From Comprehensive Agricultural Policy to Specialized Agricultural Policy:the Impact of Paradigm Shift of Japan's Agricultural Policy on Peasants'Income
Any country in the process of modernization has to face a problem of unbalanced industrial de-velopment,that is,how to raise the status of agriculture and peasants in the modern industrial system.As a reference for China's rural modernization,Japan's rural areas were also once in poverty after World War II.However,after two decades,the income of Japanese peasants was generally consistent with that of ur-ban residents.As for the reasons,Japan's Basic Law for Agriculture established a system of"Comprehen-sive Agricultural Policy",and formulated a full range of policies on rural development,agricultural pro-tection,and income support around the core objective of ensuring the bottom line of peasants'income,which means protecting agriculture with the power of the state.However,the strong protection of agricul-ture and peasants'income has also led to the problem of decreased rural vitality.In recent years,the global competition for agriculture and food has intensified,forcing the Japanese rural areas and peasants to be more active in coping with the new trends,such as the marketization and commercialization of agricul-tural products.Under such circumstances,the"Specialized Agricultural Policy"system,based on the Basic Law for Food,Agriculture,and Rural Affairs,reduced agricultural subsidies and emphasized the aim of specialization,marketization,and diversification of agricultural products.Such a paradigm shift in Japan's agricultural policy has brought valuable experience to the transformation of agricultural policy in East Asia.The Comprehensive Agricultural Policy system built up the foundations for peasants to increase their incomes,as well as the social value of rather being"hard-up"than"poverty-stricken".In contrast,in the context of the rising neoliberalism and the globalization of the food and agriculture sector,the Spe-cialized Agricultural Policy system was proved to be more effective in supporting the competitiveness of ag-ricultural products.
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