* Corresponding Author
Causes and Impacts of Rural Land Fragmentation in the Coastal Belt of Bangladesh
https://doi.org/10.22146/ijg.67314 Md. Abubakkor Siddik(1*), Md. Ashiqur Rahman(2)
(1) Department of Land Record and Transformation, Patuakhali Science and Technology University (PSTU)
(2) Department of Geomatics, Patuakhali Science and Technology University (PSTU),
(*) Corresponding Author
Abstract
Identification of root causes and associated impacts of land fragmentation is necessary to reduce future fragmentation and mitigate its impacts. Thus, the purpose of this study was to explore the causes and impacts of land fragmentation in a purposively selected coastal Upazila (sub-district) of Bangladesh. This study is carried out mainly based on the collected information from the individual representative of the selected 133 households. It discloses that most of the households observed the land fragmentation during their possession because of rapid population growth and breaking the joint/extended families into nuclear families. In fact, land fragmentation can increase or decrease a particular land use type. However, the results of this research confirm that there are no significant (p >0.07, based on the number of households) associations found between increasing and decreasing homestead land. In contrast, the number of households with cropland significantly (p <0.0001) decreased, whereas the number of households having wetlands significantly (p <0.04) increased. The surveyed households have been practicing high-yielding varieties of crops, using biofertilizers, possessing new land, and changing their income sources for adapting to new land use behavior. The surveyed villagers opine that the land fragmentation problem could be managed by encouraging people living with extended/joint families, vertical use of land, adopting land use policy, etc. The results of this community-reported study can be used to mitigate the impacts of land fragmentation in the coastal rural area of Bangladesh.
Keywords
Full Text:
PDFReferences
Abdollahzadeh, G., Kalantari, K., Sharifzadeh, A., & Sehat, A. (2012). Farmland Fragmentation and Consolidation Issues in Iran; an Investigation from Landholder’s Viewpoint. Journal of Agricultural Science and Technology, 14, 1441–1452.
Al-Amin, A. K. M. A., Rahman, M. S., Hossain, M. I., & Sayem, S. M. (2016). Impact of Land Fragmentation and Soil Fertility on Rice Producers’ Technical Efficiency: An Empirical Study in Bangladesh. Asia-Pacific Journal of Rural Development, XXVI(2), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1177/1018529120160201
Alemu, G. T., Ayele, Z. B., & Berhanu, A. A. (2017). Effects of Land Fragmentation on Productivity in Northwestern Ethiopia. Advances in Agriculture, 2017, 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1155/2017/4509605
Ali, D. A., Deininger, K., & Duponchel, M. (2014). Credit Constraints and Agricultural Productivity: Evidence from rural Rwanda. Journal of Development Studies, 50(5), 649–665. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2014.887687
Ali, D. A., Deininger, K., & Ronchi, L. (2018). Costs and Benefits of Land Fragmentation: Evidence from Rwanda. The World Bank Economic Review, 33(3), 750–771. https://doi.org/10.1093/wber/lhx019
Austin, O. C., Ulunma, A. C., & Sulaiman, J. (2012). Exploring the Link between Land Fragmentation and Agricultural Productivity. International Journal of Agriculture and Forestry, 2(1), 30–34. https://doi.org/10.5923/j.ijaf.20120201.05
Balogun, O. L., & Akinyemi, B. E. (2017). Land fragmentation effects on technical efficiency of cassava farmers in South-West geopolitical zone, Nigeria. Cogent Social Sciences, 3(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2017.1387983
BBS. (2012). Community report Patuakhali Zila - Population and housing census 2011. Dhaka, Bangladesh. Retrieved from http://203.112.218.65:8008/WebTestApplication/userfiles/Image/PopCen2011/COMMUNITY_Patuakhali.pdf
BBS. (2020). Statistical Pocketbook 2020. Dhaka, Bangladesh. Retrieved from http://bbs.portal.gov.bd/sites/default/files/files/bbs.portal.gov.bd/page/d6556cd1_dc6f_41f5_a766_042b69cb1687/2021-06-30-09-25-67bbe4c5c15d7773d82c86adbd26bba9.pdf
Bentley, J. (1987). Economic And Ecological Approaches To Land Fragmentation: In Defense Of A Much Maligned Phenomenon. Annual Review of Anthropology. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.anthro.16.1.31
Bohre, P., & Chaubey, O.P. (2014). Restoration of Degraded Lands through Plantation Forests. Global Journal of Science Frontier Research, 14 (1), 18-27.
Brammer, H. (2016). Bangladesh’s diverse and complex physical geography: implications for agricultural development. Http://Dx.Doi.Org/10.1080/00207233.2016.1236647, 74(1), 1–27. https://doi.org/10.1080/00207233.2016.1236647
Danquah, F.O., Twumasi, M.A., & Asiamah, B.K. (2019). Impact of Land Fragmentation on Technical Efficiency: The Case of Maize Farmers in the Transitional Zone of Ghana. International Journal of Environmental & Agriculture Research, 5(2), 15-26.
