Farm Size and Land Use Changes in Vietnam Following Land Reforms

Over the last decade the Vietnamese government has instigated land reforms that recognise the household as the basic unit of production and allocate land use rights to households. Under the 1993 Land Law these rights can be transferred, exchanged, leased, inherited, and mortgaged. This Land Law provided the foundation for the development of a market for land use rights. During 2001, 400 farm households were surveyed in four provinces in Vietnam. Along with production and consumption data, evidence was sought of land accumulation and consolidation, land use changes, and attitudes to land reform issues. Analysis of the data shows that there is an active market for land use rights, but the level of activity varies considerably between provinces. Some individual households have acquired a large percentage of their land through buying or renting activities, as distinct from land that has been allocated or inherited. A more active market appears to be associated with opportunities for land use changes which lead to more profitable production activities. Lack of available land and in some cases labour, inadequate credit access, and reluctance to sell land use rights are identified as constraints to the land use right market, rather than transaction costs and the limit on land holdings.