Introduction

Abstract

The purpose of the conference reported in this book was to throw light on what is arguably the greatest problem of the less developed world, and particularly of the less developed countries of Asia. In many of them there is a large traditional sector that, with present birth and death rates, tends to grow or at best to decline very slowly. A considerable proportion of those in this traditional sector fall below the lowest conceivable poverty line. The development policies of the past twenty years would appear to have failed to create employment for them, and the abundant labour supplies — the greatest potential asset of most of these countries — have remained very far from employed.