The links between urban and rural development

The theme of this issue, rural-urban interactions, is increasingly recognized as central in processes fo social, economic and cultureal change in both cities and countryside. Despite this renewed interest, however, impirical studies of the scale and nature of the interactions between rural and urban areas still have a relatively limited impact on development policy and practice. ~Spatial policies such as regional devleopment planning have traditionally been the tools used by policy makers int eh South in their attempt to encourage a 'better balance' between cities and countryside and to reduce migration pressures on large urban centres. Sectoral strategies give a high priority to agriculture and rural development, on the asumption that that this will help address rural poverty and that the benefits will be concentrated in the regions or rural areas to which these programmes are directed. In many instances however this has not been the case, and the main beneficiaries often have been large farmers and wealthy or well-connected businesses. Meanwhile, the goods and services required by the new economic activies stimulated by these policies often draw from businesses located outside the regional boundaries, and rising incomes are often spent or invested elsewhere.