Cambridge International AS & A Level Geography (9696): Topic 11 – Production, location and change – Practice Questions

These are original questions written for Marlbridge, for revision and practice on this content. They are not reproduced past-paper questions, and they do not replicate the exam’s exact structure, question count or mark tariffs – examination boards hold copyright in their own papers. Use these alongside the official past papers from your board or school.

These questions cover Topic 11, Production, location and change (sections 11.1 to 11.4), of the Cambridge International AS & A Level Geography (9696) syllabus for examination in 2025 and 2026. The topic is assessed in Paper 4 Advanced Human Geography Options, where you answer a structured question and one essay on each of your two chosen options. All places, farms, firms and data below are fictional unless a question asks for your own case study.

Revise first with the study guide and the revision notes. Track progress on the Cambridge A Level Geography hub and the Geography checklist.

Questions

1. Give the meaning of the term “land tenure”. [2]

2. Outline the difference between intensive and extensive agricultural production. [3]

3. The table shows data for two fictional farms in the same country.

Farm	Area (ha)	Full-time workers	Value of output per year (US$)
Rolund (vegetables under irrigation)	12	18	216,000
Bexley Run (beef cattle on open range)	2,400	4	360,000

(a) Calculate the value of output per hectare for each farm. Show your working. [2] (b) Calculate the value of output per worker for each farm. Show your working. [2] (c) Using your answers, explain why it is misleading to say simply that one farm is “more productive” than the other. [2]

4. Read the description of a fictional farm.

On the Lumora delta (a fictional area), a family farms 1.5 ha of paddy fields. They use monsoon rain and water from a canal, buffalo for ploughing, their own labour and bought fertiliser. They plant seedlings by hand, weed and harvest. A few ducks feed on insects in the flooded fields and their manure enriches the soil. Most rice is eaten by the family; the rest, and the ducks’ eggs, are sold in the local market.

Describe this farm as an agricultural system. Identify two inputs, two throughputs, one subsystem link and one output. [6]

5. Explain two ways in which irrigation can change land use and farming practices. [4]

6. The table shows data for three land uses around a fictional market town, Ostrava Vale. Locational rent (US$ per ha) = yield x (market price - production cost) - yield x transport cost x distance.

Land use	Yield (t per ha)	Market price (US dollars per t)	Production cost (US dollars per t)	Transport cost (US dollars per t per km)
Dairy	8	400	250	10
Grain	4	300	150	5
Beef	1	900	600	4

(a) Calculate the locational rent for each land use at 15 km from the market. [3] (b) Calculate the distance from the market at which grain and beef earn the same locational rent. Show your working. [2] (c) Suggest two reasons why land use around a real city may not follow the pattern this model predicts. [4]

7. Explain how functional linkages help firms in an industrial agglomeration. [4]

8. The table shows employment in the fictional city of Navra (thousands of workers).

Year	Total workforce	Informal sector
2005	800	360
2010	950	456
2015	1,120	588
2020	1,300	715

(a) Calculate the percentage of the workforce in the informal sector in 2005 and in 2020. [2] (b) Describe the changes in informal-sector employment in Navra from 2005 to 2020. Use data. [3] (c) Suggest reasons for the changes you describe in (b). [4]

9. Read the extract from a fictional news report.

The government of Tessaly (a fictional country) has opened the Port Halden zone beside its main container port. Firms inside the fence pay no import duty on components and no profit tax for their first six years, provided they export their output. Three foreign electronics firms have built assembly plants, employing about 9,000 people, most of them young women from rural areas. Local engineering firms complain that the new plants import almost all of their parts.

(a) Identify two features that show Port Halden is an export processing zone. [2] (b) Assess the likely benefits and costs of the zone for Tessaly. [6]

10. Explain why a manufacturing industry may remain in a location after its original advantages have gone. [4]

11. “The difficulties of managing agricultural change are greater at the local scale than at the national scale.” With reference to one country you have studied, to what extent do you agree? [16]

12. “Government policy now matters more than any other factor in the location of manufacturing.” With reference to one country’s industrial policy that you have studied, how far do you agree? [15]

Answers

1. The way in which land is owned or occupied [1], such as owner-occupation, tenancy, sharecropping or communal ownership [1]. [2] Examiner insight: a second mark needs a named form of tenure; “who owns the land” alone is too thin.

