Rural Women and the Land Question in Zimbabwe. The Case of the Mutasa District

Authors

Bigboy Toro, University of Fort Hare, South AfricaFollow

Abstract

Zimbabwean rural women make significant contribution to agriculture and are the mainstay of farm labor. Although they do the majority of agricultural work, men, for the most part, continue to own the land, control women’s labor and make agricultural decisions supported by patriarchal social systems. Women’s access to land is usually through their fathers, husbands, brothers or sons. This has made it difficult for women to gain equal access to land under the Fast Track Land Reform Programme (FTLRP). Findings indicate that there are a number of challenges and constraints that are experienced by rural women under the FTLRP, which include male land registration, inadequate farming support mechanisms, lack of awareness of government laws and policies concerning women land rights. This is exacerbated by cultural and traditional practices, which disadvantage them in favor of men, as in the inheritance of land and property in the household. To improve women’s access to land in the future, the study recommends that serious intervention by the state should occur coupled with the revitalization of the land reform program. This also calls for a paradigm shift towards an effective food security program, which puts emphasis on women and their impact in agriculture.

Recommended Citation

Toro, Bigboy (2016) "Rural Women and the Land Question in Zimbabwe. The Case of the Mutasa District," International Journal of African Development: Vol. 4: Iss. 1, Article 7.
Available at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/ijad/vol4/iss1/7