The Economics of Farm Fragmentation: Evidence from Ghana and Rwanda |
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| Authors: | Blarel Benoit; Hazell Peter; Place Frank; Quiggin John |
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| Institution: | Benoit Blarel is with the Africa—South Central and Indian Ocean Department and Peter Hazell is with the Agriculture and Rural Development Department, both at the World Bank; Frank Place is with the International Council for Research in Agroforestry in Nairobi, Kenya; and John Quiggin is with the Australian National University in Canberra. |
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| Abstract: | Farm fragmentation, in which a household operates more thanone separate parcel of land, is a common phenomenon in Sub-SaharanAfrica. Concerned by the perceived costs of fragmented as opposedto consolidated holdings, several countries have implementedland consolidation programs. But these interventions overlookthe benefits that land fragmentation can offer farmers in managingrisk, in overcoming seasonal labor bottlenecks, and in bettermatching soil types with necessary food crops. This articleuses household data from Ghana and Rwanda to discuss the incidenceand causes of fragmentation. It then formally tests the relationbetween fragmentation and land productivity and risk reduction.The conclusion is that consolidation programs are unlikely tolead to significant increases in land productivity and may actuallymake farmers worse off. Policymakers should focus instead onreducing the root causes of fragmentation: inefficiencies inland, labor, credit, and food markets. |
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