The Living Conditions of Rural Women and the Development of Human Resources in Poor Mountain Areas of Southern Shaanxi

Annotation :::: The paper focuses on human resources in mountain villages in southern Shaanxi province, and discusses the significance of developing and utilizing the women's human resources in mountain villages. Using gender analysis and methods of documental study, the author finds that rural women, regarded as a vulnerable group in local society, have gradually become the primary force for agricultural production with many rural male labourers migrating from the poor mountain villages of southern Shaanxi province into cities and towns in recent years. The degree to which those women's human resources can be developed directly affects the process of rural economic and social development in poor mountain areas. However, the development of rural women's human resources faces many difficulties due to constraints related to natural, historical, and social factors. Effectively addressing the problem of developing the human resources of rural women will not only benefit rural women themselves, but also the whole society and development for both sexes. Furthermore, developing human resources of rural women will also contribute to the implementation of poverty alleviation programmes in the local mountain areas.