Impact of land reform policy on tobacco export performance: case of Zimbabwe

Abstract

This study seeks to analyze the impact of land reform on the export performance of tobacco, since the cash crop is a major foreign currency earner for Zimbabwe. A gravity model was adopted for the study using secondary panel data from 1992 to 2018. The findings show that 17.2% of the explanatory variables in the model are responsible for changes in tobacco export performance. Land reform, agricultural financial assistance, and distance had significant negative effects on tobacco exports. Land reform must be accompanied by other reforms that complement its success, such as market structure, financing arrangements, and property rights.

Keywords

• Land reform
• export performance
• Zimbabwe
• tobacco
• gravity model
• panel data