TECHNOLOGICAL TRAJECTORIES AND SOURCES OF GROWTH OF
AGRICULTURE OF PARA
Modernization, Factor Analysis, Rural Development.
Discussions about the importance of the process of modernization of Brazilian agriculture in rural development have been gaining strength over the years. Although progress is perceived in the process of modernization of agriculture in the country, many regions evolve more slowly, and in a way ends up pressing the base of their natural resources, as is the example of the state of Pará. While in the state of Pará, 68.25% of agricultural establishments have access to electricity, a well used strategically in the modernization process, in the country, this percentage reaches 83.12%, and in the state of São Paulo, it reaches 88.05% of rural establishments. Thus, given the importance of these changes in the process of modernization of the territory, more specifically the modernization of the productive structure of the field, this research aims to present a diagnosis of the level of modernization of agriculture in the microregions of Pará, estimating the Agricultural Modernization Index and its determining factors in the period from 1990 to 2019, also evaluating the evolution of the sources of growth and specialization of the main crops of the State of Pará. In the development of the research, data on agricultural production were used, allowing the evaluation of the growth rates of production, harvested area and yield, in addition to data obtained through the Agricultural Censuses of 1995/1996, 2006 and 2017 of the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). The results showed a recomposition in the paraná farm system, both of temporary and permanent crops, where in the first evaluation period, the twenty-two microregions were classified with low technological level and in the last analysis, only five continued at this level. Analyses over time show that production fluctuations in the early 1990s were mainly associated with the expansion of cultivation areas, contrasting with the current scenario, where fluctuations are also greatly influenced by increased productivity. Therefore, having knowledge about the stage of development of the rural sector is fundamental to establish consistent public policies with a view to reducing technological distancing.