Vanishing Farmland, Rising Risk: Agricultural Land Conversion, Housing Societies, and Food Security in Punjab, Pakistan
Vanishing Farmland, Rising Risk: Pathways for Land Governance Reform
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.66529/agripat.2026.2.3.97Keywords:
Farmland; Housing Societies; Food Security; Punjab; PakistanAbstract
Rapid urbanization in Pakistan is accelerating the conversion of fertile agricultural land into housing schemes and commercial developments, posing significant risks to food security and rural livelihoods. This policy brief draws on a household survey of 120 respondents from four peri-urban villages in Faisalabad District and an updated review of international evidence on agricultural land conversion. Findings reveal that most land sales were driven by financial distress rather than planned investment, with the majority of sellers later expressing regret over their decisions. Awareness of land-use regulations and the long-term implications of farmland conversion was found to be extremely limited. Respondents also reported declining food adequacy, dietary quality, and sustainability of local water and agricultural systems following land conversion. These findings reinforce growing concerns about the implications of unchecked urban expansion for food security. The brief recommends the introduction of a legally binding agricultural zoning framework, mandatory food-security impact assessments, and strengthened land governance measures to protect productive farmland and promote sustainable development.
References
Aabø, E., & Kring, T. (2012). The political economy of large-scale agricultural land acquisitions: Implications for food security and livelihoods/employment creation in rural Mozambique (African Human Development Report Working Paper 2012-004). United Nations Development Programme.
Besley, T. (1995). Property rights and investment incentives: Theory and evidence from Ghana. Journal of Political Economy, 103(5), 903–937. https://doi.org/10.1086/262008 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1086/262008
Cotula, L., Oya, C., Codjoe, E. A., Eid, A., Kakraba-Ampeh, M., Keeley, J., Kidewa, A. L., Makwarimba, M., Seide, W. M., Nasha, W. O., Asare, R. O., & Rizzo, M. (2014). Testing claims about large land deals in Africa: Findings from a multi-country study. The Journal of Development Studies, 50(7), 903–925. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2014.901501 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2014.901501
Davis, K. F., D'Odorico, P., & Rulli, M. C. (2014). Land grabbing: A preliminary quantification of economic impacts on rural livelihoods. Population and Environment, 36(2), 180–192. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11111-014-0215-2 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11111-014-0215-2
Deininger, K., & Byerlee, D. (2011). Rising global interest in farmland: Can it yield sustainable and equitable benefits? (Policy Research Working Paper 5588). World Bank. https://doi.org/10.1596/1813-9450-5588 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1596/978-0-8213-8591-3
Deininger, K., & Byerlee, D. (2012). The rise of large farms in land-abundant countries: Do they have a future? World Development, 40(4), 701–714. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2011.04.030 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2011.04.030
De Schutter, O. (2011). How not to think of land-grabbing: Three critiques of large-scale investments in farmland. The Journal of Peasant Studies, 38(2), 249–279. https://doi.org/10.1080/03066150.2011.559008 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/03066150.2011.559008
Edelman, M., Oya, C., & Borras, S. M., Jr. (2013). Global land grabs: Historical processes, theoretical and methodological implications and current trajectories. Third World Quarterly, 34(9), 1517–1531. https://doi.org/10.1080/01436597.2013.850190 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/01436597.2013.850190
Tufa, D. E. & Megento, T. L. (2022). Conversion of farmland to non-agricultural land uses in peri-urban areas of Addis Ababa Metropolitan city, Central Ethiopia. GeoJournal, 87(6), 5101–5115. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10708-021-10553-9 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10708-021-10553-9
Farmland Information Center. (2024). Farmland protection policies and programs. American Farmland Trust. https://farmlandinfo.org/policy-makers-professionals/farmland-protection-policies-and-programs/
FAO. (2025a). The State of Food and Agriculture 2025 – Addressing land degradation across landholding scales. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. https://doi.org/10.4060/cd7067en DOI: https://doi.org/10.4060/cd7067en
FAO, IFAD, UNCF, WFP, & WHO. (2025). The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2025: Addressing high food price inflation for food security and nutrition. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. https://doi.org/10.4060/cd6008en DOI: https://doi.org/10.4060/cd6008en
Gill, A. & Shabir, M. 2026. Public Perceptions of Local Government in Pakistan: A Survey-Based Assessment. Journal of Agricultural Policy and Transformation, 2(2):79-86. https://doi.org/10.66529/agripat.2026.2.2.77 DOI: https://doi.org/10.66529/agripat.2026.2.2.77
Godfray, H. C. J., Beddington, J. R., Crute, I. R., Haddad, L., Lawrence, D., Muir, J. F., Pretty, J., Robinson, S., Thomas, S. M., & Toulmin, C. (2010). Food security: The challenge of feeding 9 billion people. Science, 327(5967), 812–818. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1185383 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1185383
