Women are not allowed to decide on what trees to plant! A sticky gender norm.

In June 2024, I had the opportunity to join a gender analysis team and conduct a discussion on gender norms with a diverse group of 20 men in Uganda aged between 20 and 60 years.

The men were from various ethnic groups in Uganda living at the fringes of the Murchison Falls National Park. Some are natives to the area while the rest are migrants.

During our discussion, all the men unanimously expressed the opinion that women should not be allowed to decide on what trees to plant in their families or communities. Their argument was based on the belief that women do not belong to their natal families, but rather destined through marriage to expand families of their spouses, and not their own parents.

The men further argued that women do not bring land into the families they marry into, and therefore they have no right to decide what trees to plant. They believe that women neither own land where they are married nor where they are born, which, in their view limits their decision-making authority.

We discussed how gender norms have been gradually shifting over time. For example, the group acknowledged that it is acceptable for women to receive equal education as men, as it benefits families when women have better employment opportunities.

During our conversation, younger men insisted that men are born leaders and should automatically be the heads of the households, while older men disagreed. The older men suggested that leadership is a skill, not a birthright, and that even severely incapable men, such as the mentally challenged, cannot be leaders. This sparked a debate on the nature of leadership and its implications for gender nroms.

#GenderConversations is aware that shifts in norms regarding education and political leadership have been influenced by norm change initiatives such as gender awareness programs and behavioural change activities. However, the affirmative action law, granting women preferential treatment including admission to institutions of higher learning and the reservation of seats for women in parliament and local government has accounted for institutionalised norms shifting into policy.

it is evident that the norm of land inheritance favouring sons over daughters contributes significantly to women’s lack of ownership in Uganda.

To address this issue, women and men should equally own land. The inheritance law needs to ensure fairness in land acquisition. Any wills that do not have this fairness should be prohibited.

Furthermore, we acknowledge the existence of parents – both women and men, who have passed on land to their children equally irrespective of gender. Development organisations ought to recognise and amplify this practice to bring about further shifts in these norms.

We discussed the need for women to have equal ownership of land, allowing them to make decisions regarding land use, tree planting and other investments. Resolving these issues is crucial for empowering women and enabling them to make meaningful contributions to their families and communities.