Land use in developing nations

1
Land use in developing nations

• Nilda R. Burgos
• Associate Professor, Weed Science
• Department of Crop, Soil, and Environmental
  Sciences
• HUMN 4253 Spring 2007

2
Land use change

• Demographic change (population growth) most
  tightly intertwined with land use
• Political and social factors
• Climatic factors
• Practically all land use data measure conversion
  of land to human use few data on modification of
  land use.

3
Economic Paradigms

• Classical
• Food production could only grow at a linear rate
  while populations grow geometrically thus
  population growth could outstrip the ability of
  the economy to meet the demand for food (Malthus,
  1798)
• 50 of 117 developing nations could not be
  self-sufficient in food with low input levels by
  2000 (Higgins et al. 1983)
• Emphasizes population supporting capacity

4
Economic Paradigms

• Neoclassical
• Also acknowledges finite resources, adjusts
  projections using two factors technological
  advances and substitution of scarce factors with
  abundant ones (Stiglitz 1979, Simon 1981)
• As land resource become scarce, people will
  develop technologies to farm unused land and to
  increase production of existing land units
• Use more fertilizer, less labor, more
  mechanization, less fallow, more crop cycles

5
Land use in developing world

• Factors affecting land use patterns are complex
  and difficult to study
• Consider population density, climate, consumption
  behavior, international trade, high purchasing
  power of developed nations, technology advances
• Land use changed faster and at larger magnitudes
  since 1900
• Great impact on environment and people

6
To increase food production

• Most significant changes in land use associated
  with agriculture
• To improve agricultural productivity
• Expand land use
• Shorten fallow periods
• Increase labor use (if possible)
• Increase inputs (fertilizer, pesticides)
• Improved varieties
• Mechanization

7
Case studies

• Philippines small land area, dense population
• India large area, dense population in certain
  regions
• Guatemala geographically and politically
  influential to Belize
• Honduras from Chapter 8 of assigned reading

8
(No Transcript)
9
Human development index
Source UNDP Report, 2006. Data for 2004. USA
HDI0.948, LE77.5 yr, AL99, GER93,
GDP39,676 Rank 8
10

• Land area 298,170 km2
• Slightly larger than Arizona
• Coastline 36,289 km
• Climate tropical marine
• Terrain mostly mountains
• Resources timber, petroleum, nickel, cobalt,
  silver, gold, salt, copper

11
Philippines - Background

• Aetas (small, black people) aboriginal settlers
• Migrants from Taiwan and mainland Asia
• Spanish colony 1521
• US colony 1898 to 1935

The banaue rice terraces in the Cordillera
Mountain range, northern Philippines. Aka the
8th Wonder of the World.
12
Demographic profile Philippines

• Population 89.5 million, growth rate1.8
  Median age 22.5 yr
• Net migration -1.48 migrants/1,000
• Unemployment rate 8.7 (2005 est.)
• Major ethnic groups or dialects 7
• Aeta are aboriginal inhabitants, followed by
  waves of migrations from Taiwan and mainland
  Asia.
• Other races Spaniards, Americans, Japanese

13
Deforestation and land use changes in the
Philippines

• Forest cover
• 17.1 million ha (57 of land area) in 1934
• 7.1 million ha in 1988
• 2/3 of forest gone in 5 decades
• Between 1990 and 1999 75,000 A/yr deforested
• Causes (much debate)
• logging (legal illegal, corruption) and
  conversion to agriculture are principal
• In some regions, forests are kept because
  benefits of tourism and fishery protection offset
  the benefits of cutting trees

14
Land use Philippines (1993)

• Arable land 19 15,800 km2 irrigated
• Permanent crops 12
• Permanent pastures 4
• Forests and woodland 46
• Others 19
• Environmental issues deforestation in watershed
  areas, soil erosion, air and water pollution in
  cities, pollution of coastal mangrove swamps

15
Agrarian history Philippines

• Pre-Spanish period
• Land owned by village chiefs, but everybody has
  land to farm
• Planting crops by hand
• Spanish period
• Royal land grants introduced, owned by
  Encomienderos who were in charge of protecting
  the estate. In turn, he collects tributes from
  the natives farming the land.
• Later, encomienderos granted pieces of land to a
  few powerful landlords who displaced the natives
  or made the natives share tenants.

