An Assessment of the Inequality in Income and Land Holdings among Rural Rice Farmers of District Swat

Khattak, Naeem Ur Rehman Khattak and Hussain, Anwar Hussain (2008): An Assessment of the Inequality in Income and Land Holdings among Rural Rice Farmers of District Swat. Published in: Sarhad Journal of Agriculture , Vol. 24, No. 1 (2008): pp. 187-189.

Abstract

The study was conducted in district Swat during 2007 to assess the degree of inequalities existing among rural rice farmers’ income and land holdings. To this end, primary data was collected through structured questionnaire using a sample of one hundred rice farmers allocating to three tehsils selected purposively, each comprising three villages selected on the basis of proportional sampling technique. Lorenz curve approach and Gini-coefficient was used for the measurement of inequality in farmers’ income and land holdings. The results obtained from Lorenz square box and Gini-coefficient indicated higher degree of inequality existing among farmers’ income and size of land holdings. Based on the findings of the study, appropriate land reforms’ structure should be introduced. Government should give incentives to poor farmers for increasing their income which will reduce these inequalities.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Assessment; Inequality; Income inequility; Land Holdings; Rural Rice Farmers; Swat
• Subjects: D - Microeconomics > D6 - Welfare Economics > D63 - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement; A - General Economics and Teaching > A1 - General Economics > A10 - General

References

Atkinson, A. B. 1970. On the measurement of inequality. J. of Econ. Theory. 2: 244-263.

Cowell, F. A. 1977. Measuring Inequality. Oxford: Philip Allan.

Kahn, H. S., L. M. Tatham, E.R. Pamuk, C. W. Heath, and Jr. 1998. Are geographic regions with high income inequality associated with risk of abdominal weight gain? Social Sci. & Medicine. 47: 1-6.

Kaplan, G. A., E. R. Pamuk, J.W. Lynch, R.D. Cohen, and J. L. Balfour 1996. Inequality in income and mortality in the United States: analysis of mortality and potential pathways. British Medical J. 312: 999-1003.

Kennedy, B.P., I. Kawachi, and D. Prothrow-Stith 1996. Income distribution and mortality: cross-sectional ecological study of the Robin Hood Index in the United States. British Medical Journal 312: 1004-1007. See also erratum: British Medical J. 312: 1253.

Kennedy, B. P., I. Kawachi, and R. Glass 1996. Income distribution, socioeconomic status, and self-rated health: A US multi-level analysis. Br Med J. 317:917-21.

Lynch, J.W., G.A. Kaplan, E.R. Pamuk, R.D. Cohen,J.L. Balfour, and I.H. Yen, 1998. Income inequality and mortality in metropolitan areas of the United States. Amer. J. Public Health. 88: 1074-80.

Sen, A. 1973. On Economic Inequality. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press.

Soobader, M. J. and F.B. LeClere 1999. Aggregation and the measurement of income inequality: effects on morbidity. Social Sci. & Medicine. 48:733-44.

Theil, H. 1967. Economic and Information Theory. Amsterdam: North Holland.

Wilkinson, R.G. 1996. Unhealthy Societies. The Afflictions of Inequality. London: Routledge.