Abstract
The notion that the formal titling and individualization of land rights in developing countries lead to higher investments in land and agricultural productivity holds sway in academic and development circles. In this paper, this notion is analyzed based on a comparative study of land reform programs and their implications for access to land, credit, and agricultural investments in Ghana, Kenya, and Vietnam. It focuses on how different access routes to land influence access to credit, and the transaction costs of land reform programs for agricultural investments. The paper concludes that in developing countries, the transaction costs of land reforms for investments can significantly increase if the influence of power is not addressed in order to reduce unequal access to land. The practical implementation of land reform is influenced by many factors, including the control on political power. Thus, measures must accompany implementation to check the use of power to derail land reform objectives. Moreover, the paper supports the argument that land reforms should be implemented in their local contexts so as to have positive effects on agriculture.
Highlights
In recent years, there has been growing interest in land reform programs in developing economies and the recent paper by Beyers et al [1] in African Affairs confirms this
This paper applies new institutional economics (NIE) and its associated property rights theory to understand how land reform institutions function, the institutional changes and barriers in implementation as well as the avenues provided by land reforms and property rights institutions for enhancing access to land and investment in agriculture
From the review and analysis presented above, we identified similarities and differences in the implementation and net effects of these reforms on access to land, credit and investments in agricultural sector
Summary
Peter Narh 1 , Cosmas Kombat Lambini 2,3, *, Matthew Sabbi 4 , Van Dien Pham 5 and Trung Thanh Nguyen 6. Bayreuth Center for Ecology and Environmental Research (BayCEER), University of Bayreuth, Universitaetstr. Bayreuth Graduate School of Mathematical and Natural Sciences (BayNAT), University of Bayreuth, 95440 Bayreuth, Germany
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