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| LAND CONSOLIDATION DEPARTMENT
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DEPARTMENT OF LAND CONSOLIDATION
1. Introduction
The Land Consolidation Department is responsible for the co-ordination, administration and execution of measures of land consolidation, in accordance with the agricultural policy of the Government, which aims at raising the agricultural income and creating a better working and living environment for the farmers and the rural population.
It is noted that land consolidation is the main remedial measure applied so far, in Cyprus, in an effort to eliminate land fragmentation and improve the prevailing defective land tenure structure which is primarily characterized by: a small holding size, intense land fragmentation, mixed land tenures (i.e. land held in undivided form and dual or multiple ownerships), lack of farm roads and irregularly-shaped plots of land. All these features constitute a major structural and technical obstacle to the rational development of agriculture.
2. Basic objectives
The basic objectives of land consolidation are the creation of economically viable holdings and the improvement of the defective land tenure structure.
In order to accomplish these objectives the Department makes use, primarily, of the grouping-up of the fragmented and scattered land ownerships into compact holdings, the construction of a new rural road network serving all new plots, the enlargement of small holdings by purchasing private, church and state land and distributing it to the farmers, on specific criteria, the creation of regularly-shaped plots of land, the elimination of dual and multiple ownerships and of ownerships held in undivided shares.
3. Results
The main results obtained from the so far implementation of land consolidation, (31 December 2004), concern an increase in the size of ownerships by 31%, on average, the elimination of land fragmentation by 56% and the abolition / elimination of mixed land tenures by 91%.
Moreover an increase of the farm road network by 201%, was effected, as until the end of 2004, about 1 255 km of farm roads were constructed / improved in these areas, (the pre-consolidation total was 416 km), at a total expenditure of approximately C£15,7 million.
Up to the end of 2004, various landscape renovation works of a total expenditure of C£220.000 were implemented.
All the above-mentioned changes led to increases in production, in capital and labour productivity and in the number of economically viable holdings by 16%, with consequent rises in the agricultural income, up to 300%.
4. Prospects
The land consolidation scheme should be further promoted, especially now that Cyprus has joined the European Union, as in several E.U. countries, land consolidation is the main structural reform measure for rural development.
Main address:
Land Consolidation Department
131 Prodromos str.
1419 Strovolos
Nicosνa
Tel. no: 22407903
Fax no: 22407950
E–mail address: lcdhq@lcd.moa.gov.cy
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© 2003 -2010 Republic of Cyprus, Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment |
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