Land Corruption, Gender and Rural Land Governance in Zimbabwe

Existing land governance system in Zimbabwe subjects vulnerable groups such as women to ‘land corruption’, which entrenches the already existing gendered land inequalities. This study used secondary data and found that Zimbabwe has witnessed various forms of corruption in general and land corruption, in particular, despite the country having the requisite policy, legal and institutional frameworks as well as other mechanisms to curb the scourge of corruption. It is the effectiveness of the institutional setup that continues to be questioned for objectivity in execution and enforcement of anti-corruption mandates. Women continue to be discriminated, mistreated and ‘sexploited’ by local land administration authorities. Anecdotal evidence suggests that as a result of land corruption involving powerful actors, women tend to suffer the most. The study recommends the documentation of on-going malpractices in land administrative processes to expose endemic power asymmetries and abuse of power for corrupt gains in land governance systems.