Netright calls on Parliament to sustain gender provision in Land Bill

Dr. Benjamin Armah Quaye, a land administration consultant, has pleaded with Parliament to sustain the gender provision in the Land Bill, which is currently before the House.

He argued that, “though the gender provisions in the Land Bill are intact, they may come under attack during consideration by the full House.”

The Bill, when passed, will consolidate the laws on land, with the view to harmonizing the laws to ensure sustainable land administration and management, effective land tenure and efficient surveying and mapping regimes and to provide related matters.

It will also consolidate the laws on land, with the view to harmonizing the laws to ensure sustainable land administration and management, effective land tenure and efficient surveying and mapping regimes and to provide for related matters.

In his presentation at a consultative meeting on National Land Policy initiatives organized by the Network for Women’s Rights Ghana (NETRIGHT) in Accra, Dr Quaye explained that the gender provision in the Bill is to protect women and other vulnerable people’s interest in land, as well as to ensure the integration of international best practices on gender and land rights, and land administration/management.

“The Land Bill prohibits discriminatory practices in relation to land in accordance with Article 17 of the Constitution,” he said.

He further indicated that the gender provision in the Bill would further protect women in marriage, and expressed the opinion that it would solve the dispute in inheritance of land among family members.

Dr Quaye urged stakeholders to fight for the inclusion of the gender provision in the Bill, and added that they should consistently “make contact with key Parliamentarians at both personal and formal levels”.

Also speaking at the meeting, Dr Stanislaus Y. Adiaba, a representative from the Lands Commission, called on non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and civil society organisations (CSOs) to “serve as a ‘watch-dog’ over the interest and rights of the community, including the rights of women, youth and other vulnerable groups.”

He further urged them to support and sensitise local communities to their rights and building their capacity to negotiate with investors and which questions to ask and which answers to get back.

Dr Adiaba continued that NGOs and CSOs should “create awareness about the benefits, risks and externalities of large-scale land acquisition on the livelihood of the community, the vulnerable, women and youth.”

He further urged the organisations to work together with communities to institute mechanisms for documenting their land rights.

About the meeting

As part of its gender and natural resource work, NETRIGHT, in partnership with the Grassroots Sisterhood Foundation (GSF), implemented the phase II of its project on “Gender and Land Rights” under the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) ‘Gender, Land and accountability’ programme in selected African countries.

The first phase was aimed at improving the understanding of local contexts, existing challenges and emerging approaches promoting gender-equitable land governance as commercial pressures on land increase.

However, the Phase II of the project sought to highlight and support initiatives that enhance rural women’s participation in land related decisions as well as strengthen their control over their livelihood options in the context of increasing commercial pressures on land and natural resources in Ghana.

The objectives of the consultation were to increase awareness about the gender provisions in the Land Bill and other related guidelines; Collectively develop an action plan on how the land bill can be engaged; Build a collective and stronger voice of women and other critical stakeholders to advocate the passage of the Land Bill which addresses gender equality issues; and Increase and sustain momentum of stakeholders for gender equitable reforms in the land sector.

Participants

Key stakeholders such as gender and land-related CSO platforms, land sector agencies and institutions, traditional leaders and the media attended the meeting.