IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jlands/v9y2020i10p344-d417949.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Could Mapping Initiatives Catalyze the Interpretation of Customary Land Rights in Ways that Secure Women’s Land Rights?

Author

Listed:
  • Gaynor Paradza

    (Public Affairs Research Institute, Forest Town, Johannesburg 2193, South Africa)

  • Lebogang Mokwena

    (New School for Social Research, Department of Sociology, New York, NY 10011, USA)

  • Walter Musakwa

    (Future Earth and Ecosystems Research Group, Department of Urban and Regional Planning, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg 2028, South Africa)

Abstract

Although land forms the basis for marginal livelihoods in Sub-Saharan Africa, the asset is more strategic for women as they usually hold derived and dependent rights to land in customary tenure areas. Initiatives to secure women’s land tenure in customary areas are undermined by the social embeddedness of the rights, patriarchy, lack of awareness by the communities, legal pluralism, and challenges of recording the rights. As pressure on customary land tenure increases due to foreign and local land-based investment interests, land titling initiatives, tourism, and mineral resources exploration, communities and women within them are at real risk of losing their land, the basis of their livelihoods. Women stand to lose more as they hold tenuous land rights in customary land tenure areas. Accordingly, this study analyzes case studies of selected mapping initiatives in Sub-Saharan Africa to interrogate the extent to which mapping both as a cadastral exercise and emerging practice in the initiation of participatory land governance initiatives, catalyze the transmission of customary land rights in ways that have a positive impact on women’s access to land in customary land tenure areas. The results indicate that mapping initiatives generate opportunities, innovations, and novel spaces for securing women’s access to land in customary tenure areas which include catalyzing legislative changes and facilitating technology transfer, increasing awareness of women’s interests, providing opportunities for women to participate in decision-making forums, providing a basis for securing statutory recognition for their land rights, and improving natural resource stewardship. The potential challenges include the community’s capacity to sustain the initiatives, the expense of the technology and software, widespread illiteracy of women, power asymmetries and bias of the mapping experts, increased vulnerability of mapped land to exploitation, the legal status of the maps in the host community and /or country, compatibility with existing land recording systems, statutory bias in recording land rights and the potential of mapping initiatives to unearth existing land boundary conflicts. These challenges can be mediated by sensitive planning and management to ensure real and sustainable land tenure security for women. The paper contributes to debates around customary land tenure dynamics, specifically the issues pertaining to registration of primary and derived customary rights to land. These includes policy debates and choices to be made about how best to secure tenuous customary land rights of women and other vulnerable people. The paper also contributes to our understanding of what instruments in land registration toolkits might strengthen women’s land rights and the conditions under which this could be done.