16
Agrarian history Philippines

• 1st Philippine Republic
• Planned to confiscate large estates, but
  government was short-lived so plan was not
  implemented.
• American period
• Set the ceiling on land owned by private
  individual (16 ha) and corporation (1024 ha)
• Comprehensive registration of land titles
• Regulated crop sharing between landowners and
  tenants e.g. 5050 sharing of rice crop

17
Agrarian history Philippines

• American period (contd.)
• Land registration (surveys) increased land
  disputes because of defective systems rooted
  during Spanish era and ignorance of the law
• Friar lands (owned by Spanish priests) could not
  be touched because of protection rules under
  treaty of Paris (1898)

18
Agrarian history Philippines

• The new Republic period
• Modified and solidified tenancy law
  (share-tenancy and leasehold systems)
• Large tracts of rice and corn land (200 ha for
  individuals, 600 ha for corporations)
  distributed for tenants
• Provided loans to small farmers and share
  tenants.
• Share-tenancy was later abolished and replaced by
  leasehold

19
Agrarian history Philippines

• Current government
• Comprehensive agrarian reform program is in
  charge of distribution of land and a package of
  support services including
• Credit assistance
• Extension services
• Irrigation facilities
• Roads and bridges
• Marketing facilities
• Training and support programs

20
Deforestation and land use changes in the
Philippines

• Mangroves
• Conversion of mangrove swamps to shrimp farms or
  fish ponds, dependent on export demand
• Changes in government expenditures
• Reduced government spending on irrigation will
  change cropping practices and will encourage
  clearing of additional forest lands for upland
  crop production.
• Cancellation of government programs on
  rehabilitation of mangrove swamps will delay
  environmental restoration

21

• Natural resources
• Coal (4th largest reserves in the world)
• iron ore
• manganese
• mica
• bauxite
• titanium ore
• chromite
• natural gas
• diamonds
• petroleum
• limestone
• arable land

22
India - Background

• Indus Valley civilization dates back 5,000 yrs
• Aryan tribes settled in about 1500 B.C.
• Arabs in 8th century
• Turkish in 12th century
• British control - 19th century

23
Geography - India

• Land area 2,973,193 km2
• Slightly 1/3 the US land area
• Borders
• land 14,103 km coast 7,000 km
• Climate tropical monsoon in south, temperate in
  north
• upland plain (Deccan Plateau) in south, flat to
  rolling plain along the Ganges, deserts in west,
  Himalayas in north

24
Demographics India (2006)

• Population 1.1 billion (2006 est.) 72.2 in
  rural areas ave. age 26 yrs
• Population growth 1.38
• Population under poverty line 25 (2002 est.)
• Unemployment rate 7.8
• Net migration -0.07/1000
• 22 official languages 216 dialects

25
Deforestation - India

• Began in 19th century, with British colonialism
• Implemented Forest Reserves Act in 1878
  implementation was lax, people continue to
  violate rules (gather firewood, graze animals)
• Corruption outweighs the incentives for forest
  conservation

26
Land use India (2005)

• Arable land 48.83
• Permanent crops 2.8
• Other uses 48.37
• Irrigated land 558,000 km2 (2003)

• Current environmental issues

deforestation soil erosion overgrazing
desertification air pollution from industrial
effluents and vehicle emissions water pollution
from raw sewage and runoff of agricultural
pesticides tap water is not potable throughout
the country huge and growing population is
overstraining natural resources
27
Agriculture - India

• GDP composition (2005 est) agriculture 20,
  industry 19, services 61
• Labor force agriculture 60, services 28
• Since independence from British rule in 1947,
  share of agric. in GDP declined while share of
  industrial and services sectors increased
• Strived for self-sufficiency in food production
  since early 1960s fueled green revolution
• By early 1990s self-sufficient in food grain
  (wheat and pulses). Expansion in crop
  production has to come almost entirely from
  increasing yields on lands already in some kind
  of agricultural use.

