Structural Change in Agricultural Land Use In The Mekong Delta, Vietnam

This book considers farmers as the center of the relation between agriculture and rural development in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam. Using micro data sources over the years from the existing surveys across the country (Vietnam Household Living Standards Survey and Vietnam Access to Resources Household Survey), this study tries to sketch an overall picture of agricultural land management in the Mekong Delta. The four components of this study are the changes in the agricultural institution, the transforming in the socio-economic structure of the region, the changes in technology and the shifting of the internal elements of the agricultural sector. Research results indicate that, in the Mekong Delta, agriculture has contributed significantly to economic growth over the years thanks to the perspective policies. However, there are some problems that arise in the sustainable development of agriculture in the region, mainly related to the incentive of agricultural production. Size small and fragmented farms negatively affect the efficiency of rice production in particular and agriculture in general. To improve production efficiency, farmers tend to accumulate the agricultural land on a large scale - even larger than the quotas of the State - to take the advantage of economy of scale. This study argues that such limitations as allocated quotas and land use duration should be expanded or even deregulated in the Mekong Delta. In addition, the government should promote the development of the free markets of land use and labor, promote the transparency of the planning and land management policies of the region. They would positively contribute to reducing landlessness, but also promote agricultural production in large scale following the development of modern agriculture in many countries around the world.