Egyptian land reform
Encyclopedia
The post-revolution Egyptian Land Reform was an effort to change land ownership practices in Egypt
following the 1952 Revolution
launched by Gamal Abdel Nasser
and the Free Officers Movement
.
as President, less than six percent of Egypt's
population owned more than 65% of the land in Egypt
, and less than 0.5% of Egyptians owned more than one-third of all fertile land. These major owners had almost autocratic control over the land they owned and charged high rents which averaged 75% of the income generated by the rented land. These high rents coupled with the high interest rate
s charged by banks plunged many small farmers and peasants into debt
. Furthermore, peasants who worked as laborers on farms also suffered, receiving average wages of only eight to fifteen piastre
s a day.
The combination of these circumstances led historian
Anouar Abdel Malek to call the pre-reform Egyptian peasantry "an exploited mass surrounded by hunger, disease and death". Another historian
, Robert Stephens has compared the state of Egyptian peasants before land reform to that of French peasants before the French Revolution
.
in Egypt. The law had numerous provisions that attempted to remedy the Egyptian land problems:
Additionally, the law provided for the resdistribution of any land that owners held over the limits it established:
Law 178 initially met opposition from Prime Minister Ali Maher Pasha who supported a limit of 500 feddans for land ownership. However, the Revolutionary Command Council
demonstrated its power by forcing him to resign, replacing him with Muhammad Naguib
and passing the law.
In 1961, the government again revised the land reform program by lowering the land ownership maximum to one hundred feddans.
. The Egyptian land reform laws were greatly curtailed under Anwar Sadat
and eventually abolished.
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
following the 1952 Revolution
1952 Revolution
The Egyptian Revolution of 1952 , also known as the 23 July Revolution, began on 23 July 1952, with a military coup d'état by the Free Officers Movement, a group of army officers led by Muhammad Naguib and Gamal Abdel Nasser. The revolution was initially aimed at overthrowing King Farouk...
launched by Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein was the second President of Egypt from 1956 until his death. A colonel in the Egyptian army, Nasser led the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 along with Muhammad Naguib, the first president, which overthrew the monarchy of Egypt and Sudan, and heralded a new period of...
and the Free Officers Movement
Free Officers Movement
In Egypt, the clandestine revolutionary Free Officers Movement was composed of young junior army officers committed to unseating the Egyptian monarchy and its British advisors...
.
Problems prior to 1952
Prior to the 1952 coup that installed NaguibMuhammad Naguib
Muhammad Naguib was the first President of Egypt, serving from the declaration of the Republic on June 18, 1953 to November 14, 1954. Along with Gamal Abdel Nasser, he was the primary leader of the Egyptian Revolution of 1952, which ended the rule of the Muhammad Ali Dynasty in Egypt and Sudan...
as President, less than six percent of Egypt's
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
population owned more than 65% of the land in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, and less than 0.5% of Egyptians owned more than one-third of all fertile land. These major owners had almost autocratic control over the land they owned and charged high rents which averaged 75% of the income generated by the rented land. These high rents coupled with the high interest rate
Interest rate
An interest rate is the rate at which interest is paid by a borrower for the use of money that they borrow from a lender. For example, a small company borrows capital from a bank to buy new assets for their business, and in return the lender receives interest at a predetermined interest rate for...
s charged by banks plunged many small farmers and peasants into debt
Debt
A debt is an obligation owed by one party to a second party, the creditor; usually this refers to assets granted by the creditor to the debtor, but the term can also be used metaphorically to cover moral obligations and other interactions not based on economic value.A debt is created when a...
. Furthermore, peasants who worked as laborers on farms also suffered, receiving average wages of only eight to fifteen piastre
Piastre
The piastre or piaster refers to a number of units of currency. The term originates from the Italian for 'thin metal plate'. The name was applied to Spanish and Latin American pieces of eight, or pesos, by Venetian traders in the Levant in the 16th century.These pesos, minted continually for...
s a day.
