In Thailand, 64 percent of the population are engaged in agriculture. Most of them grow single crops such as rice, cassava, corn, sugar cane etc. The proportion of income per capita of those engaged in agriculture to other sectors was 1:13 in 1997. Several development programmes have failed because there were no realistic assessments of the limited resource base of small farming systems.
The survival and social-economic pattern of the householders was not taken into full account. The basic assumption is that small-scale farmers in Thailand will be responsive to development efforts if the technology fits their needs, aspirations and environments.