Individualized land tenure and African agricultural development : alternatives for policy

The frame of reference is that of an agricultural system based on shifting cultivation or "bush fallow" and a land tenure system based on extended family or lineage control of usufruct of land. The agricultural and tenure systems of the Mende and Limba in Sierra Leone are used as illustrations. The basic argument is that land tenure rules define the opportunity to earn income and also define the security with which that opportunity is held. Customary tenure rules which emphasize security of opportunity have proved flexible in adjusting to the rapidly changing economic environment in modern Africa.