One of the symptoms of negative gender issues is when, in the bid to fulfill her duty to submit to her husband, a woman seeks consent from him to use land as security to get credit. When she does and he grants her the permission to do so, she will likely have to bring back the money to him when she gets the loan.
He will likely retain some of it or even most of it. This means that she will use less money for the purpose that loan was intended. This status quo is caused by negative cultural beliefs in our communities as one of the participants explained: “there is a belief that a woman cannot or should not own land.”
A woman who borrows under such conditions will likely be burdened with repaying the credit alone. Maximum pressure will be put on her since the land which she offered as security for the loan that she got is owned by her husband.
By James Opolo, Innovator in First Cohort of CPAR Uganda programme: “Mentoring Young Adults into Innovators against Poverty”; and Volunteer Agricultural Production Assistant with CPAR Uganda. Read more about him here.
It is important to note, however, that:
“Women in many places, including northern Uganda, have strong land rights enshrined in the customs and traditions of their tribes. In the Acholi, Langi and Iteso tribes, customary rules recognize women’s rights to land. In these societies, everyone born of the clan has the right to use land, including women.” Read more here
Focus on Land in Africa
CPAR Uganda Ltd 