Via Devex
01 September 2015
By: Jeff Tyson
Land is a valuable commodity in Rwanda — a country with one of the highest population densities in Africa. Still, Rwanda is known for its progressive land policies that provide the foundation for equal land rights for men and women. For instance, both men and women can inherit shares of their parents’ property. And a woman married under the country’s community property regime is allowed to administer her family’s land when her husband dies.
With tumultuous colonial occupation, civil war and genocide that led to the death of an estimated 500,000 to 1,000,000 Tutsis in 1994, Rwandans historically endured massive displacements and human rights abuse. Thus, in the 21st century, the rectification of Rwanda’s previously untenable land governance system has become a major priority.
its4land is an EU-financed project to assist Kenya, Rwanda and Ethiopia in mapping land tenure more quickly, cheaply and transparently. It will end in three years’ time; right now, the Africans and Europeans are in the phase of needs assessment. The focus is not on technical requirements, but on operational priorities and managerial context. The first results indicate that low-cost geospatial technologies will be helpful, not least because they also benefit priorities other than improving cadastral services.
Authorities Threaten, Prosecute Residents Who Speak Out
(Nairobi) – Military and civilian authorities in western Rwanda have arrested, beaten, or threatened people who challenged recent government decisions to force residents off their land, Human Rights Watch said today.
By: Jean d'Amour Mbonyinshuti
Date: October 12th 2016
Source: AllAfrica.com / The New Times
Rwandan rural women, together with their counterparts from various countries on the continent, will today convene at the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania in an effort to advocate for unrestricted women's rights to land and other natural resources across the continent.
By: Emmanuel Ntirenganya
Date: September 16th 2016
Source: New Times
Sitting in the doorway of her residential house in the remote Murundi Sector, Kayonza District in Eastern Province, Verena Uwineza is sorting beans for evening meal on a traditional basket.
It is Monday, September 12. By most accounts, everybody has been affected by prolonged drought in this area.
By: Betty Mutesi (International Alert)
Date: August 23rd 2016
Source: Thomson Reuters Foundation
In rural Rwanda, as in most developing countries, owning and controlling land determines whether you are rich or poor. In a country where some 57% of the population live below the poverty line, land is a prime resource.
By Anna Pujol-Mazzini
By: Minnie Karanja
Date: May 5th 2016
Source: The New Times
According to the United Nations, the proportion of the world’s population living in urban areas is expected to reach 66 per cent by 2050. Best Practices have shown that the global “urbanization”, when properly managed, may drive the economic growth of a country. It is in this regard that the Government of Rwanda has decided to include measures related to urbanization as part of its policies and strategies.
By: Emmanuel Ntirenganya
Date: April 19th 2016
Source: AllAfrica.com / The New Times
Women activists have called for policy changes to allow people jointly owning a piece of land that is less than an hectare in size to use it as they please.
By: Mugabo Ignatius
Date: April 6th 2016
Source: News of Rwanda
The World Bank has extended a credit financing worth U$95 million to Rwanda the development of the country’s six secondary cities that are under the urbanization strategy.
According to the agreement penned on Wednesday, the funds will go towards supporting the development of infrastructure and local economic activities in the six secondary cities.
