Rural Land Reforms in Colombia. Policy and Institutional Challenges for the new Administration

Abstract

The implementation of the provisions of the Final Peace Accord on land should have furnished an unprecedented opportunity for Colombia to overcome traditional obstacles to the effective enforcement of reforms to secure land tenure, provide access to vulnerable groups and realize the productive potential of the Colombian countryside. However, two years later achievements in this field are minimal. While most of the academic discussions are still focused on the tension between ideological positions about the extent of private property rights, this paper will look into some of the policy and institutional challenges faced by the Administration that took office on August 2018. The lack of a strong land policy and institutional frameworks has limited the impact of the implementation of previous reforms and may also impair the reforms pursued by the new Administration. The challenges remain significant and, as this paper asserts, unless they are properly addressed, the risk of another frustrated reform will remain high.

Análisis comparativo cualitativo de los factores de éxito de los planes de ordenamiento social de la propiedad rural en Colombia (2018-2021)

“…In general, redistributive reforms require high doses of political concentration and administrative capacity (Albertus, 2015), which helps to explain that simultaneously with the ANT, the Colombian government created the Rural Development Agency (ADR -Spanish acronym) and the Territorial Renewal Agency (ART -Spanish acronym) between 2015 and 2016. However, such capacity also means addressing coordination issues that can impede CRR progress, as multiple entities do not always align regarding objectives, modes of action, and leadership (ORRDPA, 2019;Varela, 2019).…”