CSW62 Parallel Event: Roots of Empowerment- Land Rights to Rural Women, New York

WOCAN co-sponsored this parallel event with Action Aid-Nairobi, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment, International Land Coalition, GROOTS Kenya, Landesa and Rights and Resources Initiative on 14 March, 2:30-4:00 PM at the Church Center of the United Nations in New York.Speakers talked about women’s land rights-including the land rights of indigenous women- and offered concrete recommendations for governments, intergovernmental bodies and other institutions, civil society actors and other relevant stakeholders, to be implemented at the international, national, regional and local levels.

The land tenure rights of rural women and girls often go overlooked, yet securing land tenure rights for rural women and girls is critical to their empowerment, the unlocking of sustainable development goals, and the achievement of gender equality. This year’s Commission’s priority theme gives all participants a chance to stand up for rural women and girls, ensuring that their voices, interests, and valuable contributions are not left behind. In keeping with this priority theme, the Parallel Event aims to articulate rural women’s land rights—including the land rights of indigenous women—withina set of concrete recommendations for governments, intergovernmental bodies and other institutions, civil society actors and other relevant stakeholders, to be implemented at the international, national, regional and local level. The ParallelEvent brings together rural women leaders, land experts, practitioners, and researchers from different regions to explore specific advocacy efforts, research, and other actions that contribute to the realization of women’s and girls’ land tenure rights. Specifically, panelists will explore the legal recognition, implementation, and enforcement of women’s land tenure rights, and the means by which rural women and girls are participating in forums that result in their empowerment and the furtherance of gender equality.

Speakers:

• Catherine Gatundu, International Policy Advisor- Livelihoods, Action Aid International
• Monica Mhoja, Tanzania Program Director, Landesa
• Fridah Githuku, Director, GROOTS Kenya
• Priti Darooka, Executive Director, PWESCR, International Land Coalition’s member
• Kaitlin Y. Cordes, Head of Land and Agriculture, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
• Stephanie Keene, Sr. Tenure Analyst, Rights and Resources Initiative
• Meena Bilgi, Gender and Sustainable Solutions Specialist, WOCAN

Moderator: Katia Araujo, Director of Advocacy, Landesa

Objective: Draw on ground experiences to inform and solidify government obligations to uphold gender equal land rights as part of rural women’s human rights and 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda;and identify opportunities for local, national,regional and global levels advocacy for state accountability, including through data gathering under the SDGs.

KEY QUESTIONS TO BE DISCUSSED

1. What policies, legal reforms, and interventions at local and national levels have promoted secure land tenure rights for rural women and girls?
2. In the process of implementation, how do we support rural women as they engage their governments at the country level and strengthen their leadership?
3. How can best draw on international normative frameworks to inform laws, policies, and programs related to land tenure, and how can we apply them on local, national, and global levels?