Scandinavian Working Papers in Economics

CLTS Working Papers,
Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Centre for Land Tenure Studies

No 12/26: Land markets in Africa? Participation, measurement, and challenges for development and sustainability

Jacob Ricker-Gilbert (), Jordan Chamberlin (), Stein T. Holden () and Keijiro Otsuka ()
Additional contact information
Jacob Ricker-Gilbert: Department of Agricultural Economics, Postal: Purdue University, , 403 West State Street, , West Lafayette IN. 47907, , USA
Jordan Chamberlin: CIMMYT, Postal: CIMMYT, P. O. Box 1041-00621, , Nairobi, , Kenya.
Stein T. Holden: Centre for Land Tenure Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Postal: Centre for Land Tenure Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, P.O. Box 5003, NO-1432 Aas, Norway
Keijiro Otsuka: Research Institute for Economics and Business Administration, Postal: Kobe University,, 2-1 Rokkodai, Nada, Kobe, Hyogo 657-8501, , Japan.

Abstract: Empirical research conducted in earlier decades indicated that rural farmland markets in many countries of sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) were growing rapidly, while delivering both efficiency and equity gains to smallholder tenants and landlords. This study updates these earlier findings by analyzing nationally representative survey data from nine countries in SSA collected between 2008 and 2023. Contrary to the findings from previous decades, these newer data indicate mostly stagnant growth in land rental markets in recent decades. To inform these findings, we synthesized the relevant existing literature. We believe discrepancy between early and recent evidence of land rental participation growth rates may stem from two sources: first, there is increasing evidence of measurement error arising from survey designs and sampling frames. Second, persistent frictions caused by significant transaction costs may have constrained land rental market growth beyond initial stages, limiting the ability of these markets to deliver efficiency and equity gains.

Keywords: Sub-Saharan Africa; land rental markets; land sales markets; structural transformation; tenants; landlords

JEL-codes: D63; O12; O13; Q12; Q15

Language: English

31 pages, October 31, 2026

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