Deininger, K., Monchuk, D., Nagarajan, H. K., & Singh, S. K. (2017). Does Land Fragmentation Increase the Cost of Cultivation? Evidence from India. Journal of Development Studies, 53(1), 82–98. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2016.1166210
Demetriou, D., Stillwell, J., & See, L. (2013). A new methodology for measuring land fragmentation. Computers, Environment and Urban Systems, 39, 71–80. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compenvurbsys.2013.02.001
Dhakal, B. N., & Khanal, N. R. (2018). Causes and Consequences of Fragmentation of Agricultural Land: A Case of Nawalparasi District, Nepal. Geographical Journal of Nepal, 11, 95–112. https://doi.org/10.3126/gjn.v11i0.19551
Di Falco, S., Penov, I., Aleksiev, A., & van Rensburg, T. M. (2010). Agrobiodiversity, farm profits and land fragmentation: Evidence from Bulgaria. Land Use Policy, 27(3), 763–771. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2009.10.007
Gedefaw, A. A., Atzberger, C., Seher, W., & Mansberger, R. (2019). Farmers willingness to participate in voluntary land consolidation in Gozamin District, Ethiopia. Land, 8(10), 148. https://doi.org/10.3390/land8100148
Harini, R., Yunus, H. S., & Hartono, S. (2012). Agricultural land conversion: determinants and impact for food sufficiency in Sleman Regency. Indonesian Journal of Geography, 44(2), 120–133. Retrieved from https://jurnal.ugm.ac.id/ijg/article/view/2394
Hasan, M. I. (2017). Land administration in Bangladesh: Problems and analytical approach to solution. International Journal of Law, 3(2), 44–49. Retrieved from http://www.lawjournals.org/download/101/3-1-39-601.pdf
Hasnat, G. N. T., Siddik, M. A., & Zaman, A. K. M. M. (2018a). Historical Evolution of Land Administration in Bangladesh. International Journal of Innovative Research, 3(3), 73–82. Retrieved from http://www.irsbd.org/papers/2._IJIR_3(3)_2018_Tanjina_.pdf
Hasnat, G. N. T., Siddik, M. A., & Zaman, A. K. M. M. (2018b). Land Use Changing Pattern and Challenges for Agricultural Activities: A Study on Dumki Upazila, Patuakhali. J. Patuakhali Sci. and Tech. Uni, 1&2, 67–76.
Hossain, M., & Yoshino, N. (2020). Implementing land trust in Bangladesh. The Financial Express. Retrieved from https://www.thefinancialexpress.com.bd/views/implementing-land-trust-in-bangladesh-1607091734
Hossain, M. (2015). Improving Land Administration and Management in Bangladesh. Dhaka, Bangladesh. Retrieved from https://cepa.rmportal.net/Library/natural-resources/Improving Land Administration and Management in Bangladesh.pdf
Hristov, J. (2009). Assessment of the high fragmented land impact over the productivity and profitability of the farms: The case of the Macedonian vegetable growers (Uppsala University). Uppsala University. Retrieved from https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/8c99/fd412d54f9ae425cf01bceab649b4f481fbd.pdf
Islam, K., Jasimuddin, M., Nath, B., & Nath, T. K. (2016). Quantitative Assessment of Land Cover Change Using Landsat Time Series Data: Case of Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary (CWS), Bangladesh. International Journal of Environment and Geoinformatics, 3(2), 45–55. https://doi.org/10.30897/ijegeo.306471
IUCN, & BFD. (2016). Bangladesh National Conservation Strategy, Part II: Sectoral Profile. Dhaka, Bangladesh. Retrieved from http://bforest.portal.gov.bd/sites/default/files/files/bforest.portal.gov.bd/notices/c3379d22_ee62_4dec_9e29_75171074d885/Executive Summary(NCS).pdf
Jansen, E. G. (1986). Rural Bangladesh: Competition for Scarce Resources. Dhaka: The University Press Limited.
