6. Urban Landownership and the Right to Sustainable Development for Women in Africa

This chapter explores urban landownership in relation to the right to sustainable development granted by law to all the women of Africa. Although Africa is becoming more and more urbanised, its women are largely still relegated to remote rural areas and excluded from the benefits of urban life, which seems to imply that they are ordained exclusively for rural livelihood. Local governance provides an important institutionalised framework within which to address the question of land rights for women, The principle of “no one is left behind” and SDG 11 highlight the need for the inclusive participation of women in urban governance and development planning. While women are the cornerstone for development in Africa, they continue to endure development injustices due to their subjugated status under the dominant cultural and societal norms in African societies. The Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol), adopted in 2003 provides in Article 19(c) to “promote women’s access to and control over productive resources such as land and guarantee their right to property”, and this chapter seeks to determine how the entitlement to sustainable development could effectively be guaranteed to the women of Africa.