Joint Commission on Rural Reconstruction

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American-Taiwanese development agency.

From the description of Joint Commission on Rural Reconstruction miscellaneous records, 1964-1972. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 754871914

The Joint Commission on Rural Reconstruction was a joint Chinese-American program to develop rural China. Dr. Y.C. James Yen (1893-1990), head of the Chinese National Association of the Mass Education Movement, lobbied for an amendment to the China Aid Act of 1948 that stipulated that 10 per cent of American foreign aid to China would be reserved for rural reconstruction. Yen considered mass literacy, widely available primary healthcare, and fundamental changes in the education, habits, and attitudes of ordinary people as necessary for improving life in rural China. He preferred to use a Chinese term that is best translated as meaning "reconstruction" to that of "development" favored by Westerners. After the defeat of the Kuomintang forces in 1949 and the retreat of the Republic of China's entire government to Taiwan, Yen and the recently created Joint Commission focused development efforts on the island of Taiwan. Yen worked to spread his ideas in the Philippines and other parts of the developing world.

From the description of Joint Commission on Rural Reconstruction collection, 1953-1958. (University of Illinois-Chicago Library). WorldCat record id: 61185311

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Active 1953

Active 1958

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