Kawasaki, K. (2010). The costs and benefits of land fragmentation of rice farms in Japan. Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, 54(4), 509–526. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8489.2010.00509.x
King, R., & Burton, S. (1982). Land Fragmentation: Notes on a Fundamental Rural Spatial Problem. Progress in Human Geography, 6(4), 475–494. https://doi.org/10.1177/030913258200600401
Knippenberg, E., Jolliffe, D., & Hoddinott, J. (2020). Land Fragmentation and Food Insecurity in Ethiopia. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 102(5), 1557–1577. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajae.12081
Larson, D. F., Otsuka, K., Matsumoto, T., & Kilic, T. (2014). Should African rural development strategies depend on smallholder farms? An exploration of the inverse-productivity hypothesis. Agricultural Economics, 45(3), 355–367. https://doi.org/10.1111/agec.12070
Latruffe, L., & Piet, L. (2014). Does land fragmentation affect farm performance? A case study from Brittany, France. Agricultural Systems, 129, 68–80. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2014.05.005
Looga, J., Jurgenson, E., Sikk, K., Matveev, E., & Maasikamae, S. (2018). Land fragmentation and other determinants of agricultural farm productivity: The case of Estonia. Land Use Policy, 79, 285-292. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2018.08.021
Lusho, S., & Papa, D. (1998). Land Fragmentation and Consolidation in Albania (No. 25). Madison, USA. Retrieved from https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/a8a3/db060a99bfe7badaf9c304de6c5f78767eee.pdf
Manjunatha, A. V., Anik, A. R., Speelman, S., & Nuppenau, E. A. (2013). Impact of land fragmentation, farm size, land ownership and crop diversity on profit and efficiency of irrigated farms in India. Land Use Policy, 31, 397–405. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2012.08.005
Muhamud, N. W., & Joyfred, A. (2015). Socio-economic factors assessment affecting the adoption of soil conservation technologies on Rwenzori Mountain. Indonesian Journal of Geography, 47(1), 26–39. https://doi.org/10.22146/ijg.6743
Niroula, G. S., & Thapa, G. B. (2007). Impacts of land fragmentation on input use, crop yield and production efficiency in the mountains of Nepal. Land Degradation and Development, 18, 237–248. https://doi.org/10.1002/ldr.771
Obayelu, A. E., Ogunmola, O. O., & Oyewole, K. J. (2019). Land fragmentation and its determinants in Nigeria: a case study of smallholder farmers in Ikenne agricultural zone, Ogun State, Nigeria. Journal of Agribusiness and Rural Development, 52(2), 147–155. https://doi.org/10.17306/j.jard.2019.01135
Paudel, B., Pandit, J., & Reed, B. F. (2013). Fragmentation and conversion of agriculture land in Nepal and Land Use Policy 2012 Fragmentation and conversion of agriculture land in Nepal and Land Use Policy 2012. Munich Personal RePEc Archive. Germany: University Library of Munich. Retrieved from https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/58880/
Rahman, S., & Rahman, M. (2008). Impact of land fragmentation and resource ownership on productivity and efficiency: The case of rice producers in Bangladesh. Land Use Policy, 26, 95-103. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2008.01.003
Rao, X. (2019). Land fragmentation with double dividends – the case of Tanzanian agriculture. European Review of Agricultural Economics, 46 (4), 609–635. https://doi.org/10.1093/erae/jby034
Shuhao, T. (2005). Land fragmentation and rice production: a case study of small farms in Jiangxi Province, China (Wageningen University). Wageningen University. Retrieved from http://edepot.wur.nl/121691
Sulistyo, B., Barchia, M.F., Hindarto, K.S., & Listyaningrum, N. (2020). The Effect of Land Unit Elimination on The Conservation Activity Plan at Air Bengkulu Watershed, Bengkulu Province. Indonesian Journal of Geography, 52 (2), 170-180. https://doi.org/10.22146/ijg.48578
Sundqvist, P., & Andersson, L. (2006). A study of the impacts of land fragmentation on agricultural productivity in Northern Vietnam. (Uppsala University). Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden. Retrieved from https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:131275/FULLTEXT01.pdf
van Dijk, T. (2003). Dealing with Central European land fragmentation: A critical assessment on the use of Western European instruments (Delft University of Technology). Delft University of Technology, Delft, Netherlands. Retrieved from https://repository.tudelft.nl/islandora/object/uuid%3Aeb4e1e43-499c-46eb-8322-38c1dceb9d52
Vijulie, I., Matei, E., Manea, G., Cocoş, O., & Cuculici, R. (2012). Assessment of Agricultural Land Fragmentation in Romania, A Case Study: Izvoarele Commune, Olt County. Acta Geographica Slovenica, 52(2), 403–430. https://doi.org/10.3986/ags52206
Wadud, M. A. (2005). Technical, Allocative, and Economic Efficiency of Farms in Bangladesh: A Stochastic Frontier and DEA Approach. The Journal of Developing Areas, 37(1), 109–126. https://doi.org/10.1353/jda.2004.0019
Wang, S., Li, D., Li, T., & Liu, C. (2021). Land Use Transitions and Farm Performance in China: A Perspective of Land Fragmentation. Land, 10, 792. https://doi.org/10.3390/land10080792
Yunus, H. S., & Harini, R. (2005). The dominant factors affecting agricultural land use (rice field) change in Yogyakarta Special Province. Indonesian Journal of Geography, 37(1). https://doi.org/10.22146/IJG.2217
DOI: https://doi.org/10.22146/ijg.67314
Article Metrics
Abstract views : 1944
| 
views : 1778
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.
Copyright (c) 2022 Md. Abubakkor Siddik, Md. Ashiqur Rahman
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Accredited Journal, Based on Decree of the Minister of Research, Technology and Higher Education, Republic of Indonesia Number 225/E/KPT/2022, Vol 54 No 1 the Year 2022 - Vol 58 No 2 the Year 2026 (accreditation certificate download)
ISSN 2354-9114 (online), ISSN 0024-9521 (print)