Impact of second level land certification on tenure security, investment and incomes

Land Investment for Transformation (LIFT) programme works with the Government of Ethiopia (GoE) to deliver second level land certification (SLLC) to smallholder farmers.

This report documents quantitative findings on how tenure security translates into increased investments, productivity, and incomes. 

The most recent income survey (2021) finds that tenure security effect from roll-out of SLLC is a necessary but an insufficient driver of productivity improvements for smallholder farmers. It is a secondary driver of productivity and income, with other variables, such as weather and input-use, playing a larger, primary, or direct role in determining agricultural productivity.

The report reflects that:

• SLLC investments can play a central role in reducing soil erosion and other climate change effects, thereby reducing drastic coping mechanism such as migration
• SLLC contributes to an expanding land rental market, which increases the overall productivity of land in Ethiopia
• Complementary market interventions impact on incomes in the short-term