The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

The average size of the cultivable land has decreased by 0.31 per cent during last two decades, a survey report says.

The BRAC conducted the survey between 1987 and 2008 through a sampling method at 64 unions across the country.

Executive Director of BRAC Dr Mahbub Hossain revealed the findings of the survey while presenting a keynote paper on "Two Decades of Change in Rural Economy: Trends in Landownership" at a seminar at BRAC Center auditorium. The BRAC Development Institute and the Research and Evaluation Division of BRAC jointly organised the seminar.

"The size of cropland has decreased over the last two decades; from an average farm holding size of 0.87 hectares in 1988 to 0.56 hectares in 2008. This pressure on land raises questions on the economic viability of farms though much of the decrease is accounted for by diversion of land to other productive uses-orchards, fishery and social forestry," Mahbub Hossain said in his survey report.

"Landownership in Bangladesh remains unequal with 3 per cent of rural households in 2008 owning no land, 26 per cent owning only homestead and 12 per cent owning less than 0.04 hectares. Taken together this group, referred to as the ultra-poor, constitutes 40 per cent of all rural households. In 1988, 34 per cent of rural households were ultra-poor, implying a marked increase in landlessness," according to the report.

"On the other hand about 6 per cent of households owned more than 2 hectares of land in 1988. This has decreased to 4 per cent in 2008. Besides, 40 per cent of households own only 8 per cent of total land, 4 per cent of the wealthiest households own 32 per cent of all land," the survey also said.

"Only 12 per cent of rural households rented out land in 1988. By 2004, the share had shot up to 29 per cent. But since then, over the last four years, market profitability has led more and more households to switch back to cultivating their own land," the report noted.

"Similarly, the share of owner-farms declined to about 26 per cent in 2004 from 37 per cent in 1988. Land owned by them also shrank from 68 per cent to 52 per cent. But within last few years, the share of this group went up to 29 per cent to common about 60 per cent of land," the report added.

"Non-farm households constituted 34 per cent of rural households in 1988 with 9 per cent of cultivable land, but by 2008, the share rose to about 44 per cent to command about 27 per cent of total land," the report said.

Sayed M Hashemi presided over the seminar while Prof Abdul Bayes of Jahangirnagar University addressed at the seminar.