Land, Gender and Ethnicity: A Feminist Critique of Land Distribution and Identity in Uganda?

In many African states, such as, Uganda, access to and control over land are a deeply politicized and gendered issue. This paper explores the historical and structural forces that have shaped this reality. In the contemporary context, it is “who you are†that determines whether you have access to and control of land. Why? Because Land distribution today is structured around identity markers such as gender, ethnicity and tribe, religion. Class and age too especially regarding financial ability to acquire land given its exposure to market forces, although these are not the focus of the paper. Rights to land in Africa stem from many different sources, such as first settlement, conquest, allocation by government, long occupation or market transaction (Toulmin 2009). This paper employs feminist historical materialism as both method and lens to trace how colonialism, capitalism and state power jointly structure exclusion of control over land. The approach foregrounds material conditions through narratives relating to land tenure, birth and inheritance systems and how these intersect with gender and ethnicity to reproduce inequality. Addressing gender inequality in land access requires decolonial framework and thinking that centres social justice, privileges and prioritizes access over exclusion and emphasizes collectivity over individualism.