The effect of land fragmentation on the productivity and technical efficiency of smallholder maize farms in Southern Rwanda

2.0 ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK AND LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Analytical framework

2.1.1 Land fragmentation definition

McPherson (1982) argues that «when a number of non-contiguous owned or leased farms (or `plots') of land are farmed as a single production unit, land fragmentation exists». This means that the plots in a farm are spatially separate. Schultz (1953) defines fragmentation as a «misallocation of the existing stock of agricultural land.» He points out that a fragmented farm is «...a farm consisting of two or more plots of land so located one to another that it is not possible to operate the particular farm and other such farms as efficiently as would be the case if the plots were reorganized and recombined». Schultz sees land fragmentation as a source of inefficiency.

Dovring et al. (1960) regards land fragmentation as «the division of land into a great number of distinct plots...» when he analyzes land reform in Europe. He points out that the French used two concepts for land fragmentation in their consolidation operation: «îlot de propriété» and «plotle» (McPherson, 1982). The former referred to a piece of land owned by a single person and surrounded by the property of others. The latter was a plot located apart from the îlot de propriété. Land fragmentation meant that farmers owned plotles which did not form part of their îlots de propriété.

Papageorgiou (1963) emphasizes the role of distance in fragmentation. He notes that fragmentation means a holding consisting of several scattered plots over a wide area. Agarwal (1972), defines land fragmentation as a decrease in the average size of farm holdings; an increase in the scattering of each farmer's land; and a decrease in the size of the individual plots in a farm holding. Binns (1950) sees fragmentation as «...a stage in the evolution of the agricultural holding in which a single farm consists of numerous discrete plots, often scattered over a wide area». According to Binns' definition, land fragmentation represents a stage in agricultural holding's evolution. This suggests that if the holding is evolving towards consolidation, land fragmentation may be a temporary phenomenon.

Generally, even though land fragmentation is defined in different ways, three distinct interpretations can be identified: (1) it implies the subdivision of farm property into undersized units that are too small for rational cultivation; (2) it suggests that the plots are noncontiguous and are intermixed with plots operated by other farmers; and (3) the last type sees distance as an important aspect of land fragmentation.

2.1.2 Causes of land fragmentation

In the literature, researchers have classified the causes of land fragmentation under two broad categories. These are supply-side causes and demand-side causes ( Blarel Benoit,  Peter Hazell,  Frank Place and  John Quiggin, 1992; Mc Pherson 1982; Bentley 1987).