Land Tenure Reform and Women’s Agricultural Productivity: Empirical Insights from Rural Rwanda

African Journal of Gender and Women Studies | Vol. 11, No. 2, February 2026 | pp. 41–48
DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/000201

Research Article

Land Tenure Reform and Women’s Agricultural Productivity: Empirical Insights from Rural Rwanda

Jeanette Uwamariya¹, Olivier Nkurunziza²

¹Faculty of Agriculture, University of Rwanda, Butare, Rwanda
²Institute of Policy Analysis and Research, Kigali, Rwanda

Abstract: Rwanda’s national land tenure regularization program introduced mandatory joint land registration for married couples, aiming to secure women’s land rights. This empirical study examines whether this legal reform translated into enhanced agricultural investment and crop yields among female-managed plots in the Southern Province. Analyzing survey data from 520 farming households before and after the reform, we applied a difference-in-differences econometric model. The statistical evaluation indicates a 19.4 percent rise in long-term soil conservation investments on plots with female co-titling names compared to control plots (t = 4.12, p < 0.01). Crop productivity value increased by an estimated 14.8 percent per hectare among households where women shared equal legal decision-making over land usage. However, informal social norms still restrict women from utilizing registered land as collateral for commercial agricultural loans. The study confirms that joint titling empowers female farmers productively, yet requires complementary financial sector reforms to maximize impact.

Keywords: Land tenure, agricultural productivity, co-titling, gender equity, Rwanda

Manuscript Timeline: Received: November 15, 2025; Revised: December 18, 2025; Accepted: January 05, 2026; Published: February 05, 2026

Citation: Uwamariya, J., & Nkurunziza, O. (2026). Land Tenure Reform and Women’s Agricultural Productivity: Empirical Insights from Rural Rwanda. African Journal of Gender and Women Studies, 11(2), 41–48. DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/000201

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