28
Impact of population pressure

• Population pressure induces investment on
  research extension, but not enough to offset
  demands of growing population.
• Pop. pressure stimulates road development, but
  not improved rural markets.
• Population density has negligible effect on
  irrigation and cropped areas.
• Population density enhances gain from
  productivity of near neighbors, but worsens the
  competitive impact from far neighbors.

29
Impact of population pressure

• Technology enhancement (high-yielding varieties),
  wherever available, has significant positive
  impact on labor income.
• Infrastructure (roads) also has positive impact
  on labor income for all India.
• Malthusian labor supply has negative impact on
  labor income, and impacts are only partially
  offset by population inducement and enhancement.
  Improved technology allowed temporary escape from
  Malthusian trap (Evenson 1993).

30
(No Transcript)
31
Guatemala - Background

• Mayan civilization 1st millenium A.D.
• Spanish colony 1500s to 1821 in photo is
  Iglesia San Francisco, Antigua
• 36-yr guerrilla war during 2nd half of 20th
  century
• Peace agreement in 1996

Photo by David R. Huskins
32
Geography - Guatemala

• Central America
• 108,430 km2
• Smaller than TN
• Bordered by Belize, El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico

• 400 km coastline
• Mountainous terrain
• Natural resources petroleum, nickel, rare woods,
  chicle, fish, hydropower

33
Demographics Guatemala (2006)

• Population 12.3 million, median age 18.9 yrs,
  growth rate 2.27
• Net migration rate -1.94/1000
• Ethnic groups
• Mestizo (Ladino) and European 59.4
• The rest are composed of various Mayan and
  indigenous non-Mayan descent

34
Land use Guatemala

• Arable land 12
• Land in agriculture 30
• Permanent crops 5
• Permanent pastures 24
• Forests and woodland 54

35
Agriculture - Guatemala

• Central to economy and society, employs 60 of
  labor
• 23 of GNP (1997)
• 61.4 of population live in rural areas (2000)
• Extremely unequal land distribution
• 96 of producers cultivated 20 of land mass
  live in subsistence conditions
• 0.2 of producers owned 70 of land

36
Agrarian issue - Guatemala

• Spanish rule expropriated land from indigenous
  population and given to colonizers
• First agrarian law (1825) to increase
  public-domain land transferred to private owners
• Expropriation of indigenous land holdings
  continued until 1885
• The majority of farmers were displaced to less
  productive highlands

37
Agrarian issue - Guatemala

• Agrarian Law (1894) allowed sale of up to 678
  ha of state land to private owners.
• United Fruit Co. (now Chiquita) started
  operating in lowlands in 1901 leased huge tracts
  of land from government for up to 99 yrs paid
  tiny tax on exports and exempt from import and
  profit taxes
• Mid-1940s 22 latifundistas owned more land than
  259,169 families
• Titling law passed to allow squatters farming
  land for 10 yrs to obtain land title.

38
Agrarian issue - Guatemala

• Agrarian Reform Law Decree 900 (1952)
• Allowed redistribution of approx. 1 million ha of
  idle, uncultivated state farmland.
• Up to 40 of rural households and 40 of landless
  labor force received from 3.5 to 17.5 ha
• CIA-backed military coup annulled all land
  redistributions in 1954 (supported by landed
  elites, Catholic Church, middle-class business
  sector, foreign plantation owners.

39
General impact - Guatemala

• land
• 90 of rural inhabitants live in poverty
• Serious consequences on sustainable land use,
  smallholder self-sufficiency
• Intensive cultivation of marginal land severe
  soil erosion, lower yields, dependence on
  seasonal and permanent migration for remittances
  to support family
• In 1998, 96 of farm units were at or below
  subsistence level.

40
Overall summary

• Complex factors affect land use patterns
  political, social, demographic, topographic,
  edaphic, climatic
• Common issues land scarcity uneven
  distribution of land
• Corporate farming has displaced small farmers in
  which case the labor force become hired workers
  in big farms.