The Lax Farmland Act That Caused the LH Scandal... Transition to a 'Land Verification' System

'Human-Centered → Land-Centered' Tracking System Transition Promotion
Measures to Eradicate Land Speculation... To Be Reflected in Farmland Act Amendment Bill

On the 10th, saplings were planted on a piece of land in Gwarim-dong, Siheung-si, Gyeonggi-do, where allegations of land speculation by some employees of Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) in the Gwangmyeong and Siheung new towns have been raised.
Siheung - Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The government has decided to introduce a 'Farmland Register' instead of the 'Nongjiwonbu' as part of measures to eradicate real estate speculation. This marks a major overhaul 48 years after the original register system was introduced in 1973 for farmland management. Since it has been difficult to distinguish between fields such as dry fields (jeon), rice paddies (dap), and orchards in the Nongjiwonbu, which relied on the records of presumed authors, authorities expect land management to become more accurate.

According to related ministries, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs plans to include the introduction of the Farmland Register instead of the Nongjiwonbu in the amendment to the Farmland Act, and intends to include this in the government’s joint measures to eradicate real estate speculation scheduled to be announced at the end of this month. The Nongjiwonbu refers to administrative farmland data containing ownership status and history, but the introduction of the register system is judged to be more useful for tracking the history of the specific land parcel rather than the ownership trends of a particular individual. A Ministry of Agriculture official said, "Under the current system, which verifies cultivation mainly based on the Nongjiwonbu, it is impossible to detect changes made by farmers without registering the original document," adding, "We are considering creating a Farmland Register similar to the Land Register of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport."

Currently, even if dry fields, rice paddies, and orchards are classified as 'farmland' in land categories, it is difficult to verify that they are 100% farmland. By creating a Farmland Register, it will be possible to accurately determine whether the land category is farmland. Additionally, it will be linked with parcel-centered documents such as certified copies of the register and land registers, enabling comprehensive disclosure of real estate information related to farmland. The Nongjiwonbu is an administrative ledger collected by local governments to grasp the farmland status and ownership/use conditions of farmers cultivating farmland over 1,000㎡. However, there are many criticisms that it is not properly utilized due to limitations in local governments’ grasp.

According to the Korea Rural Economic Institute, the registration rate of the Nongjiwonbu is only 70% of the total. The remaining 30% is not submitted. Although local governments can investigate on their own authority, it is not easy to verify all farmland nationwide in this way. A Ministry of Agriculture official said, "If you own cultivated land under 1,000㎡, you do not have to prepare the Nongjiwonbu." According to the institute’s own survey, about 15% of all farmland is illegally owned. While fallow farmland can be detected during farmland use surveys, it was difficult to properly capture 'illegal lease' farmland.

More detailed review is needed for the specifics. The possibility of linking the Farmland Register with the Ministry of Land’s Land Register is also being discussed.

The Ministry of Agriculture also plans to prepare an amendment to the enforcement decree as early as next month to entrust the Korea Rural Community Corporation with supporting local governments’ verification of the Nongjiwonbu. A Ministry of Agriculture official said, "We have already allocated an additional budget of 4.9 billion won to support manpower from the Rural Community Corporation for local governments’ farmland verification work."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.