services carried out. The Soviet state provides monthly financial assistance in the form of living allowances to those handicapped from childhood. These allowances are granted and paid irrespective of the availability and amount of other income. The position of women in rural areas In the USSR, all the provisions of the Convention apply also to women who live in rural areas. Their equality with men is safeguarded by the granting of all the rights provided for in the Constitution of the USSR. Women living in rural areas also enjoy all the privileges and advantages provided for by Soviet legislation. They exercise fully their right to education and professional training, to the free choice of profession and employment and to equal pay for equal work. Women are trained to become members of the agricultural labour force at agricultural vocational colleges. Evening and correspondence courses at tertiary and specialist secondary agricultural educational institutions, which offer students additional paid leave to take their examinations, enjoy a large following. The free choice of profession and free teaching are responsible for the increase in the proportion of women among the students of agricultural colleges, which took place in the 70s. The percentage of women agronomists, livestock specialists, veterinarians, and economists with higher education working in agriculture is 38%, and those with secondary education - 50%. All women who wish to work in the national economy are given employment. Among the total number of manual and office workers employed on collective farms 49% are women, and on State farms - 45% are women. Mechanization and automation of various branches of agriculture is systematically carried out, improving the labour conditions of rural women who cultivate and harvest cotton, sugar beet, vegetables, potatoes and other crops. The mechanization, concentration and specialization of agriculture have 
**Analysis**
The text primarily discusses the Soviet Union's policies and statistics regarding the employment and education of women in rural areas, as well as the country's efforts to mechanize and automate agriculture. It also touches on the financial assistance provided to people with disabilities. These topics suggest that the text is more focused on social and economic aspects rather than natural resources, industry, or international trade.

**Category**
Education, Employment