Impact of reform and economic restructuring on rural systems in China: a case study of Yuhang, Zhejiang

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the economic and social impact of rural reform and economic restructuring in China. The impact is assessed through a case study of Yuhang, Zhejiang, by focusing on the changing economic landscape and rural–urban relationship in China during the reform period. While we note that peasant living conditions have been improved, particularly in the 1990s, we argue that such progress has been an outcome of agricultural and industrial production at the household level rather than simply from the rapidly growing township and village enterprises as it is generally believed. In contrast to the macro-level trend, the growing economy has reduced the overall spatial disparity, and produced a fairly even economic landscape in Yuhang. However, the rise of private industries has caused an economic gap between social groups, particularly the local entrepreneurs and migrant workers. Participated by both local peasants and outside migrants, urbanization has rapidly penetrated into localities, traditionally referred to as rural, in a “hidden” form, through which peopleʹs interactive space is enlarged and villagers become urbanites in activity and behaviour. The reform-induced industrialization and urbanization have also rapidly altered the physical landscape at the local level, as evidenced by the substantial rate of rural housing development, rural to urban migration, and agricultural to non-agricultural land conversion.