Property rights, productivity and common property resources: insights from rural Cambodia

TY - JOUR

T1 - Property rights, productivity and common property resources

T2 - insights from rural Cambodia

AU - Markussen, Thomas

PY - 2008

Y1 - 2008

N2 - This paper uses data from the 2003/04 Cambodia Household Socioeconomic Survey to investigate the effects of property rights to land. Plots held with a paper documenting ownership in rural Cambodia are found to have higher productivity and land values than other plots, while property rights have weak effects on access to credit. The paper also investigates whether the introduction of private property rights leads to decreased availability of common property resources. The data offers only weak support for this hypothesis. The general insight is that policies to strengthen land property rights can have important, positive effects on the rural economy, even in an environment of low state capacity.

AB - This paper uses data from the 2003/04 Cambodia Household Socioeconomic Survey to investigate the effects of property rights to land. Plots held with a paper documenting ownership in rural Cambodia are found to have higher productivity and land values than other plots, while property rights have weak effects on access to credit. The paper also investigates whether the introduction of private property rights leads to decreased availability of common property resources. The data offers only weak support for this hypothesis. The general insight is that policies to strengthen land property rights can have important, positive effects on the rural economy, even in an environment of low state capacity.

KW - Faculty of Social Sciences

KW - agriculture

KW - rural Cambodia

KW - Asia

U2 - 10.1016/j.worlddev.2008.04.008

DO - 10.1016/j.worlddev.2008.04.008

M3 - Journal article

SN - 0305-750X

VL - 36

SP - 2277

EP - 2296

JO - World Development

JF - World Development

IS - 11

ER -