Fast Track Land Reform and Agricultural Productivity in Zimbabwe (original) (raw)
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Agrekon, 2012
In the year 2000 the government of Zimbabwe launched the Fast Track Land Reform Programme (FTLRP) as part of its ongoing land reform and resettlement programme. The main premise of the programme is to address the racially skewed land distribution pattern inherited at independence in 1980. While the programme has been accompanied by an overall reduction in agricultural production which has created widespread food insecurity throughout the country, empirical research on the impact of the programme on the agricultural productivity of its beneficiaries has been limited. This paper uses data on beneficiaries of the programme and a control group of communal farmers to (i) investigate the presence of agricultural productivity differences between beneficiaries and communal farmers, and (ii) examine differences in chemical fertiliser use as a possible source of these differences. The results suggest that FTLRP beneficiaries gain a productivity advantage not only from the fact that they use more fertiliser per hectare, but also from attaining a higher rate of return from its use.
Journal of Development and Agricultural Economics, 2012
The objectives of the study were to determine the level that resettled farmers in Mashonaland Central Province of Zimbabwe utilise their land in the production of field crops as well as to determine their mean yields per hectare. Factors that affect yield and land utilisation were also determined. Data was collected from 245 households using a questionnaire as the main instrument. The majority of the households in the resettled areas, A1 (91%), A2 (87%) and the old resettlement areas (70%) were maleheaded and had at least primary education. A2 farms have the lowest mean yield per hectare of US$714.80 which significantly differed from A1 (US$854.60) and the old resettled farms (US$846.55) which had higher but similar mean yield per hectare. The mean land utilisation rate varied significantly (p<0.05) with the land reform model with A2 having highest land utilisation rate of 67%. The A1 and old resettlement households had land utilisation rates of 53 and 46% respectively. Average total revenue varied significantly with the model of land reform. Sex, marital status, age of the household head, education and household size significantly affected land utilisation (P<0.05).
The slump in the agricultural productivity rates of Zimbabwe after land reform
Soon after gaining its independence Zimbabwe embarked on a process of "righting the past wrongs" via land reform. The land reform program changed its nature along the way and resulted in the Fast Track Land Reform Program of 2000 which was the initial phase. Under this program vast amounts of land were taken and redistributed to the majority who were landless. With land reform it was believed that it would empower the poor and bring social justice in postindependence Zimbabwe. The dispensation of the new farmers marked a drop in the productivity rates of agriculture and this had an impact on the economy of the nation as a whole since agriculture was the mainstay of the economy. There are various factors that have prejudiced the productivity rates of agriculture in Zimbabwe. This paper seeks to draw an in-depth understanding of these factors as well as to ascertain how they may have contributed to the deterioration of productivity rates. The research methodology is qualitative desktop. Data was collected from literature on agricultural productivity after land reform. Utilizing the social capital theory and the neo-classical theory this study will identify the major factors that prejudiced agricultural productivity in Zimbabwe. The significance of this study is that it stimulates debate on supporting land reform program in Zimbabwe. It identifies key challenges that obstruct agriculture in Zimbabwe from thriving.
Journal of Peasant Studies, 2011
Questions of who was allocated land under Zimbabwe's Fast Track land reform programme and how productive the beneficiaries have been are highly controversial. This article presents detailed empirical data on beneficiaries who were small and medium-sized commercial farms (the A2 model) in Goromonzi district, land allocation processes, and land use. Goromonzi District is one of the four districts that share a boundary with Harare, the capital city of Zimbabwe. A questionnaire survey targeting 65 A2 beneficiaries was implemented in 2003, while key informant interviews were done in 2006. Drawing on both primary and official data, the article shows that official criteria for selecting beneficiaries for A2 farms that emphasized the potential to use the land productively were ignored in practice. The institutions responsible for land allocation were captured by members of the ruling party and by representatives of the state security apparatus, and most beneficiaries were drawn from the governing or the local elite. Many lacked sufficient capital to invest meaningfully in commercial agriculture, did not have relevant farming experience, and were unable to put the bulk of their land into production for several years. As a result, in Goromonzi District the impact of Fast Track land reform on commercial agriculture has been negative.
Titel: Land reform in Zimbabwe : farm-level effects and cost-benefit analysis
2001
There is widespread agreement on the need for land reform in Zimbabwe as a means of reducing poverty. This paper assesses the potential consequences of a land-reform scheme that draws on proposals from Zimbabwe's government in 1998 and 1999. We analyze the impact of the reform on resettled farm households and as a development project for which we conduct cost-benefit analysis. The analysis, which considers costs and benefits during a 15-year period, relies on a set of models of family farms that are typical of those that would benefit from land redistribution. The cost-benefit analysis is more comprehensive, also considering the different costs and benefits that affect the government. The results of our analysis indicate that a government-supported land reform could be economically viable under what we consider as realistic assumptions regarding the performance of the beneficiaries and the costs that will be faced by the government and other stakeholders. Land reform can generate sustainable livelihoods for the beneficiaries. If viewed as a project, the NPV of the reform is positive for a discount rate that is as high as 20%. The project can also increase employment in the agricultural sector. The analysis takes a long-run perspective, covering a 15-year period. During the first resettlement years, some disruption of agricultural production should be expected.
