In Nigeria, gender roles are manifested in social rights and entitlements in a form which denies women equal economic and political empowerment and, in particular, women right to own land. The consequence of gender discrimination in land ownership is women’s lack of access to land which constitutes a major source and means of wealth creation and economic empowerment, hence women’s vulnerability to poverty. This article considers a land redistribution reform which can address the discrimination against women in land ownership and give women access to land for economic empowerment, thereby alleviating poverty among women in Nigeria. The article proposes that an ideal land reform in Nigeria has to fulfil three key objectives of equity, equality and productivity which the article refers to as ‘new equities’. It argues that only a redistributive land reform which integrates these ‘equities’ can adequately address gender discrimination in land ownership, ensure women’s access to land for economic empowerment and alleviate women’s poverty in Nigeria.
AgarwalB (1997) Bargaining and gender relations: within and beyond the household. Feminist Economics3(1): 1–51.
2.
AigbokhanBE (1998) Poverty, Growth and Inequality in Nigeria: A Case Study. Nairobi: AERC Workshop.
3.
AkorAA (2015) The value of political thuggery and violence in Nigerian elections. The Punch, 5 June, 11.
4.
AkpomuvieOB (2010) Self-help as a strategy for rural development in Nigeria: a bottom-up approach. Journal of Alternative Perspectives in the Social Sciences2(1): 88–111.
5.
AldashevGChaaraIPlatteauJP. (2012) Using the law to change the custom. Journal of Development Economics97: 182–200.
6.
ArchibongPE (1997) Nigeria: Towards a Realistic and Integrated Anti-Poverty Strategy. Lagos: Annual Conference of Nigerian Economic Society.
7.
BrezaE (2005) Intra-Household Resource Allocation in Hausa-Speaking Nigeria: Uncovering Gender Assymmetries of Wealth and Savings Behavior. New Haven: Yale University.
8.
BruceJW (2006) Introduction: Reforming Land Law to Achieve Development Goals. Washington DC: World Bank.
9.
CagatayC (2001) Trade, Gender and Poverty’ United Nations Development Programme. Washington DC: UNDP Project.
10.
CanagarajahSJNgwafonSThomasS (1997) The Evolution of Poverty and Welfare in Nigeria. Washington DC: World Bank.
11.
ChelliahJSudarshanR (1999) Income Poverty and Beyond. New Delhi: Social Science Press.
12.
ChowEN (2003) Gender, globalization and social change in the 21st century. International Sociology18: 443.
13.
DaviesK (2009) The emperor is still naked: why the protocol on the rights of women in Africa leaves women exposed to more discrimination. Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law42: 949.
14.
DeereCDDossC (2006) The gender asset gap: what do we know and why does it matter?Feminist Economics12(1–2): 1–50.
15.
De SotoH (2001) The Mystery of Capital: Why Capitalism Triumphs in the West and Fails Everywhere Else. New York: Black Swan.
16.
DossCR (2006a) The effects of intra-household property ownership on expenditure patterns in Ghana. Journal of African Economies15: 149–80.
17.
EbekuKSA (2004) A new dawn for African women? Prospects of Africa’s protocol on women’s rights. Sri Lanka Journal of International Law16: 83.
18.
EgwareL (1997) Poverty and Poverty Alleviation: Nigeria’s Experience. Nairobi: Annual Conference of Nigerian Economic Society.
19.
EkesionyeEN (2012) Women empowerment and participation in economic activities: indispensable tools for self-reliance and development of Nigerian society. Education Research and Review7(1): 10–18.
20.
Federal Office of Statistics (2015) Poverty Profile for Nigeria: 1990 – 2010. Abuja: Nigeria Federal Ministry of Finance.
21.
FloraMSTaşEOTörnqvistA. (2010) The Impact of the Global Economic Crisis on Women’s Well-Being and Empowerment. Stockholm: Sida.
22.
FryerRG (2010) The importance of segregation, discrimination, peer dynamics and identity in explaining trends in Racial achievement gap. In: BenhabibJMathewABJacksonO (eds) Handbook of Social Economics. Amsterdam: North-Holland, pp. 165–1192.
23.
GaglianiG (2003) Income inequality and economic development (1987) 13Social Science Annual Review13: 313–326.
24.
GrayLKevaneM (1999) Diminished access, diverted exclusion: women and land tenure in sub-saharan Africa. African Studies Review42(2): 15–39.
25.
GriffinKRahman KhanAZIckowitzA. (2004) In defence of neo-classical neo-populism. Journal of Agrarian Change4(3): 361–386.
26.
GroenewaldJA (2004) Conditions for successful land reform in Africa. Sajem4: 7.
27.
HillyardPKellyGMcLaughlinE. (2003) Bare Necessities: Poverty and Social Exclusion in Northern Ireland. Belfast: Democratic Dialogue, p. 109.
28.
HoffKPandeyP (2004a) Economic consequences of social identity. American Economic Review96: 2–115.
29.
HoffKPandeyP (2004b) Making up people-the effect of identity on performance in a modernizing society. Journal of Development Economics106: 118–131.
30.
HoffKPandeyP (2008) Economic consequences of social identity: discrimination, social identity, and durable inequalities. American Economic Review96(2): 206–2011.
