We study Taiwan’s history of global transformation in the 1950s, which has long been seen as central to its growth miracle. Phase II of the reforms—which redistributed Japan’s former public lands—reduced living space, increased rice yields, and increased the share of labor in agriculture. In contrast, phase III—which reduced employment by demolishing large tracts of land—did not increase agricultural productivity and pushed workers (especially, female workers) out of agriculture and into manufacturing. Stage II is likely to increase yields by removing crop selection constraints, while stage III is likely to make farms too small to be economically sustainable. However, phase II can still explain about one-sixth of the growth in rice yields in the 1950s. These results challenge the long-held view that land reform was the main cause of Taiwan’s economic departure, and highlight the diverse effects of different types of land redistribution.
Here is the full paper by Oliver Kim and Jen-Kuan Wang. Here is Oliver’s very helpful Twitter thread.
Source link