Land Titling and Investment In Tanzania: An Empirical Investigation

Kassa, Woubet (2014): Land Titling and Investment In Tanzania: An Empirical Investigation.

Abstract

The role of property rights in resource allocation has been one of the central themes in development economics. There exists extensive theoretical arguments that property rights in land are closely associated with the productive efficiency of agricultural resources as well as investment decisions. However, empirical findings have not been conclusive. This has been complicated due to possible endogeneity of titles, unobserved hetrogeneities and the non-experimental nature of the data. To overcome these problems, the study employs an instrumental variable and fixed effect models. The inheritance status of a plot is used as an IV for the titling status of a plot. Using the 2010/2011 Tanzania National Survey data, it is shown that the effects of titling on investment is positive and sizable. Formal tests of endogeneity are presented to establish the claim that titles are endogenous.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Land Titling, Property Rights and Investment, Land tenure, Africa, Tanzania
• Subjects: O - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth > O1 - Economic Development > O10 - General; O - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth > O1 - Economic Development > O13 - Agriculture ; Natural Resources ; Energy ; Environment ; Other Primary Products; Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q0 - General; Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q0 - General > Q01 - Sustainable Development; Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q1 - Agriculture > Q15 - Land Ownership and Tenure ; Land Reform ; Land Use ; Irrigation ; Agriculture and Environment

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