Problems of land ownership in relation to land development in Sri Lanka

Abstract

The government of Sri Lanka has been directing its efforts for several decades, at increasing the development of the country# The achievement of this goal depends on the efficacy/ of mobilising the factors of production of land, labour and capital. It is found that there are constraints in getting the maximum out of the land. As a result of these constraints, sufficient labour is not being engaged on or sufficient Capital is not being invested in the land. The land ownership pattern moulded by the intricate laws of succession, which in turn is a result of the historical and cultural background of the people, has been a major constraint in obtaining the maximum from the land. This situation has been aggravated by the lack of proper land records. The undesirable effects of this system have been the inability of getting capital for investment on the land or the prevalance of disputes resulting in the neglect of such lands. This study is directed at the identification of such problems and finding solutions for them. After a critical study of the land ownership system leading to the identification of problems, in Chapter 2, two cose studies are directed at making an assessment of the effect of these problems on development. A comparative study of the situation in a representative selection of countries have been done in Chapter 4. Ths study carried on those linos is directed at the formulation of proposals and a plan of aotion for salving these problems. (iii) The proposals are aimed at s (a) Simplifying the land law and land tenure, (b) Simplifying the procedure in land transactions, and (c) Maintaining a systematic record of rights in land, to be used as an aid in development administration© The #lan of action covers a 25 year period and is aimed at the implementation of the proposals taking into account the development projects already initiated by the Government©