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The cost of property rights : establishing institutions on the Philippine frontier rule under American rule, 1898-1918 / Noel Maurer, Lakshmi Iyer

Author:
Maurer, Noel
Published:
Cambridge, MA : National Bureau of Economic Research, [2008]
Copyright Date:
©2008
Physical Description:
53 pages : illustrations, map ; 22 cm.
Additional Creators:
Iyer, Lakshmi and National Bureau of Economic Research
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Summary:
We examine three reforms to property rights introduced by the United States in the Philippines in the early 20th century: the redistribution of large estates to their tenants, the creation of a system of secure land titles, and a homestead program to encourage cultivation of public lands. During the first phase of American occupation (1898-1918), we find that the progress of implementing these reforms was very slow. As a consequence, tenure insecurity increased over this period, and the distribution of farm sizes remained extremely unequal. We identify two primary causes for the slow progress of reform: first, the high cost of implementing these programs was a major factor in reducing take-up. On the other hand, the government was reluctant to evict delinquent or informal cultivators, especially on public lands. This reduced the costs of tenure insecurity. Political constraints prevented the government from subsidizing land reforms to a greater degree.
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Note:
"September 2008."
Bibliography Note:
Includes bibliographical references (pages 37-40).
Other Forms:
Also available in PDF from the NBER World Wide Web site (www.nber.org).
View MARC record | catkey: 4736645