Rural Women Lead Kenya’s Push for Equitable Land Rights
As Kenya marked the 2025 International Rural Women’s Day (IRWD), the message from rural women, policymakers, and development partners was clear: women’s land rights are not a favour, they are foundational to justice, climate resilience, and national development.
Held on 8–9 October 2025, the two-day Women’s Land Rights Convening brought together over 100 participants representing grassroots women’s organisations, government institutions, civil society, and development partners. The event, organised as part of the IRWD commemorations, became a rallying point for renewed advocacy, data-driven decision-making, and collective action to secure women’s access to, use of, and ownership of land.
A movement rooted in collaboration
The convening reflected the diversity and strength of Kenya’s land rights movement. Participants included GROOTS Kenya, Landesa, Kenya Land Alliance, FAO, the International Land Coalition (ILC), Shibuye CBO, and government agencies such as the National Land Commission (NLC) and the State Department for Lands.
In her opening remarks, FAO’s Husna Mbarak reminded participants that 2026 has been declared
The year of the African woman farmer.
A powerful opportunity to centre rural women’s contributions to agriculture and to ensure that they benefit equitably from land and natural resources.
Eva Maria of ILC Africa emphasised that the current system is “not working for us,” calling for bold, constituency-driven advocacy that translates policy into tangible change. The Stand for Her Land (S4HL) campaign echoed this call, urging stakeholders to bridge the gap between law and practice by championing women’s secure land tenure at all levels.
Breaking barriers and building data-driven solutions
Panel discussions throughout the event unpacked the complex barriers women face in owning and controlling land, including restrictive cultural norms and discriminatory succession laws, as well as low representation in land governance institutions.
According to data presented by GROOTS Kenya and the Kenya Land Alliance, women’s individual land ownership in Kenya stands at just 12–14%, compared to 38–40% for men. Only 3% of women hold title deeds solely in their names. Yet, joint ownership and collective models among women’s groups, such as chamas and community associations, are rising steadily.
Participants agreed that progress depends on accurate, gender-disaggregated data to inform both policy and advocacy. As one speaker put it,
What is not counted cannot be accounted.
Encouragingly, national institutions are taking note. The Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), in collaboration with UN Women and civil society organisations, is strengthening frameworks such as the Kenya Statistical Quality Assurance Framework (KASQUAF) and a new Toolkit for Gender Data Use to recognise and integrate citizen-generated data into national planning.
Grassroots women: turning knowledge into power
From the plenary floor, grassroots women shared stories that captured both the pain of exclusion and the power of resilience.
In Murang’a County
Widow Regina Mwaura recounted how, after facing violent opposition from her in-laws, she successfully pursued a succession case and now mentors other women navigating similar challenges.
In Kakamega County
Lynette Kalumba described how the county’s land-leasing model is enabling poor and landless women to access land for cultivation, an initiative now supported by the county government.
in Lari Sub-County
a public land mapping initiative led by women in partnership with GROOTS Kenya prevented illegal land grabs, protected public spaces, and ensured that development funds went directly to community priorities like schools and clinics.
Each story underscored a vital truth: women are not just beneficiaries of land reforms; they are co-creators of solutions.
Policy shifts and county-level action
Beyond dialogue, the convening yielded concrete outcomes.
In Kajiado County
The Governor directed that every sub-county establishes a dedicated women’s land rights desk to make services more accessible.
The National Land Commission
reaffirmed its commitment to integrating gender responsiveness across all land governance frameworks and strengthening gender data systems.
Participants
Called for simplified succession procedures, decentralised services, and regular community land clinics to accelerate women’s access to justice.
These shifts reflect growing recognition that inclusive governance begins at the local level and that county governments are critical actors in ensuring gender equity in land administration.
Land rights & climate justice: A shared agenda
The convening also explored the intersection of land rights, food systems, and climate action. Discussions on the Rio Conventions, the UN treaties on climate change, biodiversity, and desertification, revealed how deeply women’s land ownership is tied to environmental sustainability.
The Stand for Her Land Campaign is working to ensure that women’s land rights are integrated into Kenya’s Gender Action Plan (GAP) under the UNFCCC. This plan, developed jointly by the Ministry of Environment and the Department of Gender, is positioning Kenya as a continental leader in gender-responsive climate governance.
However, participants cautioned against fragmentation across multiple GAPs for climate, biodiversity, and desertification, calling for one unified national Gender Action Plan that brings coherence and collaboration across all sectors.
Shared commitments and the road ahead
The two-day dialogue concluded with clear, actionable commitments:
Grassroots women
pledged to expand awareness campaigns, build community watchdog groups, and mobilize local movements for women’s land ownership.
Government institutions
Committed to capacity building, decentralising land services, and mainstreaming gender across all land programs.
Development partners
Such as FAO and Oxfam pledged continued support for land registration, alternative justice systems (AJS), and livelihoods programs.
Civil society organizations
Vowed to translate land laws into local languages, simplify technical information, and deliver regular legal aid to rural women.
Looking ahead, partners agreed to organise the National Women Land Conference in 2026, aligning their efforts with the International Year of the African Woman Farmer and pushing for a presidential directive on women’s land rights and succession.
From commemoration to transformation
The 2025 IRWD convening was not merely an event; it was a movement milestone. It reinforced that sustainable development, food security, and climate resilience in Africa begin with one core truth: when rural women own land, communities thrive.
As one participant summed up,
True transformation means changing systems, not women.