Suggested Citation

  • Gaynor Paradza & Lebogang Mokwena & Walter Musakwa, 2020. "Could Mapping Initiatives Catalyze the Interpretation of Customary Land Rights in Ways that Secure Women’s Land Rights?," Land, MDPI, vol. 9(10), pages 1-17, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jlands:v:9:y:2020:i:10:p:344-:d:417949
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/9/10/344/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/9/10/344/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Ingrid Yngstrom, 2002. "Women, Wives and Land Rights in Africa: Situating Gender Beyond the Household in the Debate Over Land Policy and Changing Tenure Systems," Oxford Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 30(1), pages 21-40.
    2. Rogier J. E. Van den Brink, 2008. "Land Reform in Mozambique," World Bank Publications - Reports 17033, The World Bank Group.
    3. Joireman, S.F., 2008. "The Mystery of Capital Formation in Sub-Saharan Africa: Women, Property Rights and Customary Law," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 36(7), pages 1233-1246, July.
    4. Uchendu Eugene Chigbu & Gaynor Paradza & Walter Dachaga, 2019. "Differentiations in Women’s Land Tenure Experiences: Implications for Women’s Land Access and Tenure Security in Sub-Saharan Africa," Land, MDPI, vol. 8(2), pages 1-21, January.
    5. Dylan Weyer & Joana Carlos Bezerra & Alta De Vos, 2019. "Participatory Mapping in a Developing Country Context: Lessons from South Africa," Land, MDPI, vol. 8(9), pages 1-16, September.
    6. Liz Alden Wily, 2018. "Collective Land Ownership in the 21st Century: Overview of Global Trends," Land, MDPI, vol. 7(2), pages 1-26, May.
    7. Lawrence Haddad & Stuart Gillespie, 2001. "Effective food and nutrition policy responses to HIV|AIDS: what we know and what we need to know," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 13(4), pages 487-511.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Ayelech Kidie Mengesha & Reinfried Mansberger & Doris Damyanovic & Sayeh Kassaw Agegnehu & Gernot Stoeglehner, 2022. "The Contribution of Land Registration and Certification Program to Implement SDGs: The Case of the Amhara Region, Ethiopia," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(1), pages 1-16, December.
    2. Louisa J. M. Jansen, 2020. "Improving Governance of Tenure in Policy and Practice: Monitoring in a Space for Multiple Views," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(23), pages 1-23, November.
    3. Kwabena Obeng Asiama & Rohan Bennett & Christiaan Lemmen & Winrich Voss, 2021. "Land, Innovation, and Social Good," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-6, May.
    4. Ayelech Kidie Mengesha & Thomas Bauer & Doris Damyanovic & Sayeh Kassaw Agegnehu & Reinfried Mansberger & Gernot Stoeglehner, 2022. "Gender Analysis of Landholding and Situation of Female-Headed Households after Land Registration: The Case of Machakel Woreda," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-28, July.
    5. Clarissa Augustinus & Ombretta Tempra, 2021. "Fit-for-Purpose Land Administration in Violent Conflict Settings," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(2), pages 1-18, February.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Marisa Balas & João Carrilho & Christiaan Lemmen, 2021. "The Fit for Purpose Land Administration Approach-Connecting People, Processes and Technology in Mozambique," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(8), pages 1-22, August.
    2. Mengesha, Ayelech Kidie & Damyanovic, Doris & Mansberger, Reinfried & Agegnehu, Sayeh Kassaw & Stoeglehner, Gernot, 2021. "Reducing gender inequalities through land titling? The case of Gozamin Woreda," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    3. Gwaleba, Method Julius & Chigbu, Uchendu Eugene, 2020. "Participation in property formation: Insights from land-use planning in an informal urban settlement in Tanzania," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    4. Lambrecht, Isabel, 2016. "“As a husband I will love, lead, and provide:†Gendered access to land in Ghana:," IFPRI discussion papers 1514, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    5. Lambrecht, Isabel Brigitte, 2016. "“As a Husband I Will Love, Lead, and Provide.” Gendered Access to Land in Ghana," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 188-200.
    6. Rutakumwa, Rwamahe & Pain, Adam & Bukenya, Dominic & Tumwekwase, Grace & Ssembajja, Fatuma & Seeley, Janet, 2017. "Gender, land and responses to health and environmental shocks in rural South Western Uganda," Journal of Gender, Agriculture and Food Security (Agri-Gender), Africa Centre for Gender, Social Research and Impact Assessment, vol. 2(2), April.
    7. Asaaga, Festus A. & Hirons, Mark A., 2019. "Windows of opportunity or windows of exclusion? Changing dynamics of tenurial relations in rural Ghana," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    8. Onyebueke, Victor & Walker, Julian & Lipietz, Barbara & Ujah, Oliver & Ibezim-Ohaeri, Victoria, 2020. "Urbanisation-induced displacements in peri-urban areas: Clashes between customary tenure and statutory practices in Ugbo-Okonkwo Community in Enugu, Nigeria," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    9. Bezabih, Mintewab & Holden, Stein, 2010. "The Role of Land Certification in Reducing Gender Gaps in Productivity in Rural Ethiopia," RFF Working Paper Series dp-10-23-efd, Resources for the Future.
    10. Ndoye Niane, Aifa Fatimata & Burger, Kees, 2012. "Gender and Experimental Measurement of Producers Risk Attitude Towards Output Market Price and its Effects on Economic Performance," 2012 Conference, August 18-24, 2012, Foz do Iguacu, Brazil 126928, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    11. Sumbo, Dennis Kamaanaa, 2022. "Indigenes’ exclusion from neo-customary land: A perspective from changes in usufruct rights in Pramso, peri-urban Kumasi – Ghana," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 120(C).
    12. Wisdom Akpalu & Mintewab Bezabih, 2015. "Tenure Insecurity, Climate Variability and Renting out Decisions among Female Small-Holder Farmers in Ethiopia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(6), pages 1-16, June.
    13. Nicola Ansell & Elsbeth Robson & Flora Hajdu & Lorraine van Blerk & Lucy Chipeta, 2009. "The new variant famine hypothesis," Progress in Development Studies, , vol. 9(3), pages 187-207, July.
    14. Dzodzi  Tsikata, 2016. "Gender, Land Tenure and Agrarian Production Systems in Sub-Saharan Africa," Agrarian South: Journal of Political Economy, Centre for Agrarian Research and Education for South, vol. 5(1), pages 1-19, April.
    15. Raymond B. Frempong & David Stadelmann, 2017. "Does Female Education have a Bargaining Effect on Household Welfare? Evidence from Ghana and Uganda," CREMA Working Paper Series 2017-08, Center for Research in Economics, Management and the Arts (CREMA).
    16. Cassandra E DiRienzo & Jayoti Das, 2021. "Formal Female Entrepreneurship and the Shadow Economy," Journal of Economics and Behavioral Studies, AMH International, vol. 13(5), pages 63-72.
    17. Seebens, Holger, 2008. "One size fits all? Female Headed Households, Income Risk, and Access to Resources," 2008 International Congress, August 26-29, 2008, Ghent, Belgium 43609, European Association of Agricultural Economists.
    18. Varley, Ann, 2007. "Gender and Property Formalization: Conventional and Alternative Approaches," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 35(10), pages 1739-1753, October.
    19. Weeratunge, N. & Chiuta, T.M. & Choudhury, A. & Ferrer, A. & Hüsken, S.M.C. & Kura, Y. & Kusakabe, K. & Madzudzo, E. & Maetala, R. & Naved, R. & Schwarz, A. & Kantor, P., 2012. "Transforming aquatic agricultural systems towards gender equality: a five country review," Monographs, The WorldFish Center, number 39966, April.
    20. Shirzad, Hossein & Barati, Ali Akbar & Ehteshammajd, Shaghayegh & Goli, Imaneh & Siamian, Narges & Moghaddam, Saghi Movahhed & Pour, Mahdad & Tan, Rong & Janečková, Kristina & Sklenička, Petr & Azadi,, 2022. "Agricultural land tenure system in Iran: An overview," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 123(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jlands:v:9:y:2020:i:10:p:344-:d:417949. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.