A Study of Joining WTO and Agricultural Problems in Taiwan

Taiwan participated in the World Trade Organization (WTO) in early 2002. It was a significant policy achievement and socio-political change. This achievement and change might have great impact on many aspects of socio-economic affairs in general and on agriculture, farmers and farmers' associations in particular, due to importing large amounts of various kinds of foreign agricultural products on one hand and exporting domestic farming products on the other. From rural sociological study point of view, to study this particular impact is an important step to understand the whole effects of joining the WTO. The main purpose of the present study is to examine the farming operations, living difficulties and problems of the farmers as well as functional adjustment of the farmers' associations in Taiwan due to joining the WTO in early 2002. It is hoped that the study result can assist the farmers to reduce their problems and to assist the farmers' associations to adjust the function effectively for serving the farmers. Four more concrete objectives of the study are: (1) to examine the farmers' difficulties and problems on the farming operations and living conditions; (2) to find out the farmers' service needs toward the farmers' associations; (3) to investigate proper function adjustment of the farmers' associations for satisfying the farmers' needs; (4) to study government's accommodation policies, opinions and expectation of the farmers as well as the staffs of the farmers' associations toward the policies. Data of this study are collected through interviewing 152 farmers and 55 employees in the farmers' associations. These samples are equally distributed in six townships, which operate different kinds of major crops or other farming patterns respectively, but commonly affected deeply by joining the WTO.

並列關鍵字

agricultural problems ； farmers ； Taiwan ； WTO

國際替代計量

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