| dc.description.abstract | Following the violent and destructive genocide of 1994, Rwandan women were especially vulnerable because social and legal barriers kept them from accessing resources that were already scarce. The government of Rwanda, seeking to promote peace, unity, and development after such a devastating event, incorporated women’s rights into numerous policies. Land is the economic backbone of Rwanda and therefore an important social resource, meaning that land reforms had the potential to influence other areas of Rwandan society. The government of Rwanda incorporated important rights for women into post-genocide land reforms and, through the Land Tenure Regularization Program, issued formal land titles and provided education about land reforms to every district of Rwanda in a country-wide implementation effort. Using historical, political, and economic approaches, this paper argues that the government’s effort to expand women’s legal rights through land reform legislation and to educate citizens about these legal reforms has given women more legal rights and is beginning to impact the ability of women to take part in other decision-making processes in their homes and communities. | en_US |
