• norsk
    • English
  • English 
    • norsk
    • English
  • Login
View Item 
  •   Home
  • Norges miljø- og biovitenskapelige universitet
  • Faculty of Landscape and Society (LandSam)
  • Master's theses (Noragric)
  • View Item
  •   Home
  • Norges miljø- og biovitenskapelige universitet
  • Faculty of Landscape and Society (LandSam)
  • Master's theses (Noragric)
  • View Item
JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.

Breaking the norms : gender and land rights in Tigray Ethiopia

Gebru, Mebrat G
Master thesis
Thumbnail
View/Open
Final Master thesis(Mebrat Gebreslassie Gebru).pdf (4.767Mb)
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/11250/187759
Date
2011-09-28
Metadata
Show full item record
Collections
  • Master's theses (Noragric) [676]
Abstract
Rights to land determine the bargaining power of women in the society and the household, as

well as determining their economic condition. Control to land and efficient use of the land is

determined by the availability of resources and existing social and institutional structures.

This study was aimed to assess the importance of land for the economic, social and

empowerment change of the women, and the women’s access to resources and control over

land and produce of land. The study was carried out in two weredas of Tigray region, Ethiopia

and mainly employed household interviews, focus group discussions and cases studies.

The study revealed that land rights have given the women improved social-, economic-,

bargaining-, and empowerment- status in the household and in the society. The study also

identified that oxen, lack of labor, cultural norms, lack of proper documentation on land title

as main constraints the women face. In particular, female headed households lack control over

the produce of land; the constraints as mentioned have forced many to sharecrop-out their

land. When other sharecrop their land, they lose half to two third of the harvest (produce of

the land). Compared with male headed households, female headed households are trapped by

the lack of resources and lack of control over resources. The research also found out that

because not being able to benefit the full product of the land forces women to break cultural

taboos, e.g. that women are not allowed to plough. But this in fact, just adds to the already

numerous burdens of the household.

Moreover, the rights to land have improved the women status to claim their land but still the

women have difficulties in claiming land due to lack of financial capacity and improper

documentation. Lack of certificate is identified as one of the reasons putting women in a

disfavorable position when situations such as disputes over land or marital divorce occur.

Women in male headed households are disadvantaged as the certificate is given to the named

head of household, which is obviously the husband. Thus, women preferred to have individual

certificates, or wished that their names should appear on the certificate.

Land rights improve livelihoods of women and strengthen their claims over land. However,

this is being challenged by the fact that the households, particularly female headed

households, lack non-land resources such as oxen, labor and so on that restrict the efficient

and effective use of their land and lack of legal issues that limits claim over land.
Publisher
Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Ås

Contact Us | Send Feedback

Privacy policy
DSpace software copyright © 2002-2019  DuraSpace

Service from  Unit
 

 

Browse

ArchiveCommunities & CollectionsBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjectsDocument TypesJournalsThis CollectionBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjectsDocument TypesJournals

My Account

Login

Statistics

View Usage Statistics

Contact Us | Send Feedback

Privacy policy
DSpace software copyright © 2002-2019  DuraSpace

Service from  Unit