Land rights for women as a factor for development

In half of the world, women are still unable to assert their land and property rights. Although inroads have been made over the years on the legal side, the gap between law and practice remains. According to FAO data, agricultural productivity could be enhanced by 20% to 30% if more women would have secure tenure of the land they are working on. In many societies, be it in Latin America, Sub-Sahara Africa or even in the Balkans, discriminatory social practices still prevent to harvest the benefits for socio-economic development that secure land rights for women could bring. Therefore, we invite you to discuss with our panelists how a lack of understanding of laws within communities and families can be addressed, how women can gain better access to legal services and how also other relevant factors such as financial instruments need to be adjusted.