Land and the Economic Empowerment of Women: A Gendered Analysis

Citation:

Gaidzanwa, Rudo. 1995. “Land and the Economic Empowerment of Women: A Gendered Analysis.” Southern African Feminist Review 1 (1): 1–12.

Author: Rudo Gaidzanwa

Abstract:

This paper focuses on the gender dimension of the land and indigenization debate in order to illustrate the problems relating to aggregated claims to land rights, as well as the potential and actual threats to sustainability, efficiency, and productivity which such analyses pose for the livelihood of poor rural and urban women in Zimbabwe. After a review of the literature on land issues the paper proceeds to differentiate types of land - urban residential land, commercial and industrial land, and resettlement land - and the related politics in order to understand better what the debates on land reform mean for men and women of different races and classes in Zimbabwe. Given that Zimbabwe's economy is not likely to divert dramatically from its dependence on manufacturing and agriculture as major contributors to the gross domestic product, it is imperative that policymakers address the question of black peoples', and in particular, women's relationships to all types of land. This would move the land debate forward from its present fixation on the ownership of arable land to issues of access to and control of such land in the short and medium term. (Abstract from AfricaBib.org)

Topics: Class, Economies, Gender, Gender Analysis, Women, Governance, Indigenous, Livelihoods, Race, Rights, Land Rights, Women's Rights Regions: Africa, Southern Africa Countries: Zimbabwe

Year: 1995