Land Fragmentation, Cropland
            Abandonment, and Land Market Operation in Albania

Savastano, Sara; Deininger, Klaus; Carletto, Calogero (Gero)

Land Fragmentation, Cropland Abandonment, and Land Market Operation in Albania

Autores

Savastano, Sara

Deininger, Klaus

Carletto, Calogero (Gero)

Editor

World Bank, Washington, DC

Descripción

Albania's radical farmland distribution is credited with averting an economic crisis and social unrest during the transition. But many believe it led to a holding structure too fragmented to be efficient, and that public efforts to consolidate plots are needed to lay the foundation for greater rural productivity. This paper uses farm-level data from the 2005 Albania Living Standards Measurement Survey to explore this quantitatively. The analysis finds no support for the argument that fragmentation reduces productivity. However, producers fail to utilize about 10 percent of the country's productive land, and, in the majority of cases, this land has been idle for at least five years. Farmers quote inefficiently-small plots as the reason for this in few cases, casting doubt on the scope for land consolidation to solve this issue. Instead, the data are consistent with the notion of land market imperfections, which can be traced to gaps in the legal and policy framework, as well as inefficiencies in registry operations, leading to land abandonment on a large scale. To maintain the productive potential of Albania's rural economy and, if and when needed, the ability to conduct consolidation in a cost-effective and sustainable manner, it will be critical to complement the emphasis on consolidation with an effort to address those gaps and inefficiencies on a priority basis.

Palabras clave

ACCESS TO INFORMATION, AGRARIAN REFORM, AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS, AGRICULTURAL LAND, AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION, AGRICULTURE, BANKS, BEST USE, CONSOLIDATION, CROPS, CULTIVATED LAND, CULTIVATION, DECENTRALIZATION, DRAINAGE, ECONOMETRIC EVIDENCE, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, ECONOMICS, ECONOMIES IN TRANSITION, EMPLOYMENT, EQUALIZATION, EQUIPMENT, EXTENSION, EXTERNALITIES, FARM SIZE, FARM STRUCTURES, FARMERS, FARMLAND, FARMS, FOOD PRODUCTION, GENDER, HOUSEHOLDS, HOUSING, INCOMES, INSURANCE, INTEGRATION, IRRIGATED LAND, LABOR MARKETS, LAND ACQUISITION, LAND ADMINISTRATION, LAND BANKING, LAND CONSOLIDATION, LAND LEASING, LAND MARKETS, LAND OWNERS, LAND OWNERSHIP, LAND PRICES, LAND QUALITY, LAND REFORM, LAND RENTAL, LAND SALES, LAND SPECULATION, LAND TAXES, LAND TENURE, LAND TRANSFERS, LAND USE, LAND VALUES, LANDLORDS, LEASES, LEGAL FRAMEWORK, LIVESTOCK, MACROECONOMIC CONDITIONS, MARKETING, MIGRATION, PENSIONS, POINTS, PRESENT VALUE, PRIVATE OWNERSHIP, PRIVATE PROPERTY, PRIVATIZATION, PRODUCTIVITY, PROFITABILITY, PROPERTY RIGHTS, PUBLIC LAND, REAL PROPERTY, RENTS, RESOURCE ALLOCATION, RETIREMENT, RURAL DEVELOPMENT, RURAL PROPERTY, SITES, SOIL QUALITY, TENANTS, TOT, TRANSACTION COSTS, TRANSPORT, URBAN GROWTH, VETERINARY SERVICES, WAGES