Main description

Relationships between agriculture and rural societies raise controversies that question development models. Dichotomous views dominate the debate: small and large structures, inclusive or exclusive of agriculture, etc. This paper identifies how concepts of integration and segregation provide original theoretical tools for entering into these debates in depth. The theoretical framework was tested on the case of New Caledonia, through an analysis of rural development policies. This emblematic example of a colonial settlement is interesting. It offers public policies based on segregated models of development, but which pursue, at the same time, the global objective of overcoming the historical segregation between communities, land-use, etc. A field study enabled the authors to highlight the strategic dimension of the segmentation of development policies and territories. On a local scale, a study of Kanak development strategies showed that the boundaries between these different kinds of development territories are places where new development models and innovations can arise. Despite some limitations, the theoretical framework was particularly suited to understanding the historical and current transformations of the archipelago and offered original prospects for generalization. Mainly, the heuristic strength of the framework was not based on opposition, but on the identification of connections between integration and segregation.