Women’s land rights: Customary rules and formal laws in the pastoral areas of Ethiopia – complementary or in conflict?

Secure land tenure is key to eradicating poverty;increasing agricultural investment and ensuring food security;and is an essential element of climate action and climate resilience. Yet women have far weaker rights to land than men. These disadvantages exist broadly and with few exceptions globally and are especially limiting to the well-being of women and their families in rural areas;where land is the basis for livelihood;identity;social standing and social security. In USAID agricultural programming;this question becomes particularly relevant for fulfilling commitments to gender equality and for the success of programmes overall. This post provides an overview of the challenges to women’s secure land rights;why those challenges matter in the context of agriculture;and approaches USAID and its partners can employ to overcome them.