Women, Land Tenure Dynamics and Land Sales in Rural Areas. The Case of Syukula Village, Tanzania

Abstract

Abstract Women’s engagement in rural land sales has been a significant aspect of land tenure dynamics with varied implications to their livelihoods and wellbeing. However, the factors that influence women’s decisions and the modalities of such engagement have not received much attention in social analysis, specifically with regard to women’s perceptions, responses and actions towards land sales, especially in situations of land shortage. In the context where multiple and interacting factors are continuing to transform rural land tenure patterns, this article discusses the varied implications of recent land sales to women, with possible extension of their vulnerabilities, yet also re-invigorating women’s agency regarding land ownership rights. Using a feminist political-ecological perspective, this article shows how women act under constraining circumstances to transform gender relations and patterns of land ownership with varying outcomes to their wellbeing. The findings also suggest deeper interrogation on the capacities of grassroots structures obligated to oversee land tenure security for communities and upholding women’s rights of access to land.