AGRARIAN REFORMS

1.0          INTRODUCTION.

2.0          OBJECTIVE

3.0          DEFINITION OF AGRARIAN

4.0          OBJECTIVES OF AGRARIAN REFORMS

5.0          ELEMENTS OF AGRARIAN REFORMS

6.0          PROTAGONIST OF AGRARIAN REFORMS

7.0          ANTAGONIST OF AGRARIAN REFORMS

8.0          AGRARIAN REFORMS IN NIGERIA

9.0          CONCLUSION

10.0       SUMMARY

11.0       TUTOR MARKED ASSIGNMENT

12.0       SUGGESTED FURTHER READING / REFERENCES

STATUTES

AGRARIAN REFORMS

INTRODUCTION.

Land is the most important agricultural resource. Agrarian reform is essentially concerned with the redistribution of land. Its aim is to improve the agrarian system including agricultural activities like redistribution of agricultural land to cultivators, extending credit to grant them greater access to capital and institutional development. it is also geared towards providing increased market access and human resource development.

In Nigeria, the existing land tenure system which was described as rigid and inimical to development necessitated the enactment of the Land Use Act 1978. It was geared towards the provision of greater access to land to citizens, inspite of their communal affiliation or social status and the eradication of bitter rivalries assailing communal land holding which often degenerated to communal strife and the consequential loss of lives and properties. It was also to facilitate government control and management of land with a view to enhancing national development.

The efficacy of the agrarian reforms envisaged by the Land Use Act remains shrouded in controversy.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this unit is to examine agrarian reforms with a view to assessing its efficacy as a tool for encouraging national growth and development.

DEFINITION OF AGRARIAN

Agrarian reform involves the rectification of the agricultural system. It is embarked upon by government to redistribute land utilized mainly for agricultural purposes in the country.

It also refers to the changing of laws, regulation or customs relating to land ownership. It consists of a government initiated or government backed property redistribution generally of agricultural land with or without payment of compensation.

It relates to transfer of land from individual or peasant ownership to government owned collective farms.

Agrarian reform is often characterized by modification or replacement of existing institutional arrangements relating to usage and possession of land. It is further concerned about  the relationship between the production sector and the distribution of land among the farmers. It includes industrial processing of raw materials produced by farmers.

OBJECTIVES OF AGRARIAN REFORMS

The objectives of agrarian reforms are not static but dependent on the issues confronting a particular country. It includes

• Improvement of cooperation between the agricultural sector and the non agricultural
• Enhancement of agricultural productivity
• Harmonization of regulations relating to land ownership
• Improvement of  employment  opportunities  for  rural inhabitants
• Enhancement of agricultural productivity

ELEMENTS OF AGRARIAN REFORM.

It encompasses reforms of the land tenure structure, supporting service structures and production structure.

It involves the formulation of a systematic plan of action to eliminate rural poverty, redistribution of land among the landless and ensuring that land reform is self reliant. It extends to the provision of support system like health care services, primary education services, water supply services and infrastructural support. Enhancement of technical capacity of projects, individuals and a viable socio – economic environment for rural inhabitants is also the focal point of agrarian reforms

PROTAGONIST OF AGRARIAN REFORMS.

The Protagonists of agrarian reforms have canvassed that its is a viable tool for ensuring rural development. This is due to socio economic benefit conferred by the formalization process. This includes eradication of rural poverty and the provision of greater food security it also increases the rural in habitants access to credit.

It is their contention that the installation of a comprehensive legislation controlling and regulating the usage and ownership of land eliminates the conflict in land regulations which often degenerates into conflict.

ANTAGONIST OF AGRARIAN REFORM.

Antagonist of agrarian reforms view the entire exercise with suspicion. This is premised on the difficulty of deciphering the motivating factors of the reform and the subjection of land owners to the whims and caprices of government officials.

There is distrust that most reforms including agrarian reforms are for the purpose of scoring cheap political points.

There is also anxiety that the touted socio economic benefits of agrarian reforms are unrealistic since their attainment is predicated on other factors including the creation of the enabling environment for such reforms to thrive.

It is anticipated that formalization engendered by agrarian reforms, could foist greater hardship on rural inhabitants due to the time and expense of the documentation process.

Similarly endemic corruption of government officials who have, the responsibility of either carrying out or overseeing the formalization process could unjustly divest rural inhabitants of their land.

AGRARIAN REFORMS IN NIGERIA

In 1978, Nigeria government embarked on comprehensive land reform policy which culminated in the enactment of the Land Use Act. Section 1 of the Act provides that:

subject to the provisions of this Act, all lands comprised in the territory of each state of the Federation is hereby vested in the Governor of that state and such land shall be held in trust and administered for the use and common benefit of all Nigerians in accordance with the provisions of this Act.