Land Reform in Zimbabwe: Farm-Level Effects and Cost-Benefit Analysis
2001
There is widespread agreement on the need for land reform in Zimbabwe as a means of reducing poverty. This paper assesses the potential consequences of a land-reform scheme that draws on proposals from Zimbabwe's government in 1998 and 1999. We analyze the impact of the reform on resettled farm households and as a development project for which we conduct cost-benefit analysis. The analysis, which considers costs and benefits during a 15-year period, relies on a set of models of family farms that are typical of those that would benefit from land redistribution. The cost-benefit analysis is more comprehensive, also considering the different costs and benefits that affect the government. The results of our analysis indicate that a government-supported land reform could be economically viable under what we consider as realistic assumptions regarding the performance of the beneficiaries and the costs that will be faced by the government and other stakeholders. Land reform can generate sustainable livelihoods for the beneficiaries. If viewed as a project, the NPV of the reform is positive for a discount rate that is as high as 20%. The project can also increase employment in the agricultural sector. The analysis takes a long-run perspective, covering a 15-year period. During the first resettlement years, some disruption of agricultural production should be expected. These results are preliminary and based on a partial equilibrium perspective. They are driven by the assumption that the land reform is carried out in a manner that allows farmers on the resettled lands to achieve their productive potential. Such an outcome depends critically on the assumption that the farmers are able to operate in an enabling environment, including critical government support, especially during years 1-5.
The International Food and Agribusiness Management Review, 2011
The Zimbabwean government has long been committed to expansion of agricultural production through mechanization and pursued this goal under the unpopular fast track land reform program (FTLRP). The acquisition and use of tractors by arable crop farmers in communal and resettlement state land were encouraged. This research examines the performance of the program in the Bindura District. Ninety farmers were interviewed using a multistage sampling technique of structured questionnaires to collect data on demographic background, investment levels and production in terms of costs and returns. The Stochastic Frontier Model revealed the significant impact of the program on participating farmers, highlighting the significance of land and other productive factors. While overall production and productivity remain low, triggering a hyperinflationary situation due to supply constraints, practical implications for agribusinesses are foreseen.
The Political Dynamics of Food Security and Land Reform in Zimbabwe: 2000 and Beyond
JOURNAL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES, 2019
This study aimed at estimating the technical, allocative, and economic efficiencies among smallholder soybean producers and identifying factors affecting production efficiency of the crop. The study used crosssectional data collected from a sample of 266 soybean producer farmers. Multi-stage random sampling technique was employed to select sample respondents. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze socioeconomic characteristics while the Stochastic Frontier Production Function was used, in order to estimate the level of technical, allocative and economic efficiencies among smallholder farmers. The results revealed that the mean technical efficiency of soybean producer farmers was 72.81 percent while the average efficiency of allocative and economic were 55.13 percent and 40.08 percent, respectively. On the sources of inefficiency, the study found that educational level, farming experience, distance to cooperative and input center significantly reduce the technical inefficiencies among soybean farmers, whereas distance to main road, access to credit, frequency of extension contacts, farming experience and ownerships to tropical livestock unit decreases allocative inefficiency of soybean among producers. On the other hand, educational level, frequency of extension contact, experience in farming, distance to cooperative and input center significantly reduce economic inefficiencies among soybean producer farmers in study area. The result emphasized the need for building rural infrastructure, adult education and training of farmers in FTC and demonstrate new technologies, need support of credit services and increasing frequency of extension and improvements in livestock in the study area.
2010
A development goal pursued by the Zimbabwean government even before the much-maligned fast track land reform programme (FTLRP) was expansion of agricultural production through agricultural mechanization. This goal has been pursued through the acquisition and use of tractors by arable crop farmers in communal and resettlement state land delineated during the period following the launch of the FTLRP. This research project investigated the combined impacts of mechanization and an unplanned land reform on agricultural productivity in the Bindura district of Zimbabwe. The existing land policy and the issue of technical efficiency in agricultural productivity are assumed to be the drivers of the programme. It is likely that these issues will be important considerations in determining the sustainability of the mechanization policy. A multistage sampling technique was used to randomly select 90 farmers in the study area and structured questionnaires were used to collect demographic, investm...
World Development, 2004
A 1998 survey of farm workers in Zimbabwe detailing their demographic, and skill, land access and viewpoints of land reform and redistribution is used to examine the very real constraints and the possibilities for poverty reduction among longstanding marginalized social groups in the ongoing ''fast-track'' land resettlement in Zimbabwe. Based on these data and other research, farm workers are willing and viable settlers in this process but are being prevented from joining in while losing their jobs. It is suggested that unless farm workers are included in the land reform in a significant number the vast majority will join the growing ranks of the extreme rural and urban poor.