Land is the most significant form of property, linking economic, cultural, political, and legal dimensions of social life. Land tenure regimes that incorporate the interests of all actors, and that promote women’s rights to own and manage land, are critical in advancing women’s social and economic citizenship. Yet discussions around women’s land rights are often absent from discourses on land tenure. Public policy tends to ignore differences in men’s and women’s property rights, and the household is often considered as a single unit comprised of common interests where resources are pooled and shared.

Over the past seven years, IDRC’s Women’s Rights and Citizenship program and the former Rural Poverty and Environment program have supported over 20 research projects on gender and land in 12 African countries. These projects analyzed issues such as women’s rights and access to land, the social, institutional and legal structures that shape land tenure regimes, and the contextual specificities compromising women’s entitlements.  

IDRC is hosting a policy symposium, "Gendered  Terrain: Women's Rights and Access to Land in Africa" in Nairobi, Kenya on 14-16 September 2010. The event will provide a forum for researchers from across Africa to share their findings and policy recommendations, engage with policy makers to facilitate policy influence, and promote the development of sub-regional networks. It will enable researchers to share their findings with relevant African stakeholders including key government policy makers, civil society activists, and regional and international agencies.

For more information, please contact genderland@idrc.ca