The inclusive pattern of public expenditure in favour
of the rural poor at early stages of development in
no small measure contributed to sustaining shared
growth in East Asia during the 1960s and 1970s
In those early years, governments attempted to
help the poor to build productive assets through
such measures as equitable distribution of land;
extensive public provision of free and universal
primary education; promotion of small enterprises;
and development of rural infrastructure, such as
roads, irrigation, schools, agricultural-support
outposts, health stations and irrigation systems.
Inclusive growth in East Asia was evidently not just a
manifestation of market-driven growth effects.