ABSTRACT

Debate on land tenure policies in rural Africa over the last few decades has hinged on two main issues: land registration and cadastral systems; and the emergence of a land market, as the supposed prelude to the spread of individual private ownership. The conceptual framework used by international institutions, the evolutionary theory of property rights l acknowledges the dynamic, efficient nature of so-called customary rights where population density is low and there is little economic competition. However, it argues that individual private ownership, guaranteed by the state, needs to become widespread: in substance, it claims that when the stakes are raised, land rights become uncertain, leading to conflict. This results in an 'induced demand for institutional innovation' addressed to governments which, to meet farmers' expectations, must then issue ownership title, triggering a process of economic development.