PAKISTAN—LAND TENURE AND PROPERTY RIGHTS PROFILE

The densely-settled Indus Basin Irrigation System (IBIS) is the breadbasket of the country, producing commodities that drive industry and accounting for 50-60% of exports. However, ownership of irrigated land in the Indus Valley is highly concentrated, with between 20% and 40% of rural households reported to be landless or near-landless. These households either lease or sharecrop land when they can or work as laborers on and off farms, with many raising stall-fed livestock. Poverty is highly correlated with landlessness and is seen as contributing to political and social instability. Repeated government attempts to address inequality of access to land and tenure insecurity have largely failed to transform the system. Tenants and sharecroppers have little incentive to invest in sustainable production practices due to insecure land tenure. Insecure land tenure, coupled with poor water policy and management, has led to increasing degradation of land. Undervaluing the water supply has led to waterlogging and inefficient water-use in some areas, while poor water distribution has caused lack of water in other areas, lowering the profitability of land and the incentive to invest in complementary inputs. A comprehensive legal framework for establishing more equitable access to property and more transparent land administration could contribute to both political and economic development objectives. However, the preparation and administration of such a framework would require substantial and sustained leadership on the part of both federal and provincial governments. Linking statutory law with local customary law, ensuring that women have rights to property as established in law, and the establishment of a land registration system that incorporates the current tax-revenue-based system of records with standardized documents and registries could increase tenure security and reduce land-based conflicts. Reforms could also address urban land issues, currently cited by Pakistani firms as one of the barriers to investment. The Land Reform Act of 1977, Pakistan's third and most recent effort at addressing inequality of land access and land tenure since Independence, failed to meet its objectives. The legislation attempted to plug gaps in prior legislation and implement tenancy, land ceiling, and land distribution reforms. Almost all of the minimal progress made occurred under the initial 1959 reforms. Pakistan's uneven land distribution remains unaddressed. The country is also plagued by poorly functioning, inadequate, and duplicative systems of land administration, and an overburdened and ineffective formal court system. Parallel customary systems of transferring land and resolving land-disputes prove more accessible and efficient, creating a pluralistic legal environment. Pakistan has a semi-arid climate and uses almost all available surface and groundwater resources to meet the demands of the agricultural, industrial, and domestic sectors. Only 60% of the water from the Indus Basin Irrigation System (IBIS) reaches farms, water use is often inefficient, and demand for water is increasing. About 50% of water in irrigated systems comes from groundwater; the energy costs to pump the water are increasing, and aquifers are not being adequately recharged through the development of rainwater harvesting and storage. The quality of agricultural and rangeland in Pakistan is degraded, with the country having one of the highest rates of deforestation in the world. Women in Pakistan are unable to exercise the rights to land granted to them by constitutional, statutory, and religious law, under pressure of customary law and traditional practice. Women's access to the natural resources they depend on for their livelihoods is inherently insecure and easily lost in times of scarcity. Pakistan has significant mineral deposits, including gemstones, coal, copper, and iron ore. Provincial governments have authority to regulate mining of most minerals within their borders. Most deposits have not been explored or mined due to lack of infrastructure and investment.