Changing customary land rights and gender relations in the context of HIV/AIDS in Africa1
The effect of prime-age adult death and its consequences on access to land for the survivors has not been fully explored nor incorporated into policy regardless the fact that high adult mortality is now
the lived reality in countries affected by HIV/AIDS, particularly in Africa. This paper explores the
gendered relationships between adult death due to HIV/AIDS and changes in land rights for the
survivors particularly widows. In many African societies, women have traditionally accessed land