Land: More women know their rights

“Men have let us down – let us play our role.” That was the main message of the songs women from Kiteto District in Northern Tanzania composed prior to a gender workshop in the Tanzanian capital Dar es Salaam in November 2009.

Prior to the workshop the organisation CORDS had carried out its Gender and Women Development programme in several districts in Northern Tanzania throughout the year – and one of the results was heard in the songs sung by the Maasai women from Kiteto; “Men have let us down.” Through the training the women learned about equal access, ownership and control over land as well as the land laws and provisions that are supposed to secure communities from landgrabbers such as foreign investors and local farmers.

And one question kept emerging among the women. “Why have our men, despite knowing all these things, done nothing to secure our land and our communities?”

The women’s reaction surprised not only the Maasai men but also CORDS it self – especially because Maasai women traditionally constitute a vulnerable group that are not expected to question neither their men nor their shortcomings.

“It is quite amazing. The women are steps ahead of what we originally expected from this training. The women have totally sidelined their men and at the same time they are questioning government and authorities about land issues,” explains Elijurana Laltaika.

The anger towards the men and not least the authorities that on several occasions have granted outsiders land without sticking to the laws and regulations culminated in November 2009 in the Tanzanian capital. Here hundreds of women from all over the country gathered for a gender workshop and it was for this workshop the women in Kiteto District prepared their song about their men letting them down.

During the workshop, presentations were given, experiences shared and advice exchanged on land rights and how to secure them for women as well.

And by the end of the workshop a group of women from Northern Tanzania decided to march to the state house to meet the President of Tanzania to express anger that 200 houses belonging to the women had been burnt down allegedly to pave way for an Arab investor who wanted to establish a tourist enclave without disturbance from the local residents.

The march in Dar es Salaam ensured the women that they have the power and right to question the current situation in Tanzania, where corrupt practices can pave way for land grabbers and take away the livelihood of entire communities.

 “It is a very encouraging development that women can now stand up in a crowd and question matters that affect the future of the community instead of accepting their traditional role as vulnerable and subordinate to men,” says Elijurana Laltaika.

The women’s protest in Dar es Salaam did not proceed unnoticed by the public or the politicians or other women for that matter. Political promises have followed the protest and CORDS are confident that the women’s action will have an impact within the communities.

“It is very powerful, when women take to the streets and it is difficult to ignore. This shows that women, when they are empowered and aware on their socioeconomic rights, are extremely powerful tools for development and change. When women become aware of their rights and what the laws state, they act immediately and effectively” says Elijurana Laltaika.

In the aftermath of the march in Dar es Salaam several political promises have been made to answer the criticism raised by the women. It is now up to organisations like CORDS to ensure that those promises are kept.

CORDS

Community Research and Development Centre (CORDS - http://www.cordstz.org/) is an organisation established to address some of the challenges that pastoral communities face in the Maasai region. CORDS works to secure land and human rights for pastoralists through participatory approaches aimed at empowering the poor and marginalised to participate in local decision-making. Since 1999, the organisation has worked with and secured 71 Village Land Certificates and thus is highly regarded by local authorities as well as ordinary people.

Partnership with ActionAid TanzaniaCORDS operates in the districts of Kiteto, Monduli, Ngorongoro and Simanjiro. ActionAid Tanzania (former MS Tanzania)  have worked with CORDS since 2005. Its present support is currently directed towards activities in Kiteto District.

The partnership’s current focus is on empowering women to enable them to gain secure access to land. Despite their legal rights, women in Tanzania remain marginalised in this area, leaving them particularly vulnerable and prone to poverty.

The partnership’s activities entail organising women and making them conscious of their land rights as well as seeking to establish the necessary institutional framework for their claims to materialise. This includes facilitating demarcation and certification of the village land, developing village land use plans and formulating by-laws, and facilitating the establishment of village land registries. It also involves activities on accountability such as increasing women’s participation and reducing corruption in village councils and village adjudication committees.

By 2012, the partnership aims to secure 13 Village Land Certificates, 21 Village Land Use Plans and to ensure that women from 21 villages in Kiteto District claim their rights to land.