Rural Development in Central America: Markets, Livelihoods and Local Governance by Ruerd Ruben
Rural development, nowadays, is considered almost synonymous with involvement in market exchange. When market and institutional failures prevail, however, rural communities increasingly rely on local institutional or contractual arrangements to guarantee their livelihoods. This book offers a comprehensive review of the debate on the importance of real markets in the Central American rural development process. The contributions address the performance of agrarian commodity markets, the structure of rural land and financial markets, and the dynamics of rural labour markets.