Impacts of Land Tenure Security on the Conversion of Agricultural Land to Urban Use

Abstract

Land tenure security influences several processes relevant to the long-term sustainability of farmland management, including agricultural land conversion to urban use (ALCU). This phenomenon has been illustrated by several studies, mainly on the scale of individual countries. However, there is a noticeable lack of global-scale analyses examining how different aspects of land tenure affect ALCU. To address this gap, we have conducted a meta-analysis of 62 studies that provide quantitative insights into the effects of land tenure variables on ALCU. We used Comprehensive Meta-Analysis (CMA) software to extract data from original articles, including land tenure type (expressed as land farmed by its owner and land farmed by a tenant), legal status (titled land and untitled land), cadastral assignment (designated and not-designated agricultural land), and land ownership (private land and communal land). We have found significant effects of all these aspects of land tenure on ALCU. Land farmed by its owner was the most substantial factor protecting agricultural land from urbanization, with a 3.42% decrease in ALCU. We also observed a 2.97% decrease in ALCU on titled land, a 2.62% decrease on designated agricultural land, and a 1.85% decrease on land that was privately owned. The application of findings and implications for policymakers are substantial: (i) efforts to secure land tenure, especially in underinvested areas, can minimize the degradation of land resources and facilitate better farmland preservation, (ii) the support of owner-operated farming, land titles, private ownership of land, and designated agricultural land is conducive to sustainable farmland management, and (iii) the synergic effect of promoting land tenure security should be utilized to protect agricultural land from conversion to urban uses.