 Modernization and underemployment in a dual agrarian sector: The case of Brazil (1950–1980)Joao Paulo A. de Souza Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, 2024, vol. 71, issue C, 444-464 Abstract: This paper presents a case study of employment trends in Brazilian agriculture between 1950 and 1980. Using primary data, I document the displacement of workers from large and mid-sized establishments and the expansion of self-employment in an increasingly fragmented smallholding sector. I compute novel measures of rural population and find significant corresponding trends in employment-to-population ratios, thus contributing new evidence of the persistence of rural underemployment in a period of fast industrialization and growth. I conclude by examining the main rural development policies adopted in the period within a coherent framework for understanding the adoption of technical innovations. I argue, in particular, that the State concentrated price and credit subsidies on large and mid-sized producers and neglected investments in research, extension, and rural infrastructure. This policy mix interacted with Brazil’s dual agrarian structure and enhanced the incentives for the adoption of labor-saving innovations. Keywords: Rural employment; Land ownership and tenure; Technical change (search for similar items in EconPapers) Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:streco:v:71:y:2024:i:c:p:444-464 DOI: 10.1016/j.strueco.2024.07.010 Access Statistics for this article Structural Change and Economic Dynamics is currently edited by F. Duchin, H. Hagemann, M. Landesmann, R. Scazzieri, A. Steenge and B. Verspagen More articles in Structural Change and Economic Dynamics from Elsevier |
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