Land Tenure

Citation:

Deininger, Klaus, Fang Xia, and Stein Holden. 2019. “Gendered Incidence and Impacts of  Tenure Insecurity on Agricultural Performance in Malawi’s Customary Tenure System.” The Journal of Development Studies 55 (4): 597–619.

Authors: Klaus Deininger, Fang Xia, Stein Holden

Abstract:

Malawi’s recent passage of Land Acts provides an opportunity to clarify different aspects of the country’s land tenure in an integrated way. To assess whether doing so might be economically justified, we explore incidence and impact of tenure insecurity among smallholders. Insecurity is not only widespread, with 22 per cent of land users being concerned about losing their land, but is also associated with a productivity loss of 9 per cent for female operators, equivalent to US$ 11 million per year at the national level, enough to pay for a nation-wide tenure regularisation programme in two to three years. 

Topics: Agriculture, Gender, Women, Land Tenure, Rights, Land Rights Regions: Africa, Southern Africa Countries: Malawi

Year: 2019

Citation:

Gutierrez, D. José Antonio, and Pat Gibbons. 2020. “‘A Walk with the Lads’: Masculinities’ Perspectives, Gender Dynamics and Resilience in Soacha, Colombia.” International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction 49 (October). 

Authors: D. José Antonio Gutierrez, Pat Gibbons

Abstract:

Soacha is a municipality in the periphery of Colombia's capital Bogotá, whose population has soared over the past two decades with a constant influx of people displaced by conflict all over the country. The result is a fragile municipality with a majority of highly vulnerable settlements due to: high levels of tenure insecurity; generalised lack of protection and territorial control by gangs; normalised violence; and high levels of intra-urban displacement. Disenfranchisement and lack of rights set the backdrop in which the daily lives of hundreds of thousands of people transcur. As part of the Horizon 2020 project, the ‘Preparedness and Resilience to address Urban Vulnerability’ (PRUV) Consortium employed the Urban Vulnerability Walk methodology to understand the vulnerabilities of both men and women in a gender-segregated research in one locality –Altos de Florida. While the methodology was useful to identify vulnerabilities and risks, it proved equally useful to better understand the resources of the community, both of the women and the men, in order to overcome the difficulties in which they are immersed and to build a sustainable future.

Keywords: masculinities, insecure tenure, resilience, Colombia, urban vulnerability walk

Topics: Conflict, Displacement & Migration, Urban Displacement, Gender, Masculinity/ies, Justice, Land Tenure, Violence Regions: Americas, South America Countries: Colombia

Year: 2020

Citation:

Authors: Akua O. Britwum , Dzodzi Tsikata, Angela D. Akorsu , Matilda Aberese Ako

Annotation:

“This technical paper is part of the ISSER ActionAid-Ghana Gender and Land Rights Project that seeks to address, through research and advocacy, critical issues of women’s land rights. The Gender and Land Rights Project is premised on the notion that agriculture continues to engage the vast majority of working people in Ghana despite evidence pointing to the intensification of livelihood diversification and a reduction in the proportion of the population living in rural areas” (Britwum et al. 2014, 1).

Topics: Agriculture, Gender, Women, Land Tenure, Livelihoods, Rights, Land Rights, Women's Rights Regions: Africa, West Africa Countries: Ghana

Year: 2014

Citation:

Adeyemo, Remi, Michael Kirk, and Olaitan Olusegun. 2019. “Women and Land Tenure Security: The Nigerian Experience.” International Journal of Agricultural Economics 4 (2): 41-7.

Authors: Remi Adeyemo, Michael Kirk, Olaitan Olusegun

Abstract:

This study investigated the farm level efficiency and farm income among tenure secured and unsecured women farmers in Osun State, Nigeria. Structured questionnaires were used to obtain information from one hundred and fifty farmers. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics, stochastic frontier and farm budget analyses. Results from the farm budget analysis showed that women with secured land tenure generated higher income which was one hundred and fifty four thousand naira while that of women with unsecured land tenure was about eighty two thousand naira. Additional analysis revealed that land tenure secured women farmers were more efficient (64%) than their counterparts with unsecured tenure (48%). There was an overwhelming affirmation arising from the study which confirmed that women with tenure security were better off with respect to farm efficiency and farm income than women with unsecured tenure. 

Keywords: land, tenure, women, gender and efficiency, food, Rights

Topics: Agriculture, Gender, Women, Land Tenure Regions: Africa, West Africa Countries: Nigeria

Year: 2019

Citation:

Small, Janet and Fanelwa Norah Mhaga. 1996. “Gender, Land Tenure and Environment.” Agenda: Empowering Women for Gender Equality, no. 29: 55–61.