2. Intensive production uses high inputs of labour and/or capital per hectare [1] and gives high output per hectare [1]; extensive production uses low inputs per hectare over large areas, giving lower output per hectare [1]. [3] Examiner insight: the difference is inputs per unit of land, not the size of the farm; a small farm can be extensive.

3. (a) Rolund: 216,000 / 12 = 18,000 US dollars per ha [1]; Bexley Run: 360,000 / 2,400 = 150 US dollars per ha [1]. (b) Rolund: 216,000 / 18 = 12,000 US dollars per worker [1]; Bexley Run: 360,000 / 4 = 90,000 US dollars per worker [1]. (c) Rolund is far more productive per hectare (120 times) [1], but Bexley Run is more productive per worker (7.5 times), so the ranking depends on which input you measure [1]. Examiner insight: show the division each time and keep the units; a correct number with no unit can lose the mark.

4. Inputs: canal water or monsoon rain [1]; buffalo, family labour or fertiliser [1]. Throughputs: hand planting of seedlings [1]; weeding or harvesting [1]. Subsystem link: the duck subsystem eats pests and its manure feeds the rice subsystem [1]. Output: rice for the family or market, or eggs for sale [1]. [6] Examiner insight: take every item from the extract; a general list from memory (“tractors, pesticides”) gains nothing here.

5. Irrigation removes the dependence on rainfall [1], so farmers can grow a second or third crop each year, raising intensity of land use [1]. It also allows higher-value, water-demanding crops such as rice or vegetables to replace dry-land crops or grazing [1], which encourages more inputs such as fertiliser and HYVs on the same land [1]. [4] Examiner insight: each “way” needs a cause and an effect on land use; naming a type of irrigation alone earns nothing.

6. (a) All values are US dollars per ha. Dairy: 8 x 150 - 8 x 10 x 15 = 0 [1]; grain: 4 x 150 - 4 x 5 x 15 = 300 [1]; beef: 1 x 300 - 1 x 4 x 15 = 240 [1]. (b) 600 - 20d = 300 - 4d, so 16d = 300 [1]; d = 18.75 km [1]. (c) Relief, soils or water supply vary, so some land near the town may suit only grazing [1], breaking the regular rings [1]. Refrigeration, better roads or air freight cut transport costs [1], so perishable goods can be produced far from the market [1]. Examiner insight: in (c) “suggest” needs a reason linked to a model assumption, then its effect on the pattern.

7. Firms buy parts from nearby suppliers (backward linkages) [1], which cuts transport costs and delivery times [1]. Firms sell to nearby customers or assemblers (forward linkages) [1], and share specialist services such as repair, logistics or finance (service linkages), lowering costs for all firms in the cluster [1]. [4] Examiner insight: name the type of linkage and then say what it saves; vague “they work together” earns little.

8. (a) 2005: 360 / 800 x 100 = 45.0% [1]; 2020: 715 / 1,300 x 100 = 55.0% [1]. (b) Informal employment almost doubled, from 360,000 to 715,000 (an increase of 355,000) [1]. Its share of the workforce rose every five years, from 45.0% to 55.0% [1]. Informal jobs grew faster than formal jobs, which rose only from 440,000 to 585,000 [1]. (c) The workforce grew by 500,000, probably through rural-urban migration and natural increase [1], faster than formal firms created jobs [1]. Newcomers may lack the skills or documents needed for formal work [1], and informal work is easy to enter with little capital [1]. Examiner insight: “describe” with “use data” needs figures and the direction of change; the formal figures come from subtracting, and few candidates use them.

9. (a) No import duty on components for firms inside the zone [1]; the tax relief depends on exporting the output [1]. (b) Benefits: about 9,000 jobs, giving rural women wage income [1]; foreign investment and export earnings for Tessaly [1]; workers may gain assembly skills [1]. Costs: almost all parts are imported, so backward linkages to local engineering firms are weak [1]; six years without profit tax means little government revenue at first [1]. On balance the zone gives jobs now, but its long-term value depends on raising local sourcing [1]. Examiner insight: “assess” needs a final weighed judgement; listing benefits and costs without one caps the answer.

