ACCESS TO LAND FOR 'vVOMEN LIVING IN DE FACTO UNIONS· Gender bargaining at local dispute fora in Rwanda

SCIENTIFIC HYPOTHESIS, OBJECTIVIVE ; and expected OUTPUT of the research project.

Access to land is one of the most important conditions for the empowerment of African women. The

cultivation of land is one of the main sources of income and economic wealth depends strongly on a

well elaborated system of iand tenure. However developing and protecting land rights for women in

mainly male-dominated societies is a long-term work. Even though law initiatives 1 may guarantee a

de jure equal access to land for women, the outcome highly depends on the way the culture-bound

relationship between women and men is constructed.