Land Rights Challenges Among Widows In Boro Division, Siaya County, Kenya

ABSTRACT

This research addresses land rights and property ownership of widows in Siaya county Boro Division. Rights to land and property include right to own, use, access, control, transfer, exclude, inherit and make decisions about the land and related resources. The objectives of this study were to establish the land rights challenges among widows in Boro Division, Siaya County of Kenya, to establish the effects of customary law on land and property ownership among the widows; identify the empowerment needs of the widows who experience property inheritance challenges; explain the mechanisms used in Boro to allocate land and property to widows; and determine the extent to which widows are aware of existing laws on property ownership. The researcher applied the African feminist theory relevant in this context. The researcher adopted survey design in order to capture the opinion of the respondents. The study population consisted of widows who are mostly affected, the in-laws, and the administration body. The study sampled residents from Central Alego location of Boro Division. The sample size consisted of 5 women leaders, 36 widows, 4 church clerics, 15 men, 5 clan leaders, 5 chiefs and 20 married women making a sample size of 90 residents from Central Alego in Boro Division, Siaya County. Purposive sampling using the snowball sampling was used. Data was manually analyzed by use of content analysis. The study findings indicate that there are various opportunities for women in the new statutory land rights including ownership and inheritance. The findings also suggest that the respondents are aware of these opportunities but the opportunities are not being actualized on the ground due to a variety of challenges, including: predominant use of cultural land tenure systems in the rural areas; customs and traditional practices that are dominantly patriarchal and largely discriminate against women. Social cultural norms in the diverse communities in Kenya prohibit uniform kind of ownership, meaning widows have no claim over traditional form of land and property. In Boro Siaya County, there are continued deprivation of right to own land and property by widows because of the cultural and historical reasons. The study, therefore, recommends that activities including workshops and conferences be organized to educate rural women and make them aware of the available avenues that they can use to actualize their rights; encourage cultural leaders and elders to support women land rights; and carry out further research on ways in which statutory and customary land tenure systems can exist and work together for the benefit of the communities, more than just in the implementation of the constitution.