The Social-Security Function Of Land In Mbarara District, Uganda

Abstract

This chapter concentrates on the (social) security function of land in African agrarian economies, which used to be vested in customary land-tenure arrangements whereby membership of a rural community ensured access to land, be it in the form of rights of use over privately apportioned land plots or the village commons. The cultivation of land can form a base for survival and a major safeguard in case of adverse events such as unemployment or falling prices on output markets. In addition, poorer members of rural communities could derive a substantial part of their income from the village commons, which also have a clear social-security function by providing protection against the risk of chronic poverty. The chapter presents an empirical study undertaken in Mbarara District in southwest Uganda. It aims to contribute to further insight into how developments regarding land affect the social-security function of land for poor and vulnerable households. Keywords: chronic poverty; Mbarara district; rural community; social-security function; southwest Uganda