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| Title: | Eritrea's Land Reform Proclamation: A Critical Appraisal |
| Author: | Mengisteab, Kidane |
| Year: | 1998 |
| Periodical: | Eritrean Studies Review (ISSN 1086-9174) |
| Volume: | 2 |
| Issue: | 2 |
| Pages: | 1-18 |
| Language: | English |
| Notes: | biblio. refs. |
| Geographic terms: | Eritrea Northeast Africa |
| Subjects: | land reform Agriculture, Natural Resources and the Environment Law, Human Rights and Violence Politics and Government law Commons agricultural land Urban land environmental degradation Social implications |
| Abstract: | Land tenure in Eritrea is largely communal. Following independence in 1993, one of the policy initiatives the government of Eritrea took was the proclamation in 1994 of a reform of the country's land tenure systems. The ultimate ownership of land rests with the State, but every adult will be entitled to a plot of land on a usufructuary basis. Over three years after its proclamation, the land reform decree has yet to be implemented. This paper explores the dynamics and limitations of the proposed reform in overcoming land tenure problems, reviews the existing tenure systems, examines the impact of the reform on peasant farmers and nomads, analyses social and administrative implications, discusses urban development, and offers policy recommendations. The reformers have underestimated the merits and flexibility of the traditional communal land tenure system. In nomadic areas, the reform needs to be supplemented by measures to help nomads. Bureaucratic problems are among the factors explaining the delay in implementing the reform in urban areas. It is doubtful that the government has the bureaucratic capacity to allocate land efficiently on a permanent basis. The delay in the allocation of urban land makes it more difficult to overcome the housing crisis. Bibliogr., notes, ref. |