Agrarian Reform and Small-farmer Welfare: Evidence from Four Mexican Communities

Abstract

The four communities studied are located in the states of Michoacán, Morelos, San Luis Potosí and Tamaulipas. They are ejidos in very different ecological regions, in all of which sorghum cultivation has become important and in which other aspects of agricultural modernization, such as credit and mechanization, are prominent. The data relate to the current debate on the potential of ejidal agriculture to provide a viable living in rural areas. The data presented indicate that access to land, especially good quality irrigated land, and other resources necessary for agriculture are associated with general improvement in the economics, nutrition, and health of rural communities. Of the four communities studied, the one with the best access to land and resources (in amounts usually available only to commercial farmers) had the best overall economic situation. Farmers were productive and were making good use of their resources. The level of migration was the lowest of any of the communities, and nutritional state and infant mortality seemed to be improving. This was also the case in the community in Morelos, where access to land and other employment opportunities was quite good. In Michoacán and in San Luis Potosí, the several ha of rainfed land available to ejidatarios do not provide a decent living.