Africa

“Land tenure status of African women"

As mentioned in the introduction of the paper, “a primary focus of this paper will be an examination of how women’s rights to land are changing and evolving. However, descriptions of the nature of women's rights – how they are obtained, whether they are secure or insecure, exclusive or inclusive – do not give a full picture of how women are exercising their rights. For example, women may gain rights through marriage, but if few women are marrying, then these rights are meaningless.

“Diminished access, diverted exclusion: women and land tenure in Sub-Saharan Africa”

As stated in the Abstract, “increasing commercialization, population growth and concurrent increases in land value have affected women's land rights in Africa. Most of the literature concentrates on how these changes have led to an erosion of women's rights. This paper examines some of the processes by which women's rights to land are diminishing. First, we examine cases where rights previously utilized have become less important; that is, the incidence of exercising rights has decreased.

“Addressing food security in Africa via multiple livelihood strategies of women farmers”

As stated in the Abstract, “because food insecurity is primarily a problem of low household incomes and poverty, and not just inadequate food production, projects and programs for food insecure African farmers which aim at increasing production of subsistence crops may be ineffective. Instead, government should look for ways to improve returns to farmers' resources in a broader context, which may include expanded opportunities for non-farm microenterprises and agricultural labor. This has been the conventional wisdom since the writings of Amartya Sen.

Traditional marriage practices as determinants of women’s land rights in Sub-Saharan Africa: A review of research based on research by Jean-Philippe Platteau, Anita Abraham, Frederic Gaspart, and Luc Stevens

This article looks at land tenure systems as well as changes in traditional marriage institutions and social security in Senegal and Burkina Faso and argues that it is crucial that women’s social security and bargaining power within the traditional institutions be preserved while introducing new institutional arrangements for land tenure.

“Gender relations in the democratization process: an analysis of agrarian policies in Africa”

This paper links women’s empowerment in the democratisation process to the sexual division of labour and resources in land management.

Securing the commons in an era of privatisation: policy and legislative challenges

The focus of the workshop, and of this report, is on the policy and legislative challenges raised by the commons in an era where many vocal actors see privatisation as the only way forward. Such challenges are examined at different levels: local (local agreements for the shared management of natural resources), national (government policies, legislation), regional (protocols for the management of transboundary resources; treaties on cross-border transhumance) and international (the Convention on Bio-Diversity).

Changes in Customary Land Tenure Systems in Africa

Across rural Africa, land legislation struggles to be properly implemented, and most resource users gain access to land on the basis of local land tenure systems. There is growing recognition that land laws must build on local practice. In recent years, several African countries have adopted legislation that strengthens protection for local land rights. This raises the need to understand what is happening to land tenure systems on the ground.

Land rights in Africa: protecting the interests of vulnerable groups. Natural resources highlights

Land policies in Africa have often overlooked the interests of certain social groups. In some areas, traditional access and ownership rights for women, migrants and pastoralists have been ignored or reduced. The rise of HIV/AIDS in the region has created new social groups who are vulnerable to discrimination by land policies. As new policies are formed in the region, it is important to consider why these groups have been excluded. This will help to ensure that future policies represent these groups more fairly.

Land tenure and administration in Africa: lessons of experience and emerging issues

As stated in the Introduction, “this study reviews the main features of the new wave of land policy and legislation in sub-Saharan Africa, and identifies emerging issues concerning land tenure in the continent. The study draws lessons from recent experience in the following key areas: tenure security and land tenure reform; land redistribution; decentralised land management and administration; land conflict; protecting the land rights of vulnerable groups; land and rural-urban links; land and broader development policies and programmes.

Respect, Protect and Fulfill: legislating for women’s rights in the context of HIV/AIDS

Legislation can be instrumental in impeding or promoting initiatives to address the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The widespread legal, social, economic and political ramifications of the epidemic make it necessary to review and reform a broad range of laws. Within a context of entrenched gender discrimination, the devastating impacts of HIV/AIDS, widespread poverty and increasing competition for resources such as property and land, legislative solutions to the denial of women’s rights are urgently needed.