Property rights, resource reallocation and welfare effects: Evidence from a land certification programme

• Li, Chengzheng ^[1] ; Xie, Huiru ^[2] ; Huang, Zhiwen ; Gai, Qingen ^[3]
  1. [1] Jinan University

     Jinan University

     China

     
  2. [2] Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

     Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

     RAE de Hong Kong (China)

     
  3. [3] Shanghai Jiao Tong University

     Shanghai Jiao Tong University

     China

     

  Mostrar afiliaciones +
• Localización: Land use policy: The International Journal Covering All Aspects of Land Use, ISSN 0264-8377, ISSN-e 1873-5754, Nº. 154, 2025
• Idioma: inglés
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • The paper finds that stronger property rights proxied by land certification reform result in resource reallocation and improve the welfare of rural households. Using the implementation of the land certification programme in China as a quasi-natural experiment, the study shows that households that obtained land certificates are 19 % more likely to rent out their agricultural land, 14 % more likely to allocate household workers to non-agricultural sectors and 13 % more likely to have migrant workers, which improves household income and consumption in rural China. In contrast, the study finds that the land reform did not affect household’s land renting-in, and the average cultivated area of rural households declines after the reform.