Rural transport, accessibility and development

Be that as it may, the modernisation approach would then suggest that poverty could be tackled through interventions which improve access and mobility, either on their own or as part of wider, ‘integrated’ rural development programmes. This is precisely the rationale and justification for numerous investment programmes in rural regions of Third World countries since the 1960s. These have proved particularly attractive to bilateral and multilateral donor organisations because they are very visible and are felt to have relatively rapid and tangible benefits. In addition, road and rail schemes often provide opportunities for civil engineering and other contractors from donor countries and perhaps even export orders for transport equipment. Under such conditions, especially if the aid can be ‘tied’, a significant proportion of the total resources flow back to the donor country or countries, providing an increasingly important economic justification to governments for giving official development assistance in the first place.