Protecting Liberia women's land rights in the land reform process

Justine Uvuza, Jennifer Duncan, My-Lan Dodd, Izatta Nagbe, Lena Cummings, Vivian D. Neal

Liberia has a pluralistic land tenure system based on statutory and customary laws. Customary law, derived from local lineage-based governance systems, dominates in most rural areas. While the government has introduced policy and land reforms to strengthen the rights of women, men, and communities in recent years, significant gaps remain in recognizing, legalizing and enforcing women’s land rights in the land policy reform process. Although rural women play a significant role in agricultural production and the family’s wellbeing in Liberia, their rights and access to land are often not equal to those of men. Rights to customary land are passed down through male lineage, women access customary lands through their male relatives, usually via fathers or husbands. This study aims to highlight gender disparities affecting women’s land rights (WLR) in Liberia in the process of Liberia’s land reform in order to ensure an inclusive and gender-responsive land reform.

Event: Land Governance in an Interconnected World_Annual World Bank Conference on Land and Poverty_2018

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Document type:Protecting Liberia women's land rights in the land reform process (1016 kB - pdf)