The purpose of the study is to substantiate and document the notion that a comprehensive planning policy for integrated socio-economic development aimed at solving the underlying problems of the rural "push" factors would yield more effective solutions to rural-urban migration as a generic issue in developing regions than measures already proposed in these regions. The premise was examined within the context of the existing Government measures geared to make rural living more attractive in the developing country of Jamaica, West Indies. Based on a review of rural-urban migration in Latin America, of which Jamaica is a part, it is indicated that the movement has reached unprecedented levels. The impoverished economic and social conditions of the countryside are real as evidenced by the ever increasing flow of rural-urban migration mainly to one urban area. The cities are unable to employ all their inhabitants and consequently various measures of raising the level of rural living have been introduced. In Latin America the principal focus has been on land tenure and colonization but these have always fallen short of their aim. Such schemes need groupings of people into urban centres for their success. Bolder attempts at coordination of measures at the national and local level are vital. The case study of Jamaica reveals that rural to urban migration has become an increasingly important phenomenon. The main currents have meant a movement to the Kingston and St. Andrew Metropolitan Area. However, the rate and volume of the movement far exceed the current absorptive capacities of this area and this has created problems pertaining to under-employment, housing shortages and certain social ills. Faced with these problems, the Government of Jamaica has, since 1938, initiated measures to halt the growing trek of rural population to the city. The Land Settlement scheme involving the distribution of small plots of land to the rural population, previously introduced in the l880’s, was vigourously pursued after 1938. Since the 1940's, however, the main area of concentration of policy switched to measures for rehabilitation of the hillsides and improvements with the land. These have been implemented through the Farm Improvement Scheme, 1947; the Land Authorities Law, 1951; the Farm Recovery Scheme, 1951; the Farm Development Scheme, 1955; the Agricultural Development Programme, I960 and the Farm Production Programme in 1963. Improvements to the social environment have been mainly through the Social Development Commission and the 4-H Clubs. While the schemes have been instrumental in increasing total area under cultivation they have been far from successful in raising rural levels of living with the aim of controlling rural-urban migration. They were only concerned with issues relating to the land with insufficient thought for the people who occupied that land. The attempts made by the Social Development Commission have achieved little, if any, success in stemming rural flows. This thesis reveals a formidable gap between these government measures and what rural Jamaica requires. The needs of the latter are non-agricultural in nature and revolve about the provision of modest urban services which have become a normal feature of daily living. It is concluded that this could be achieved through a system leading to the "rurbanization" of rural Jamaica—a process that would create an urban environment but at the same time would not be truly urban. All the basic services and amenities would be provided and concentrated in selected existing centres. These "rurban" centres arranged in an integrated manner would have advantages that would serve to facilitate the transformation of rural areas into stable societies, and in addition assist the process of modernization which Jamaica is now undergoing. For best results the island must be divided into regions. It is concluded that the Town Planning Department of Jamaica should guide the physical planning of these settlements as it is already charged with the necessary powers. The solution has implications not only for Jamaica but also for other developing regions. Plans for rural reconstruction aimed at curbing rural-urban migration in these areas need to give a more prominent place to basic urban factors than has been customary in the past. An urban environment is necessary for the modernization process the regions are now pursuing. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of / Graduate

Rural citizens in developing countries are becoming the focal point of social, economic and political development efforts. These people traditionally have been left out of the developmental process. National leaders have now realized that the citizens of rural areas have the potential to contribute significantly to developmental efforts of their nations. One important part of most developing nations' strategies for social and economic development is education. The principal form of education has been that of formal education, the trappings of which were borrowed from the nations' former colonial masters. The education systems increasingly have been seen as working against national development objectives, particularly in rural areas. Educational planners and policymakers have found an alternative in non-formal education, whereby rural people theoretically obtain the skills, knowledge, and attitudes necessary to initiate their own development projects. However, developing nations lack the human, financial, and material resources needed to concurrently offer both formal and non-formal education programs. Outside funding sources have been sought pursuant to United States foreign policy. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has given impetus to experiments in non-formal education in some 60 countries of Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America. The purpose of this dissertation is to examine relationships between education and rural community development, particularly as these relationships have been reported in underdeveloped nations. The methods of inquiry involved: 1. a substantive analysis and synthesis of the development literature, and 2. a detailed case study of non-formal education and rural development in Jamaica. The dissertation develops a thesis, namely that three general relationships may be observed between education and rural development. They are: 1. Formal education is intended to raise rural children to literacy and productivity in the development of their native areas. Instead, it tends to raise students' expectations towards employment in urban centers, thus bleeding rural areas of trained skills. Formal education has become an entrenched system both as a monopoly of central government bureaucracy, and as the one road recognized by rural adults as leading to a better life. There is a conflict between expectation and delivery, complicated by lack of realistic means for appraisal and change. 2. Alternatively, certain forms of non-formal education may hold promise for improving the quality of living in the rural areas of developing nations; however, the conditions necessary for a definitive test of non-formal education in rural community development are not likely to be developed under the sponsorship of the education establishment of the developing nations, even when such test is stimulated and heavily supported by outside agencies such as the United States Agency for International Development. 3. Moreover, the idiosyncratic policies, organization, and funding practices of USAID, the principal source of financial aid for development projects among developing nations, themselves influence the design and outcome of development projects in ways that mitigate against successful development. Clearly, this poses a dilemma for those governments that seek to develop their rural areas. Traditional institutions and programs have been used to improve conditions in rural areas. Yet these very institutions and programs may be part of the development problems. International development literature is replete with theoretical and promising new programs that cannot be fairly tested. There is no indication that national governments could or would assimilate these programs into standard practice, moreover, the status quo is supported by rural populations. / Ed. D.