A Study on Rural labor Markets, Rural Nonfarm Enterprises and Agrarian Reform in the Philippines

The Philippine agriculture sector’s limited capacity to absorb the existing rural labor force has led to the demand for nonfarm employment in the rural labor market. Despite its shortcomings, agriculture still remains a vital component to the economy. This paper attempts to bring together and review studies concerning farm and nonfarm linkages, intersectoral linkages and the rural labor markets. It focuses on existing studies analyzing the relationship between farm and nonfarm activities, the nature, structure and composition of nonfarm activities and the linkages of rural nonfarm activities with the other sectors of the economy. On the basis of the survey conducted, research gaps on the area have been identified.