Owing to the absence of a congenial environment, the growth of community-based rural institutions is almost non-existent. This factor has hindered the growth of 'rural civil society'. Thus there is a need for effective state-led intervention to encourage the growth of rural institutions like water users' associations, dairy cooperative networks, farmers' cooperatives and producers' associations, as these community-based organisations may emerge as potent drivers for inclusive rural development.

Concrete steps are required for the provision of rural financial services, as improved access to credit, deposit and insurance services will boost broad-based rural development and reduce income inequalities. Such measures will go a long way in creating opportunities for the rural poor to gainfully employ themselves and improve their standard of life.

Besides this, it is also imperative to increase the ability of poor households to enable them to take full advantage of these opportunities through improved access to quality education, health facilities, local financial institutions and community-based local institutions. Inclusive rural development is an outcome of conscious policies and actions, which require a coherent strategy for rural development at the national level.