text: of this urban string-pulling. A whole cadre of persons needs to be trained for the rural and district functions. Many will :1E:ed not only management skills in addition to administrative exrer­tise, but also skills in project development and implementation in ar• s where the infrastructure is· under-developed. Whether· the opt.. .. •tions are at the local, village, district, provincial or national level, it is important to review the structures to en­ sure that they do not become remote and self-serving. F. Social services 46. The major social services -health, education and housing - have been discussed in earlier sections of this survey. Certain issues are common to all of them. Successive economic crises have impaired the ability of public authorities to provide adequate services to the population. Even in times of rel<.tive prosperity, developing countries are hard put to keep pac<. ·vith demand. 146 E/ECA/CM.9/5 47. With the current deteriorating conditions and a rapidly ex­ panding population, the proportion of people deprived of social services will increase. The situation will pe further aggravated by the rising costs of the services. Although private voluntary agencies play an important role in providing back-up services, the over-all situation is still very unsatisfactory. 48. Various Conferences of Ministers for Social Affairs have endorsed the view that emphasis in social welfare services should begin to shift from the curative or remedial to the preventive and developmental. The merging of social welfare and community development departments, which is now widely recommended, is ex­ pected to promote this shift. The aim is to eliminate or as far as possible prevent the conditions which put people at risk. But the best-organized society cannot completely eliminate cir­ cumstances or factors that put people at risk. Consequently society must develop a capacity to cope with emergencies. 
analysis: The text appears to focus on the development of social services and infrastructure in rural areas, discussing the need for trained personnel, the shift from curative to preventive social welfare services, and the importance of community development. The text also mentions economic crises and their impact on public authorities' ability to provide social services. This suggests that the text is more concerned with social and economic development rather than purely economic or environmental issues.