“Drafting Agriculture Development Strategy is in the final stage.” In this face book status posted anonymously, an official at the National Planning Commission commented: “Congratulations! Another report will be added to the cupboard of the Planning Commission.” Though this is just an example, it illustrates the Nepali habit of making policies in haste and shelving them later.
A 20 year long-term Agriculture Development Strategy, prepared under the guidance of John Miller, has failed, and the nation is going to receive another agriculture development strategy prepared under foreign leadership. Land use is mentioned in this strategy, but land ownership is completely bypassed.
Agricultural development cannot be possible unless the current inequitable land ownership policy is adjusted. To transform Nepali society with its predominantly agriculture-based population, it is imperative to improve land and agriculture policies.
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During the 1960s, Nepal had the highest agricultural productivity in South Asia. But in the early 90s, its productivity dipped. The reason has to do with policymakers’ oversight of the fact that growth of agricultural production depends on the relationship between ownership and production system. Land ownership is a major factor in determining productivity, and thus becomes a major concern for agricultural development as well. Equitable distribution and proper use of land are parts of agricultural development. Land and agricultural development have common goals: to increase productivity, creating a safe working environment for low-scale and landless farmers who are the most prolific farmers. Analyzing agricultural development and land reform separately is inadequate in trying to develop a holistic policy. Agricultural development and land reform should be analyzed in relation to the entire socio-economy of a country.
The main problem in agriculture today is that most farmers who are dependent on farming do not own the land they farm on. Those who have enough land don’t work in the field, but take a large amount of the production, leaving a tiny portion for the workers. A large amount of cultivable land is being captured by such elites. But farmers who have been working in the field for generations either don’t own land or are limited to a tiny portion of cultivable land.
A study (Community Self Reliance Centre 2009, Land Tenure and Land Ownership in Nepal) has shown that 34 percent of agricultural land has not been registered. How can farmers maintain their enthusiasm to work when the land they own is not legally theirs? The study has also shown that 22.7 percent of farmers who are fully dependent on agriculture for their livelihood are landless. Some of them work on others’ farms, and the rest are obliged laborer as ploughmen and herdsmen. A large number of farmers are still fighting for their tenant rights. They are compelled to spend their time collecting funds to fight for their rights instead of working in the fields.
On the other hand, tenants, who have no legal documents, are being victimized. As a result, neither the tenants nor land owners are ready to make any long term investment in farming. Even minor issues like setting a boring pump up in the field are debated. In such a scenario, how can we expect sustainable growth in agricultural production?
This paradoxical ownership situation has caused exploitation of farmers and agricultural laborers. The end of unjust land ownership is always at the centre of land reform debates. It is essential to introduce a new module of land and agricultural reforms in order to democratize land ownership and increase production in rural areas. When landless farmers obtain land, they will produce for themselves rather than for submitting to landowners. That will motivate them to be more dedicated to farming and increase investment.
The above mentioned study has shown that 90 percent of women farmers, who should be provided land ownership rights because they are currently working as daily wage laborers, do not have any such rights. Despite this, the current strategy under development does not seem to take women into account as anything more than laborers.
Using cultivable land for non-agricultural purposes has become as serious an issue as redistribution of land itself. Towns have been built on fertile land as well as on river banks. Industries are established on cultivable land, from where they will have easy access to markets. This has created a series of negative effects on towns and both cultivable and public land. This situation cannot be improved unless there is a prohibition on keeping land barren for no reason. When we are able to provide land to the landless, secure their tenancy rights and protect cultivable land, only then will agricultural development be possible.
deujaj@csrcnepal.org
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