The combination of these circumstances led historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
Anouar Abdel Malek to call the pre-reform Egyptian peasantry "an exploited mass surrounded by hunger, disease and death". Another historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
, Robert Stephens has compared the state of Egyptian peasants before land reform to that of French peasants before the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
.
Law Number 178
On September 11, 1952, Law Number 178 began the process of land reformLand reform
[Image:Jakarta farmers protest23.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Farmers protesting for Land Reform in Indonesia]Land reform involves the changing of laws, regulations or customs regarding land ownership. Land reform may consist of a government-initiated or government-backed property redistribution,...
in Egypt. The law had numerous provisions that attempted to remedy the Egyptian land problems:
- Land owners were prohibited to possess more than 200 feddanFeddanA feddan is a unit of area. It is used in Egypt, Sudan, and Syria. The feddan is not an SI unit and in Arabic, the word means 'a yoke of oxen': implying the area of ground that could be tilled by them in a certain time. In Egypt the feddan is the only non-metric unit which remained in use...
s of land. However, fathers with more than 2 children were allowed to own 300 feddans. - A limit on the rental rate for land was set at seven times the land tax value of the plot of land.
- All land leases were given a minimum duration of three years.
- The government established cooperatives for farmers holding less than five feddans. The members of these cooperatives worked together to obtain supplies such as fertilizers, pesticides, and seedsSEEDSSEEDS is a voluntary organisation registered under the Societies Act of India....
as well as cooperating to transport their products to market. - A minimum wage for agricultural workers was set at 18 piastres per day.
Additionally, the law provided for the resdistribution of any land that owners held over the limits it established:
- Each affected owner would receive compensation for his excess land in government bondsGovernment bondA government bond is a bond issued by a national government denominated in the country's own currency. Bonds are debt investments whereby an investor loans a certain amount of money, for a certain amount of time, with a certain interest rate, to a company or country...
worth a total of ten times the rental value of the land. These bonds would pay three percent interestInterestInterest is a fee paid by a borrower of assets to the owner as a form of compensation for the use of the assets. It is most commonly the price paid for the use of borrowed money, or money earned by deposited funds....
and mature in thirty years. - All land bought by the government would be sold to peasants though no person could obtain more than five feddans from the government. Peasants who bought land would pay the government the cost of the land and a 15% surcharge over a period of thirty years.
Law 178 initially met opposition from Prime Minister Ali Maher Pasha who supported a limit of 500 feddans for land ownership. However, the Revolutionary Command Council
Revolutionary Command Council
Revolutionary Command Council may refer to:* Egyptian Revolutionary Command Council, body established to supervise Egypt after the 1952 Revolution* Iraqi Revolutionary Command Council, ultimate decision making body in Iraq before the 2003 invasion of Iraq...
demonstrated its power by forcing him to resign, replacing him with Muhammad Naguib
Muhammad Naguib
Muhammad Naguib was the first President of Egypt, serving from the declaration of the Republic on June 18, 1953 to November 14, 1954. Along with Gamal Abdel Nasser, he was the primary leader of the Egyptian Revolution of 1952, which ended the rule of the Muhammad Ali Dynasty in Egypt and Sudan...
and passing the law.
Modifications to Land Reform
In 1958, three provisions of the land reform law were revised:- The interest on the bonds the government used to repay owners of seized land was lowered to 1.5%.
- People who purchased land from the government were given forty years (in place of thirty) to complete repayment.
- The government surcharge to be paid by purchasers was lowered to 10%.
In 1961, the government again revised the land reform program by lowering the land ownership maximum to one hundred feddans.
Results
Initially, land reform essentially abolished the political influence of major land owners. However, land reform only resulted in the redistribution of about 15% of Egypt's land under cultivation, and by the early 1980s, the effects of land reform in Egypt drew to a halt as the population of Egypt moved away from agricultureAgriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
. The Egyptian land reform laws were greatly curtailed under Anwar Sadat
Anwar Sadat
Muhammad Anwar al-Sadat was the third President of Egypt, serving from 15 October 1970 until his assassination by fundamentalist army officers on 6 October 1981...
and eventually abolished.