Sri Lanka Human Development Report 2012.pdf

Restrictive land ownership constrains agricultural
productivity. The state owns 84 percent of land, of which
34 percent is set aside for agriculture. Out of that, 48
percent is leased to farmers under the Land Development
Ordinance permits, which do not provide full ownership
rights (Figure 5.4). The lack of secure property rights
negatively influences investment, access to credit,
transferability and long-term usage patterns. People who
cannot sell or lease land lose a safety net and the flexibility
to move out of farming. 237 An additional problem is that
existing legislation discriminates against women in the
area of property rights (Box 5.2).
services, access to markets, fertilizers, credit and so on.
Much of the extent in smallholdings is located in the
North Western, North Central and Southern provinces.
A major share of extent in smallholdings is solely used for
crop cultivation (73%). A much smaller share of land is
used for livestock and crops mixed agriculture activities
(Figure 5.5) 239 Only a very low amount of land is used
only for livestock (0.1% of land extent under smallholding
agriculture), a large portion of which is in the Northern
and Western Provinces. 240
Figure 5.4: State-Owned Land and the Redistribution of Agricultural Land
Source: Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka 2004.
Note: The Mahaweli Ganga Development Programme is an integrated rural development programme undertaken based
on water resources of Mahaweli and allied six river basins. Some land under the irrigation systems are vested with
allottees with title deeds, and are termed Swarnaboomi grants. This allows under the Land Development Ordinance to
develop the state land.
Over the years, a land titling debate led to the 2008
Registration of Title Act (RTA) No. 21. Implementation
is difficult, as more than 39 operational laws and about
60 institutions are involved in land administration and
management, a situation fostering confusion over powers
and duties, and lack of coordination. No mechanism exists
to resolve conflicts. 238 Even so, land tenure can be less
important to agriculture than other inputs, such as extension
Cultivation is dominated by traditional crops that are less
profitable than those with high-export value, such as palm
oil, dragon fruits and horticultural crops. 241 Practiced on a
wider scale and more intensively, diversification involving
high-value crops could generate increased income and
transform marginal operations into profitable ones. 242
However, this does not seem feasible on a large scale at
present because of poor access to water and technology.
Chapter 5 Bridging Human Development Gaps: Employment and Livelihoods 87