It overturned the existing system of land tenure which conferred absolute and perpetual ownership right with “rights of occupancy” which confers the holder with a leasehold interest for 99 years subject to renewal. See section 5, 6 of the Land Use Act.

In Amodu Tijani v Secretary of Southern Nigeria (1921) AC 399 Lord Haldane observed about the Customary System of Tenure:

the next fact which it is important to bear in mind in order to understand native land law is that the notion of individual ownership is quite foreign to native ideas. Land belongs to the community, the village or the family, never to the individual. All the members of the community, village or family have an equal right to the land but in every case the chief or headman of the village or community or head of he family has charge of the land and  in loose mode of speech is sometimes called the “owner”. He is to some extent in the position of a trustee and as such holds the land for the  use of the community or family. He has control of it and any member who wants a piece of it  to cultivate or build upon goes to him for it.  But the land so given remains the property of the community or family.

The Land Use Act was enacted to principally reform the customary land tenure system which was considered a clog in the wheel of developmental efforts. The rural land policy under the Act empowered local governments to issue customary certificates of occupancy evidencing the grant of customary right of occupancy to persons interested in owning or utilizing land for agricultural, residential or other purposes where the land is located in a non urban area.

In spite of the touted benefits of the land reforms under the Land Use Act, the implementation of the Act has posed intractable problems including improper definition of terms utilized in the Act. This includes definition of “improvements” or “unexhausted improvements” referred to in section 29 of the Land Use Act, the methods for assessing compensation for buildings farm structures and crops, poses an uphill task. Similarly finding a replacement for acquired farm land poses a huge challenge as most lands in Nigeria have actual or potential owners.

The concentration of powers relating to the management and  control of land in the hands of the Governors of States has made it susceptible to abuse. Utilizing such powers to haunt perceived political enemies, dispossess them of their land and pay for only unexhausted improvements as stipulated by the Land Use Act.

Arising from land reforms, title to land has become precarious due to the provisions for revocation of title on grounds of public policy and the rate of conversion of prime agricultural land to non agricultural land and the corresponding frustration experienced by farmers.

The Land Use Act has also encouraged speculative acquisition of land. The unbridled acquisition of vast expanse of land  by individuals and corporations has resulted in the concentration of land in few hands.

CONCLUSION.

To ensure more effective management and control of land for the purpose of attaining socio economic development,  government often engages in reforms. Inspite of the contention that the traditional tenure system constituted a major handicap to efficient agricultural production and physical development, the enactment of the Land Use Act which was touted as a panacea to the problems occasioned by the traditional system of land holding has created more controversies and diversified the challenges afflicting land ownership in Nigeria.

 SUMMARY

• Land is the most important agricultural resources. Agrarian reform is essentially concerned with land redistribution
• Agrarian reform  refers  to   government  initiated   property redistribution which essentially relates to agricultural land
• The protagonist of agrarian reform are of the view that it is a viable tool for ensuring rural development. It also ameliorates the challenges of conflicting regulation affecting land
• The antagonist of the agrarian reforms are of the view that it is susceptible to abuse as the reason for the reforms may not be discernible. The corruptions of officials of the formalization process often compromise the interest of rural inhabitants
• The objectives of agrarian reform are not static but is dependent on or varies according to the needs of a particular country.
• Effective agrarian reform increases income and the standard of living, improves agricultural productivity and provides employment. However the introduction of new technology could compromise employment opportunities.
• The Land Use Act which was geared towards land reform instead of alleviating the problems of the traditional land tenure system in Nigeria is shrouded in controversy and has introduced new challenges to land ownership in Nigeria which has adversely affected the agricultural sector.

TUTOR MARKED ASSIGNMENT

• Assess the benefits of Agrarian reforms in Nigeria

SUGGESTED ANSWERS

• Define agrarian reforms
• State the reason for agrarian reforms
• State the effect of agrarian reforms
• Explain the benefits as stated in the note
• State the disadvantages

(c)    conclude that inspite of the fact that agrarian reforms in Nigeria was a necessity, due to the inherent defects in the Land Use Act 1978 and the inefficiency in the implementation processed, it has created more problems than it has solved.

SUGGESTED FURTHER READING /REFERENCES

• Elias T. O. Nigerian Land Law (London: Sweet & Maxwell 1971)
• Cheshire and Burns Modern Law of Real Property (London: Butterworths 1982).

STATUTE

Land Use Act 1978