Access to land rights is crucial if the global goals of gender equality and land degradation neutrality are to be achieved by 2030, the UN has said.

The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification executive secretary Ibrahim Thiaw says the land is the most critical economic resource for most rural poor.

However, women around the world are less likely to own or control land than men, which exposes them to poverty, hunger, gender-based violence and displacement.

“Women are major actors in the global efforts to reduce and reverse land degradation. They restore land, protect land, and cherish, nourish and care for the land, while also caring for others," Thiaw said. 

"However, in the vast majority of countries, women have unequal and limited access to and control over land. We cannot achieve land degradation neutrality without gender equality, and we cannot exclude half the population from land management decisions because of their gender." 

The Federation of Women Lawyers in Kenya says the country has made positive steps in developing a constitution that reflects international standards of gender equality and enacting laws to give effect to the constitutional provisions.

Article 40 of the Constitution guarantees the right to property ownership, while Article 60 ensures equitable access to land and security of land rights.

However, due to the deeply entrenched prevailing patriarchal attitudes, it is still difficult to attain the equality envisioned by the Constitution of Kenya 2010.

FIDA, in its training handbook, says even though the estimated ratio of women to men is 1:1, only five per cent of land title deeds in Kenya are held by women, jointly with men.

It says one per cent of land titles in Kenya are held by women alone and 89 per cent of the subsistence farming labour force is provided by women.

The women federation say 70 per cent of labour in cash crop labour production is provided by women, and about 32 per cent of households are headed by women.

“A complex mix of cultural, legal and social factors and obstacles stand in the way of women realising equal property rights in Kenya. The few statutes that could advance women’s property in the past deferred to religious and customary property laws that privilege men over women.” 

FIDA says some of the challenges hindering women from owning land include cultural beliefs, lack of awareness, discriminatory official responses, expensive legal system, fear, lack of participation and discrimination encouraged by the law.

Already, UNCCD together with partners, activists and influencers, has launched a campaign known as #HerLand to promote successful examples of women and girls’ contributions to sustainable land management.

The campaign is also aimed at mobilising support to advance land rights for women and girls around the world, and takes place ahead of this year’s global observance of Desertification and Drought Day.

The day will be commemorated under the theme “Her Land. Her Rights.”

The day marked June 17 will focus on women’s land rights as a key element of achieving the connected global goals of gender equality and land degradation neutrality by 2030.

The global observance will be held at the UN headquarters in New York, with events taking place in all parts of the world. 

UNCCD is advocating for the key role of gender equality in empowering women and girls to be at the forefront of global land restoration and drought resilience efforts.

It urges the government to promote laws, policies and practices that end discrimination and secure women’s rights to land and resources.

UNCCD has also urged businesses to prioritise women and girls in their investments and facilitate access to finance and technology

It says investing in women’s equal access to land and associated assets is a direct investment in their future and the future of humanity.

UNCCD said it will reaffirm its commitment to gender equality with these Desertification and Drought Day 2023.

During the commemoration of the day, UNCCD will be seeking to raise awareness of the disproportionate impact of desertification, land degradation and drought on women and girls and the barriers they face in decision-making on land issues.

It will also seek to highlight women's contributions to sustainable land management and broader Sustainable Development Goals and mobilise global support to advance land rights for women and girls around the world.