Abstract
Vietnam has been promoting modernization and industrialization policies in both agricultural and rural sectors since the latter half of the 1990s. This study analyzed changes in rice farming structure and household economy of small-scale farmers on the basis of secondary data and a case study of rural areas in the Red River Delta. A comparison between the Mekong River Delta and the Red River Delta revealed that these areas have shown different changes in rice farming structure over the past 20 years. In both deltas, the number of farm households has decreased considerably and the average farm size has become smaller than before. The percentage of farm households that hold more than two hectares of land has increased in the Mekong River Delta, whereas it has remained unchanged in the Red River Delta. Analyzing the case of Di Su commune in the Red River Delta where massive farmlands have been converted into industrial land revealed that many farm households have received substantial compensation in exchange for their land and have passively or purposefully abandoned rice farming. Such abandonment is due to inefficient rice cultivation in small and scattered parcels of farmland and the diminishing household size and family workforce. In particular, the younger generation who has received middle or higher education is attracted to the idea of being factory workers at nearby industrial parks because of the stable and favorable salary offered by the factories. In this context, the economic significance of rice farming has been reduced in farm households in Di Su commune.
https://ror.org/04f4wg107 
