Gender gaps in land rights: Explaining different measures and why households differ in Myanmar

Measuring and understanding gender differences in property rights is key to informing policy decisions and guiding investments aimed at fostering gender equality. However, there are a myriad ways of assessing property rights. Firstly, we assess which indicators to use and why it matters, focusing on...

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Main Authors: Lambrecht, Isabel B., Mahrt, Kristi, Synt, Nang Lun Kham, Ei Win, Hnin, Win, Khin Zin
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: Wiley 2023
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/131401
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author Lambrecht, Isabel B.
Mahrt, Kristi
Synt, Nang Lun Kham
Ei Win, Hnin
Win, Khin Zin
author_browse Ei Win, Hnin
Lambrecht, Isabel B.
Mahrt, Kristi
Synt, Nang Lun Kham
Win, Khin Zin
author_facet Lambrecht, Isabel B.
Mahrt, Kristi
Synt, Nang Lun Kham
Ei Win, Hnin
Win, Khin Zin
author_sort Lambrecht, Isabel B.
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Measuring and understanding gender differences in property rights is key to informing policy decisions and guiding investments aimed at fostering gender equality. However, there are a myriad ways of assessing property rights. Firstly, we assess which indicators to use and why it matters, focusing on rural Myanmar. Myanmar provides an interesting setting, as a large part of the population customarily follows joint property rights in marriage and upon dissolution of marriage and inheritance. However, documented property rights are in the household head's name – usually a male household member. We find that capturing de facto transfer rights is essential, but understanding discrepancies between reported transfer rights and documented rights will be key to policymakers. Capturing agricultural decision-making should remain a priority for agricultural projects. Second, we perform household- and intra-household level analyses to explore why we find joint land rights in some, but not all, households; and why some household members have less land rights than others. A common property rights regime positively reinforces women's land rights, but incompletely so. Within households, a person's role in the household, age, and key life cycle events such as parenthood and marriage are key determinants of having land rights.
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spelling CGSpace1314012025-12-08T10:11:39Z Gender gaps in land rights: Explaining different measures and why households differ in Myanmar Lambrecht, Isabel B. Mahrt, Kristi Synt, Nang Lun Kham Ei Win, Hnin Win, Khin Zin farmland gender gender equity land rights men property rights women Measuring and understanding gender differences in property rights is key to informing policy decisions and guiding investments aimed at fostering gender equality. However, there are a myriad ways of assessing property rights. Firstly, we assess which indicators to use and why it matters, focusing on rural Myanmar. Myanmar provides an interesting setting, as a large part of the population customarily follows joint property rights in marriage and upon dissolution of marriage and inheritance. However, documented property rights are in the household head's name – usually a male household member. We find that capturing de facto transfer rights is essential, but understanding discrepancies between reported transfer rights and documented rights will be key to policymakers. Capturing agricultural decision-making should remain a priority for agricultural projects. Second, we perform household- and intra-household level analyses to explore why we find joint land rights in some, but not all, households; and why some household members have less land rights than others. A common property rights regime positively reinforces women's land rights, but incompletely so. Within households, a person's role in the household, age, and key life cycle events such as parenthood and marriage are key determinants of having land rights. 2023-09 2023-08-04T20:56:00Z 2023-08-04T20:56:00Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/131401 en Open Access Wiley Lambrecht, Isabel Brigitte; Mahrt, Kristi; Synt, Nang Lun Kham; Win, Hnin Ei; and Win, Khin Zin. 2023. Gender gaps in land rights: Explaining different measures and why households differ in Myanmar. Agricultural Economics 54(5): 728-741. https://doi.org/10.1111/agec.12789
spellingShingle farmland
gender
gender equity
land rights
men
property rights
women
Lambrecht, Isabel B.
Mahrt, Kristi
Synt, Nang Lun Kham
Ei Win, Hnin
Win, Khin Zin
Gender gaps in land rights: Explaining different measures and why households differ in Myanmar
title Gender gaps in land rights: Explaining different measures and why households differ in Myanmar
title_full Gender gaps in land rights: Explaining different measures and why households differ in Myanmar
title_fullStr Gender gaps in land rights: Explaining different measures and why households differ in Myanmar
title_full_unstemmed Gender gaps in land rights: Explaining different measures and why households differ in Myanmar
title_short Gender gaps in land rights: Explaining different measures and why households differ in Myanmar
title_sort gender gaps in land rights explaining different measures and why households differ in myanmar
topic farmland
gender
gender equity
land rights
men
property rights
women
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/131401
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