10. Firms have sunk large sums in buildings and machinery that cannot be moved [1]. A skilled local workforce has built up [1], and linkages with suppliers and customers would be lost by moving [1]. The place’s reputation or brand is tied to the industry, and relocation itself is costly and risky [1]. [4] Examiner insight: use the term “industrial inertia” and give reasons; repeating that “the firm stays” is not an explanation.

11. The real exam marks extended answers with levels of response, not point by point; the points marked below show indicative content for a 16-mark model.

Introduction: define agricultural change and name the country, such as India [1]; state the need, such as food shortage in the 1960s and later water and income problems [1].

National scale: the Green Revolution, with HYVs, fertiliser and irrigation, raised grain output [1]; MSP and procurement gave farmers secure prices [1]; difficulty: procurement favours wheat and rice, so it is hard to change cropping nationally [1]; the 2020 farm laws were repealed after farmer protests, showing how hard national reform is [1]; PM-KISAN reaches landholding families but excludes tenants [1].

Local scale: a Punjab smallholder depends on tubewells, and water tables are falling [1]; the short gap between the rice harvest and wheat sowing leads to stubble burning [1]; small holdings and rising input costs lead to debt [1]; local responses such as delayed transplanting or the Happy Seeder have costs or side effects [1].

Analysis: local difficulties are often caused or worsened by national policy, such as price support for rice [1]; national policy fails when local farmers resist it [1]; so the scales cannot be separated [1].

Conclusion: a clear judgement on the extent of agreement [1], supported by the case-study evidence above [1]. Examiner insight: the top level needs both scales with real detail and a judgement that runs through the essay, not only at the end.

12. The real exam marks extended answers with levels of response, not point by point; the points marked below show indicative content for a 15-mark model.

Introduction: define industrial policy [1]; name the country, such as Malaysia, and set out the other factors to weigh, such as labour, markets, transport and agglomeration [1].

For the statement: the Free Trade Zones Act (1971) and the Bayan Lepas zone (1972) drew electronics TNCs to Penang [1]; the state set up Proton (1983) and later located a plant at Tanjung Malim [1]; the Multimedia Super Corridor (1996) steered knowledge industry to a planned corridor [1].

Against the statement: TNCs chose Penang also for its port, airport and supply of semi-skilled workers [1]; once a cluster formed, agglomeration economies and inertia held firms there [1]; Proton’s market share fell despite protection, so policy could not override market forces [1]; reliance on migrant labour shows labour supply still shapes location [1].

Wider evaluation: policy matters most when it creates new locations; existing clusters matter more for later investment [1]; policy works with other factors rather than replacing them [1]; elsewhere, such as Sialkot in Pakistan, clusters grew mainly through private enterprise [1].

Conclusion: a reasoned judgement on “how far” [1], tied to the case study [1], noting that the answer may differ between industries [1]. Examiner insight: “how far” questions reward a balanced judgement; use at least two non-policy factors with evidence before you decide.

Where marks are usually lost

• Leaving out working in calculations, so a slip loses every mark.
• Forgetting units: dollars per hectare and dollars per worker are different measures.
• In data questions, quoting no figures, or only the first and last year.
• Writing general textbook points when a question gives a source; take details from it.
• Defining an EPZ by its fence instead of its duty and export rules.
• Treating the informal sector as only harmful.
• In 11.2 essays, using only national policy and no farm-scale detail.
• In “how far” or “to what extent” essays, saving all judgement for the final line.

Next steps

• Check your weak points with our free diagnostics.
• Re-read the study guide for any case study you could not use with confidence.
• For case-study technique, read preparing for the staged four-paper route.
• Taking Economic transition as your second option? Use the Economic transition study guide.
• Want help with Paper 4? Book a free trial class.

Official syllabus

These questions are based on the Cambridge International AS & A Level Geography (9696) syllabus for examination in 2025 and 2026, Topic 11 (sections 11.1 to 11.4) and section 4.4 (Paper 4 Advanced Human Geography Options).