Despite rapid urbanisation, the bulk of the populations in the ACP countries still live in the rural areas and depend on agriculture for their livelihoods. Provision of infrastructural support such as roads and water. Development of human resources in rural areas through education, training and health support. Developing an environment conducive to rural development through support to markets and addressing policy issues. Rural areas rely on labour for production and given the nature of the work, good health is crucial.
Subsistence production depends very heavily on labour.
Thus the impact of the epidemic on households and communities focuses on points where domestic or farm labour supply may come under pressure. For example, the need to nurse a sick household member may force a woman to choose between bringing a bucket of clean water, washing soiled bed linen or preparing a cash crop once more. The climate may determine the degree to which labour is a critical constraint in subsistence production. Death and illness reduce labour availability, both directly through affecting productive members of the household, and indirectly through diverting labour to caring for the sick. It is suggested that the farming system might therefore be classified in terms of its vulnerability to loss of labour.