ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews research findings on land reform in their relevance for countries in transition. Research on land reform focuses on rural areas. The chapter presents an overview of background information and summarizes motives for land reform as currently practiced in countries in transition. Many former republics of the USSR have a society dominated by agriculture and livestock breeding, so it is not surprising that agriculture is an important issue in politics in the countries in transition. Several decades of central planning in agriculture have left their traces on the concept of farming among the workers on collective farms. Political concern for the level of agricultural production and fear for speculation with agricultural land has spurred governments to condition the transfer of rights from the state to private owners. Many researchers have stressed continuous government concern for specific negative developments after privatization in countries in transition, but little research has focused on the effects of privatization on the urban population.