Authors: Janet Small, Fanelwa Norah Mhaga

Abstract:

In discussing land tenure reform, Janet Small and Fanelwa Norah Mhaga emphasise that land tenure cannot be isolated from women's social position and rights and their decision-making power.

Topics: Gender, Women, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Hierarchies, Patriarchy, Land Tenure, Rights, Land Rights Regions: Africa, Southern Africa

Year: 1996

Citation:

Pradipta, Lengga. 2020. “Land Resources Management in Southeast Asia: Redefining the Role of Women as Land Managers.” Komunitas: International Journal of Indonesian Society and Culture 12 (2): 206-16.

Author: Lengga Pradipta

Abstract:

The global trend to transform land management responsibility from the state to ‘communities’ or local user groups has neglected the implications of intra-community power differences for the effectiveness and equity of land management. Despite the rhetoric about gender equality that has mushroomed in recent years, a review of evidence from several countries in Southeast Asia, such as Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam, has shown that female participation is very minimal in land management. One basic reason for this is the formal and informal institutional exclusion of women. Moreover, the bargaining power of women within households and communities is categorized as ‘lip-service’ because patriarchy is seen as bonded to culture or tradition. Further detailed and comparative research is required to identify and analyze the major factors that affect women’s access and control over land resources, especially regarding how culture and local wisdom can accommodate this issue and ensure the participation of women in the management of resources.

Keywords: land resources management, patriarchy, women

Topics: Agriculture, Gender, Women, Gender Equality/Inequality, Patriarchy, Governance, Indigenous, Land Tenure, Rights, Land Rights Regions: Asia, Southeast Asia Countries: Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam

Year: 2020

Citation:

Nakanyete, Ndapwea F., Romie V. Nghitevelekwa, Mark M. Matsa, John Mendelsohn, Selma Lendelvo, and Fanuel Shikale. 2020. “Communal Land Tenure Security for Widows in the Eenhana Constituency of the Ohangwena Region, Namibia.” Journal of International Women's Studies 21 (1): 131–47.

Authors: Ndapewa Fenny Nakanyete, Romie Vonkie Nghitevelekwa, Mark M. Matsa, John Mendelsohn, Selma Lendelvo, Fanuel Shikale

Abstract:

Namibia is characterized by a history of discriminatory customary practices against women with regards to access to land, rights over land, and security of land tenure. Since independence in 1990, the country has adopted policies and legislative frameworks to bring about gender equality in all spheres of life, including the transformation of land tenure rights. These policies and acts give effect to the constitutional provisions that accord both men and women equal opportunities for access to land, rights over land and security of tenure. Widows are a particularly singled-out social group for legal protection, land security and rights to land enjoyed during their spouses’ lifetimes, and are granted protection, at least on paper, from discriminatory practices such as unlawful land evictions. This article evaluates and analyses the current status of land tenure security for widows in the Eenhana Constituency of the Ohangwena Region in Namibia. The study employed both quantitative and qualitative methods through questionnaires, interviews and focus group discussions with widows, as well as key informant interviews with Communal Land Board representatives, members of the traditional authorities, as well as the Ministry of Land Reform’s regional office officials. Through this case study, the findings establish that even though Namibia acclaims progressive policies and legislative frameworks on gender equality, there are still pockets of discrimination against widows where they continue to be at risk of losing their land rights in some of Namibia’s communal areas. Addressing the land tenure insecurities and a guarantee of legal land rights for widows is key to reducing vulnerabilities within female-headed households in the communal areas. Traditional authorities remain a key governance structure in communal areas, particularly in relation to access to land, and land rights inheritance issues, amongst others. Similarly, the Communal Land Boards are statutory institutions mandated to ensure implementation of the provisions of the Communal Land Reform Act of 2002, including the protection of land rights for widows. The study therefore recommends three main measures: the removal of all forms of discriminatory customary practices against widows; continued awareness-raising initiatives on the rights of widows; and full implementation of legal provisions for the protection of widows’ land rights and security of tenure.

Keywords: widows, communal land, security, land tenure, land rights, inheritance, rural area, Namibia

Topics: Gender, Women, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Equality/Inequality, Governance, Post-Conflict Governance, Intersectionality, Land Tenure, Rights, Land Rights, Security Regions: Africa, Southern Africa Countries: Namibia

Year: 2020

Citation:

Melesse, Tigist M., and Yesuf M. Awel. 2020. “Land Tenure, Gender, and Productivity in Ethiopia and Tanzania.” In Women and Sustainable Human Development: Empowering Women in Africa, edited by Maty Konte and Nyasha Tirivayi, 89-108. Maastricht, The Netherlands: Palgrave Macmillan.

