Dear Deeply Readers,
Welcome to the archives of Women’s Advancement Deeply. While we paused regular publication of the site on November 15, 2018, we are happy to serve as an ongoing public resource on women’s economic advancement. We hope you’ll enjoy the reporting and analysis that was produced by our dedicated community of editors and contributors.
We continue to produce events and special projects while we explore where the on-site journalism goes next. If you’d like to reach us with feedback or ideas for collaboration you can do so at [email protected].
The Tanzanian Women’s Bank, designed to close the financial gender gap between men and women, fell victim to bad loans and the country’s ongoing liquidity crisis.
In rural Kenya, the Waata people were displaced by the creation of a national park. But solar-dried pineapples have offered a lifeline to women who had struggled to make a living from farming in the past.
Joan Carling has been campaigning for Indigenous sovereignty and gender equality for decades, but this year President Rodrigo Duterte placed her on a list of ‘terrorists,’ making it impossible for her to go home. She shares her experience with News Deeply.
Agnes Andersson Djurfeldt Professor of Human Geography, Lund University
Researchers from Lund University found that, even when women own land in six African countries, their husbands are still perceived as household heads.
When a mining company offered to relocate villagers in Kwale County, Kenya one woman farmer refused to leave and another took the deal. Now both are struggling to make ends meet as they demand equal and fair compensation.
Uganda has some of the most progressive laws for people with disabilities in Africa, but public perception has not always kept up. Three NGOs are trying to turn that around by offering economic opportunities for women.
Monica Mhoja Tanzania Program Director, Landesa
When a widow is accused of being a witch in Tanzania, she can be blamed for her husband’s death, thrown off her land or lose her children. Some are killed for the imagined crime of killing their husband. Landesa’s Monica Mhoja explains why the government must step in.
In our March episode of Deeply Talks, which falls on the first day of the 62nd session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), our editors examine this year’s theme of empowering rural women and girls, featuring insights from two experts.
Kenya’s 2010 constitution guaranteed women extensive land and property rights. But the message wasn’t getting out to the remote communities of the north until a community radio station stepped in.
When Kenya passed the Matrimonial Property Act five years ago, it joined a series of laws protecting women’s access to their property. But patriarchal traditions and lack of awareness about their rights leave many women fighting to keep land that is legally theirs.
The Indian state of Andhra Pradesh needs a new capital, and the government wants to build it on the banks of the Krishna river. One woman is leading the fight against the development, which is slated to occupy some of the most fertile lands in the country.
At a land policy conference last week, African governments adopted a resolution to grant documented land rights to at least 30 percent of their female populations by 2025. But to do that they must navigate a complicated mix of local laws and long-held customs.
Traditionally, women in the DRC gained shares in property through marriage, not inheritance – and today, few realize that this custom contradicts the law. In North Kivu province, one organization is spreading awareness and helping resolve inheritance disputes.
Due to voracious brokers, many Kenyan farmers make very little profit from selling their produce. But one social enterprise is teaching hundreds of farmers, most of them women, how to grow more and earn what they deserve.
The mining industry is having dire consequences for women in the Philippines, encroaching on their land and causing domestic conflict. Filipina activist Judith Pasimio is encouraging indigenous women to stand up for their natural resources and human rights.
Melany Grout Attorney and Land Tenure Specialist, Landesa
More than 400 million women around the globe are farmers, but many have no rights to the land they till. Securing those rights is crucial if the world wants to reach its development goals, writes land tenure specialist Melany Grout.
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