Haghparast-Bidgoli, H., Harris-Fry, H., Kumar, A., Pradhan, R., Mishra, N. K., Padhan, S., Ojha, A. K., Mishra, S. N., Fivian, E., James, P., Ferguson, S., Krishnan, S., O'Hearn, M., Palmer, T., Koniz-Booher, P., Danton, H., Minovi, S., Mohanty, S., Rath, S., . . . Kadiyala, S. (2022). Economic evaluation of nutrition-sensitive agricultural interventions to increase maternal and child dietary diversity and nutritional status in rural Odisha, India. The Journal of Nutrition, 152(11), 2611–2622. https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/nxac132 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/nxac132
Hanley-Cook, G. T., van der Meulen, E., Pries, A. M., Gie, S. M., Aburto, N. J., & Holmes, B. A. (2025). Concordance of dietary diversity and moderation among 28,787 mother–child dyads in 11 low- and middle-income countries: Implications for global monitoring and targeted nutrition actions. Maternal & Child Nutrition, 22(1), e70081. https://doi.org/10.1111/mcn.70081 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/mcn.70081
Hausermann, H., Ferring, D., Atosona, B., Mentz, G., Amankwah, R., Chang, A., Hartfield, K., Effah, E., Asuamah, G. Y., Mansell, C., & Sastri, N. (2018). Land-grabbing, land-use transformation and social differentiation: Deconstructing "small-scale" in Ghana's recent gold rush. World Development, 108, 103–114. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2018.03.014 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2018.03.014
Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung. (2022). Housing projects killing farmland. https://afpak.boell.org/en/2022/08/18/housing-projects-killing-farmland
Li, M., Li, J., Haq, S. ul, & Nadeem, M. (2024). Agriculture land use transformation: A threat to sustainable food production systems, rural food security, and farmer well-being? PLOS ONE, 19(1), e0296332. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0296332 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0296332
Lok Sujag. (2023). Illegal housing societies: TMA-LDA wrangling makes life of lower-middle class houseowners miserable. https://loksujag.com/story/illegal-housing-societies-in-lahore
Moghaddam, S. M., Azadi, H., Sklenička, P., & Janečková, K. (2025). Impacts of land tenure security on the conversion of agricultural land to urban use. Land Degradation & Development, 36(7), 2517–2529. https://doi.org/10.1002/ldr.5535 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/ldr.5535
Novianty, P. C., Soemarno, & Efani, A. (2025). The measurement of land conversion rate and household food security in Bakalan Village, Pasuruan Regency. Jurnal Pembangunan dan Alam Lestari, 16(2), 82–88. https://doi.org/10.21776/ub.jpal.2025.016.02.02 DOI: https://doi.org/10.21776/ub.jpal.2025.016.02.02
Pakistan Observer. (2025, March 1). Urban expansion & loss of fertile land. https://pakobserver.net/urban-expansion-loss-of-fertile-land/
Pakistan Today. (2024, March 21). Use of agriculture land for commercial purposes irks Supreme Court. https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2024/03/21/use-of-agriculture-land-for-commercial-purposes-irks-supreme-court/
Pakistan Today. (2024, April 9). Concerns grow as housing development threatens Punjab's agricultural heartland. https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2024/04/09/concerns-grow-as-housing-development-threatens-punjabs-agricultural-heartland
Saqib, S. E., Kaleem, M., Yaseen, M., Yang, S.-H., & Visetnoi, S. (2024). From green fields to housing societies: Unraveling the mysteries behind agricultural land conversion in Pakistan. Land Use Policy, 144, 107256. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2024.107256 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2024.107256
Saqib, S. E., Yaseen, M., Ali, S., & Visetnoi, S. (2025). Agricultural land conversion and challenges for tenant farmers: Empirical evidence from Pakistan. Land Degradation & Development, 36(3), 802–815. https://doi.org/10.1002/ldr.5395 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/ldr.5395
Scoones, I. (1998). Sustainable rural livelihoods: A framework for analysis (IDS Working Paper 72). Institute of Development Studies.
Smith, H. E., Ryan, C. M., Vollmer, F., Woollen, E., Keane, A., Fisher, J. A., Baumert, S., Grundy, I. M., Carvalho, M., Lisboa, S. N., Luz, A. C., Zorrilla-Miras, P., Patenaude, G., Ribeiro, N., Artur, L., & Mahamane, M. (2019). Impacts of land use intensification on human wellbeing: Evidence from rural Mozambique. Global Environmental Change, 59, 101976. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2019.101976 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2019.101976
Sumbo, D. K., Anane, G. K., & Inkoom, D. K. B. (2023). ‘Peri-urbanisation and loss of arable land’: Indigenes’ farmland access challenges and adaptation strategies in Kumasi and Wa, Ghana. Land Use Policy, 126, 106534. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2022.106534 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2022.106534
Additional Files
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Authors retain the copyright of their published work and grant the journal the right of first publication.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
All articles published in AgriPaT are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