Authors: Tigist M. Melesse, Yesuf M. Awel

Abstract:

Agricultural land use and tenure systems in many African countries are characterized by subsistence production and a communal land tenure system. Reforming the tenure system in a way that ensures tenure security could promote sustainable agriculture in the region. In addition, the right of women to own land is essential for rural development. This chapter, therefore, analyses the gender differential effects of land tenure security on productivity in East Africa using Living Standard Measurement Study data from Ethiopia and Tanzania. The chapter uses plot- and household-level data to investigate the effect of land title and other determinants of crop productivity. The main results show that tenure security positively and significantly affects households’ productivity in general and is marginally significant for female-headed households in particular. Potential indicators that positively correlate with crop productivity are total land and plot sizes, inorganic fertilizer use, input credit access, herbicide use, soil, and plot type. Policy implications are based on the results.

Topics: Agriculture, Development, Gender, Gender Analysis, Women, Households, Land Tenure, Livelihoods Regions: Africa, East Africa Countries: Ethiopia, Tanzania

Year: 2020

Citation:

Louis, Elizabeth, Tizai Mauto, My-Lan Dodd, Tasha Heidenrich, Peter Dolo, and Emmanuel Urey. 2020. “Using a Gender-Responsive Land Rights Framework to Assess Youth Land Rights in Rural Liberia.” Land 9 (8): 247–68.

Authors: Elizabeth Louis, Tizai Mauto , My-Lan Dodd, Tasha Heidenrich, Peter Dolo, Emmanuel Urey

Abstract:

This article summarizes the evidence on youth land rights in Liberia from a literature review combined with primary research from two separate studies: (1) A qualitative assessment conducted as formative research to inform the design of the Land Rights and Sustainable Development (LRSD) project for Landesa and its partners’ community level interventions; and (2) a quantitative baseline survey of program beneficiaries as part of an evaluation of the LRSD project. The findings are presented using a Gender-Responsive Land Rights Framework that examines youth land rights through a gender lens. The evidence highlights that female and male youth in Liberia face significant but different barriers to long-term access to land, as well as to participation in decisions related to land. Our suggested recommendations offer insights for the implementation of Liberia’s recently passed Land Rights Act as well as for community-level interventions focused on increasing youth land tenure security in Liberia.

Keywords: youth land rights, gender- responsive land rights, Liberia Land Rights Act, land governance, tenure security

Topics: Age, Youth, Gender, Gender Analysis, Land Tenure, Rights, Land Rights Regions: Africa, West Africa Countries: Liberia

Year: 2020

Citation:

Lemke, Stefanie and Priscilla Claeys. 2020. "Absent Voices: Women and Youth in Communal Land Governance. Reflections on Methods and Process from Exploratory Research in West and East Africa." Land 9 (8): 266- 66. 

Authors: Stefanie Lemke , Priscilla Claeys

Abstract:

An increasing number of African States are recognizing customary land tenure. Yet, there is a lack of research on how community rights are recognized in legal and policy frameworks, how they are implemented in practice, and how to include marginalized groups. In 2018–2019, we engaged in collaborative exploratory research on governing natural resources for food sovereignty with social movement networks, human rights lawyers and academics in West and East Africa. In this article, we reflect on the process and methods applied to identify research gaps and partners (i.e., two field visits and regional participatory workshops in Mali and Uganda), with a view to share lessons learned. In current debates on the recognition and protection of collective rights to land and resources, we found there is a need for more clarity and documentation, with customary land being privatized and norms rapidly changing. Further, the voices of women and youth are lacking in communal land governance. This process led to collaborative research with peasant and pastoralist organizations in Kenya, Tanzania, Mali and Guinea, with the aim to achieve greater self-determination and participation of women and youth in communal land governance, through capacity building, participatory research, horizontal dialogues and action for social change.

Keywords: gender, women and youth, communal land governance, right to land, collective rights, Participatory Action Research, transdisciplinary approach, COVID-19, West and East Africa, constituencies

Topics: Age, Youth, Gender, Gendered Discourses, Women, Governance, Land Tenure, Rights, Land Rights Regions: Africa, East Africa, West Africa Countries: Guinea, Kenya, Mali, Tanzania, Uganda

Year: 2020