The Status of Women’s Land Rights After Land Rights Registration and Certification Program in Wonago District, Ethiopia

Achamyeleh Gashu Adam

doi:10.7176/jcsd/50-01

Abstract

Land is very critical asset for human life survival and the back bone for rural women livelihood. Unfortunately, in most developing countries like Ethiopia women were discriminated and marginalized from access and control of land for centuries through customary practices. With an effort to recognize women’s land rights, the government of Ethiopia both at federal and regional state level is implementing large land right registration and certification programs since 2003.This study, therefore, is aimed to assess the effect of land certification in securing women’s land rights by taking wonago district of SNNPR as a case study area. Survey research method was employed to generate both quantitative and qualitative data from the respondents selected by using both probability and non-probability sampling techniques. Finally the finding of this research revealed that the implementation of land certification program in the study area has been affecting rural women positively by advancing their land rights but still some women are challenged by unsolved landholding insecurity problems. The study recommends further that beside to land certification and registration programs, awareness creation on the equality of men and women should be given more emphasis so as to minimize biasness from the community and to ensure women’s equal rights on land. Keywords: Certification; Ethiopia; Land Rights; Land Tenure; Security Women DOI : 10.7176/JCSD/50-01 Publication date :July 31 st 2019

Highlights

In many developing countries, where most rural poor rely on subsistence agriculture for their survival, land remains a critical asset
Land certification is one of the appropriate reform and tool which the government has been implementing in most parts of the country including this study area with the purpose to improve the land tenure security of both women and men
The result of this study is shown that currently, even if marriage is www.iiste.org the most dominant means of land accessing, the land holding right is guaranteed by land certification for both spouses

Summary

Introduction

In many developing countries, where most rural poor rely on subsistence agriculture for their survival, land remains a critical asset. Access to and control of property, whether customary, statutory, or religious provides economic entry for women to key markets as well as social access to non-market institutions such as household- and communitylevel governance structures, where they can contribute to decision making Without land, such opportunities are difficult or impossible for women to attain since land provides them with a basic means for subsistence and market production (FAO, 2010b). Individually or in groups, “own” land on which they produce food and goods for their families, products to sell, or rental income, their ownership is not legally recognized In these cases, they may or may control the decisions made about the use of the land, depending on how important their production and income is their spouses, households, or other legal owners. If the tally of female land ownership in Africa, for example, is based on jointly or individually titled land, the percentage would be very low because levels of titled land ownership are very low, even for men (FAO, 2010a)

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Discussion

Conclusion