31.
HomeR (2007) This land belongs to you and me: the global challenge of land management. Papers in Land Management: 1: 13.
32.
HomeR (2013) Culturally unsuited to property rights? Colonial land laws and African societies. Journal of Law and Society40(3): 403–419.
33.
HoogeveenJGMKinseyBH (2001) Land reform, growth and equity: emerging evidence from Zimbabwe’s resettlement programme. A sequel. Journal of Southern African Studies27(1): 127–136.
34.
IkejiakuB (2009) The concept ‘poverty’ towards understanding in the context of developing countries ‘poverty qua poverty’: with some comparative evidence on Britain. Journal of Sustainable Development2: 2.
JoelA (2008) Poverty and sustainable development in the Niger delta region of Nigeria. Journal of Sustainable Development in Africa10(3): 155–179.
37.
Kochendorfer-LuciusGPleskovicB (2006) Equity and Development. Berlin: Workshop Series.
38.
LouryM (2002) The Anatomy of Racial Inequality. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
39.
MachadoA (2003) The question of land distribution in Colombia at the end of the millennium. Biiss Journal63: 91.
40.
ModimiC (2014) Challenges of women’s poverty alleviation programmes in Nigeria. University of Benin Public Law Journal18(4): 435–460.
41.
MosseD (2010) A relational approach to durable poverty, inequality and power. Journal of Development Studies46: 7.
42.
OgbuJU (1999) Beyond language: Ebonics, proper English and identity in black-American speech community. American Educators36(2): 147.
43.
OgwumikeFO (1995) The effects of macro–level government policies on rural development and poverty alleviation in Nigeria. Ibadan Journal of the Social Sciences1(1): 85–101.
44.
OkojieCEAnyanwuJCOgwumikeFO. (2010) Poverty in Nigeria: An Analysis of Gender Issues, Access to Social Services and the Labour Market. Lagos: AERC Report.
45.
OladejiSIAbiolaAG (1998) Poverty alleviation with economic growth strategy: prospects and challenges in contemporary Nigeria. Nigerian Journal of Economic and Social Studies40(1): 71.
46.
OnobokunAGKumuyiAJ (1996) Urban Poverty in Nigeria, Towards Suitable Strategies for its Alleviation. CASSAD Monograph Series, series 10.
47.
OppenheimC (1993) Poverty: The Facts. London: Bath Press.
48.
ProstermanRLHanstadT (2006) Land reform in the twenty – first century: new challenges, new responses. Seattle Journal for Social Justice4: 2.
49.
QuisumbingARMaluccioJA (2003) Resources at marriage and intra-household allocation: evidence from Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Indonesia, and South Africa. Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics65: 283–327.
50.
QuisumbingRAMaluccioJA (1999) Intra-household allocation and gender relations: new empirical evidence. Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics65: 283–327.
51.
RossetP (2009) Fixing our global food system – food sovereignty and redistributive land reform. Monthly Review61(3): 114.
52.
RothM (2002) Integrating land issues and land policy with poverty reduction and rural development in Southern Africa, Paper prepared for the World Bank Regional Workshop on Land Issues in Africa and the Middle East, April, Kampala, Uganda.
53.
SikorTMullerD (2009) The limits of state–led land reform: an introduction. World Development37(8): 1307–1316.
54.
The Punch (2014) Reviving the Decline in the Education of the Girl-Child: Time for Government to Act. 17 May, p. 2.
55.
UchenduVC (1979) State, land and society in Nigeria: a critical assessment of the land use decree 1978. Journal of African Studies6: 62–74.
56.
UN (2010) The World’s Women 2010: Trends and Statistics. New York: United Nations.
57.
UN (2015) The Faces of Poverty. New York: United Nations.
58.
UNDP (2015) Civil society’s role in poverty and social impact analysis: a resource guild and tool kit for engagement. Available at: http://www.undp.org/poverty/civsoc.htm (accessed 5 August 2016).
United Nations Development Fund for Women (2015) Trafficking in Women and Children Gender Issues Fact Sheet 2. Bangkok: UNIFEM.
62.
UtuamaA (2008) The Land Use Act and the Millennium Development Goals. Lagos: Jernie Publishers.
63.
WalkerC (2002) Land Reform in Southern and Eastern Africa: Key Issues for Strengthening Women’s Access to and Rights in Land. Rome: FAO.
64.
WilliamsDC (1992) Measuring the impact of land reform policy in Nigeria. The Journal of Modern African Studies30(4): 587–608.
65.
World Bank (2000) Engendering Development. New York: World Bank.
66.
World Bank (2010) Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing: No Cushion to Fall Back On: The Global Economic Crisis and Informal Workers. Cambridge: WIEGO.
World Bank (2016) Gender inequality restricting economic opportunities for women. Available at: http://www.worldbank.org/en/…/2015/…/ (accessed 5 August 2016).
YadudaOC (2015) Women’s Poverty and Food Security in Nigeria: A Practical Approach. Santa Barbara: Praeger Security International.
77.
YingstromI (2002) Women, wives, and land rights in Africa: situating gender beyond the household in the debate over land policy and changing tenure systems. Oxford Development Studies30: 21–40.
