"This book looks at the microfoundations of poverty in the developing world and in particular those present in property rights. The local institutions which govern land access are fundamental in affecting the distribution of wealth in a society. Property rights matter because they affect political development and economic growth.".

"Development economists and policy makers often work on the assumption that property rights evolve from collective to more specified systems. The author has set out to test this theory by using the evidence available in the special case of Ethiopia and Eritrea; Ethiopia was never colonised while Eritrea was under Italian colonial rule.".

"The three sites in this study had three distinct and different systems of land tenure and had been visited in the past by researchers who have provided historical material. Changes in the systems of property rights over a thirty year period were ascertained by three methods; personal accounts, changes in law regarding land and by measurement of data on litigation.".

"Political scientists and economists will be interested by this contribution to the theories of property rights and institutional change. People working in the areas of land tenure and land reform will find rich comparative material."--BOOK JACKET.