Policy options for employment in the rural non-farm sector

Rural development is more than just expanding agricultural output and growth in real per capita agricultural income. In many developing countries, agriculture is not the sole sector - sometimes not even the dominant sector - for household employment and income in the rural sector. Non-agricultural activities in many developing countries often account for as much as 50 percent of rural employment and a similar percentage of household income. This distribution varies across countries and regions, with rural Africa considered to have the most diversified non-agricultural activities, followed by Latin America, East Asia, and finally, South Asia.