Moldovan family farms: social buffer or economic driver? A survey-based assessment

Management Theory and Studies for Rural Business and Infrastructure Development, 2014

In recent years the Republic of Moldova has implemented a set of reforms in order to increase the efficiency of agricultural production. The main purpose of this paper is to highlight economic advantages and disadvantages of large and small scale farms, and also to focus on the multidimensional role of the small scale farming for rural areas. The methodology used in the article is based on analysis of statistical data, as well as on results of relevant qualitative and quantitative surveys. The main expected results of this paper lay in the proposals of ways in which agriculture can make a contribution to the vibrancy of rural communities from the Republic of Moldova.

EC4NR Agriculture Policy Note No. 9, 1997

EC4NR is engaged in a process of updating the current developments in land reform and farm restructuring in four republics of the FSU region. The present publication is an interim report, reflecting the status of land reform and farm restructuring in Moldova on the basis of two small-scale surveys conducted in 1995 and 1996 and a critical assessment of the relevant legislation. The final report will include an analysis of the situation in Moldova based on an extensive farm-sector survey currently being conducted by the World Bank and FAO.

World Bank Discussion Paper WBD398, 1998

The most prominent outcome of agricultural reforms in Moldova is the elimination of the monopoly of the state on ownership of land. As of January 1998, the state owns 18% of agricultural land, and the rest has been privatized. Yet private ownership does not necessarily mean individual ownership. Most of the privatized land remains in collectives and various corporatized farms, while the individual sector accounts for only 20% of agricultural land. While initially the agricultural reforms in Moldova stagnated because of internal fractiousness and political indecision, there has been a definite acceleration of pace since 1995. The number of exits from collective enterprises increased, and the land holdings of private farms established outside the collectivist framework more than trebled during the last two years, reaching 8% of agricultural land. The study reveals a definite relationship between the economic conditions of collective farms and the willingness of individuals to risk independent private farming. The reorganization of collectives was merely “a change of the sign on the door,” and their failure to adjust to the new reality has resulted in rapidly deteriorating profitability. This in turn stimulated vigorous establishment of private farms by former members of collectives, who now report improved profitability and higher incomes. Land reform in Moldova has produced a highly positive impact on the families of private farmers: they are much better off and more optimistic than the families of rural residents who decided to remain in collectives. The transition from collective to individual agriculture in Moldova has not resulted in a reversal to subsistence farming. The individual farm sector has developed a distinct commercial orientation. Fully 80% of private farmers surveyed report some revenue from sales of farm products, and on average they sell nearly 30% of their output. The growth of private farming is accompanied by emergence of various market services, which primarily include commercial private channels for sales of farm products and supply of farm inputs. Even the collectives and various large corporatized farms are moving away from exclusive use of state procurement and processing, and are beginning to rely to an increasing extent on private traders. The case of Moldova before and after 1995 indicates that political indecision is lethal for reform. Yet, once the government decides to remove the basic obstacles to change, pressure from below, from the grassroots, can be counted on to produce rapid and accelerating movement toward private farming and market-oriented services. While the government certainly has a role in providing public goods and services in a market environment, the experience of Moldova since 1995 shows that the process of transition to the market does not require tinkering by government bureaucrats.

2013

This paper focuses on the links between changes in the land use and sustainable rural development in the Republic of Moldova. A particular attention is addressed to the analysis of land ownership fragmentation, existing impediments for creation of sustainable agricultural systems based on principles of economic growth, social equity and protection of the environment. The following research methods such as analysis of the impact of public policies in rural areas, including in agriculture, comparative analysis, analysis of annual time series, were used. There were also used qualitative research methods such as: interviews of key stakeholders and focus groups’ interviews. Data for the quantitative analysis were collected from statistical yearbooks of the Republic of Moldova, National Land Cadastre and other available sources. The agricultural sector of the Republic of Moldova after the land reform is characterized by a polarization between large corporate farms and many small and fragm...

In this paper, the author considers the impacts of land reform on privatization and ownership structure of agricultural land, as well as on agricultural and rural developments. The analysis is based on official statistical sources, data and results of several questionnaire-based surveys.

2006

The duality of farm structure in Moldova is manifested by the existence of a relatively small number of large corporate farms at one extreme and a very large number of small and very small family farms at the other. "Medium-sized" family farms, the backbone of any market agriculture, virtually do not exist in Moldova. Moldovan agriculture is characterized by a much greater concentration of land in large farms than agriculture in market economies. The small individual farms on the whole are more productive and more efficient than the large corporate farms. They produce higher incomes for rural families than corporate farms. The main conclusion of the paper is that land should be allowed to flow from large corporate farms to small family farms through the medium of land markets until an equilibrium is established between the two farm sectors at a new level closer to that observed in market economies.

2001

Land reform in Moldova, as in all former Soviet republics, involves the transfer of land from state to private ownership, followed by allocation of individual entitlements to land. Ideally, it also involves restructuring of the traditional large-scale enterprises into market-oriented farming units. The new farming units may represent a wide range of organizational forms, including various associative structures as well

The Journal "Agriculture and Forestry", 2018

Agriculture is a main part of the rural economy and has an important role in ensuring incomes for rural population and poverty reduction. In Moldova, the largest share of the rural population is employed in agriculture, which contributes to about 50% of their total incomes. The aim of this research was to analyze the importance of the agricultural sector of Moldova and its contribution to poverty reduction of rural population. The paper estimated the time series from 2001-2015 provided by the National Bureau of Statistics. Also, the data of the General Agricultural Census (NBS, 2011) and the World Bank Report on poverty reduction (2016) were used. Nowadays, agricultural sector, despite the registered decline has an important role in the economic development of Moldova. The agricultural sector registered a decline of its share in GDP from 30% in 2005 to 12% in 2015. Also, the employment in the agricultural sector diminished from 50% in 2001 to 28% in 2015. A boost in investments in the agricultural sector would allow an alleviation in rural poverty and an increase in the population standards of living. But the problem in attracting investments is related to the fact that the large corporate farms prevail other small subsistence households which manage 60% and 40% from the useable agricultural area.

Sustainability, 2021

Economic sustainability plays an important role in shaping conditions for economic growth and social development. The importance of answering the question about the level of sustainability of family farms results from the fact that the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, apart from exceptions (e.g., the Czech Republic and Slovakia), are characterized by a fragmented agrarian structure. Hence, the main goal of this article was to answer two questions: (1) whether the countries of Central and Eastern Europe differ in the level of economic sustainability of small family farms; and (2) whether the same socioeconomic factors impact similarly on the level of economic sustainability of small family farms from countries of Central and Eastern Europe. The study was based on surveys conducted in small family farms: in 2018 from Poland (672 farms) and in 2019 in four other countries (Lithuania; 999 farms, Romania; 834 farms, Serbia; 523 farms, Moldova; 530 farms). The publication includes...

Economy and Sociology, 2015

Actuality. this paper presents a characterization of living conditions of the population from the national rural areas. The study of rural development is conditioned by the need to signal particularly acute social and economic problems faced by the people living in rural areas. Objective: Identification the determinant factors of rural poverty and to highlight measures to improve the living standards of the rural population. Methods: The investigation was conducted using the monographic method, the study is focused on a well-defined social field. Results: The standard of living in rural areas is in a continuous decline, there is a trend of population aging and the depopulation of villages is caused by the migration process. Promoting a realistic policy of improving living conditions in rural areas, changing attitudes towards the village, raising the prestige of the farmer is absolutely appropriate to improve the socio-economic and cultural development of the country.