Document Type: Manuals

Background

Historically, land in Zambia has been perceived as abundant and widely available. However, changing demographics, a growing middle class and increased allocation of land for investment opportunities are resulting pockets of land scarcity, land conflict, and increased pressure on other natural resources. These dynamics are compounded by a lack of documentation, transparency, and a robust administration in both state and customary land systems. Revenue from opening land for development, and subsequent collection of land premium fees and development charges, remains one of the largest contributors to most district own source revenue.

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Integrated Land and Resource Governance (ILRG) programme seeks to build the capacity of local organizations, district and national government, traditional leaders, and communities to sustainably administer land in and inclusive manner. The USAID Local Impact Governance Project (Local Impact) seeks to improve institutional capacities of Local Authorities in Central and Muchinga provinces to forge strategies to enhance service delivery and generate local revenue. Together, the two projects collaborated to support Local Authorities on gender responsive land administration.

Inclusive land administration entails equitable land access and ownership for all citizens, including women, youths, and other disadvantaged groups and fosters socio-economic development at the district level. Generally, land administration in Zambia is not equitably shared and often does not take into consideration the rights of women, youths and other marginalised groups to land ownership (National Land Policy, 2021). Yet global evidence shows that when women have access to land, countries experience short term gains in agricultural productivity and long term social economic gains that can significantly contribute to poverty reduction and economic growth (FAO, 2020).

Despite supportive land and resource tenure laws and policies (Statutory Instruments, Acts, policies), Local Authorities do not have well documented standards for implementing inclusive land administration. Existing laws and policies are usually subjectively interpreted, allowing for inconsistencies in information management and decision making. The Land Administrative Circular No. 1 of 1985 that deals with land administration on state land covers only a small part of what is required in terms of regulations (Adams, 2003) and does not cover customary land. The absence of prescribed regulations hands a large amount of discretionary power to Councils and the Commissioner for Lands, while the public remains deprived of equitable services and access to local resources.

Some of the weaknesses in land administration at the local level might be solved by tackling administrative bottlenecks such as implementing a comprehensive up-to-date simplified land code embodying the principal land laws, standards of practice, prescribed forms, and details of relevant contact offices. This Practice Note addresses part of the need to provide a set of practical tools for inclusive standard land administration practices that are also gender responsive. They can serve as a resource to help Local Authorities in the country implement inclusive and effective land allocation and enhance service delivery.

Introduction

Gender equality and women’s empowerment are central to the realization of human rights, development objectives, and effective and sustainable development outcomes. In Zambia, natural resource management is decentralized and co-managed with communities, increasing the rights of communities to manage and benefit from natural resources through the participation of women and men in established institutions of governance at the local level, commonly referred to as Community Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) structures. From inception, these institutions have remained male dominated with very limited participation of women. A number of factors account for this; among them is the existing strong traditional norms in many of the communities. Culturally, it is widely believed and practiced that only men can lead, perpetuating the unequal participation and gender stereotypes that work against women from getting into leadership. Other barriers include the lack of information, resources, and social space on the part of women to successfully compete for leadership positions with men, family demands that women to devote time to community activities, and low literacy levels.

With this background, USAID’s Integrated Land and Resource Governance program (ILRG) has, since 2019, supported stakeholders in natural resource management to implement several initiatives to increase women’s participation and representation in CBNRM. As a result of these interventions, more women are now willing to take up leadership positions in community governance structures, which requires overcoming the barriers which, in the first place, have kept them outside the realm of leadership. This manual is a tool for supporting women leaders to acquire knowledge and socio-emotional skills that will enable them to play an effective and meaningful leadership role in community resource governance and management. The manual is developed specifically for community facilitators to support women in community leadership positions or those intending to get into community leadership.

The leadership and empowerment training program is focused on fostering self-confidence and building socioemotional/interpersonal skills that will support women to navigate gender barriers in their households and communities and to engage in local natural resource governance. With increased leadership skills, women elected to community governance bodies will 1) play an effective role in decision-making, 2) become effective leaders to represent the needs and interests of other women, and 3) become role models/resources at the community level to other women.

This guide is a practical resource on how to promote gender equality and social inclusion in customary land documentation processes in Zambia. The target audience for the guide is all stakeholders directly involved in customary land documentation, including civil society organizations, community leaders, traditional leaders, and international organizations and donors. The document provides a series of short practical technical guidance on gender equality and social inclusion for the whole land documentation process and for specific steps: preparation and planning, community land documentation and resource governance, household certification, and land administration and application. The Guide can be used in its totality, or the different sections can be used by field staff as a quick tool to assist gender and social inclusion integration in each step of the land documentation process. The guide can also function as a general guideline for gender equality and social inclusion sensitization and training of different stakeholders and field teams.

Introduction

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is working with ECOM Agro-Industrial Corp. (ECOM), a global commodity trading and processing company specializing in coffee, cocoa, and cotton, to strengthen women’s land rights and economically empower women in the cocoa value chain in Ghana.

An initial gender assessment showed that cocoa is considered a man’s crop, and gender inequality is pervasive in the cocoa sector in Ghana. Although women are involved in nearly all activities of cocoa production, their roles and contributions remain unseen, undervalued, and often unpaid. This is caused by a combination of unequal access to productive resources, unbalanced power relationships, and harmful gender norms.

Because women typically do not own land independently, they are often not perceived as farmers by themselves or others. They have low representation in cocoa producer groups, which are an important vehicle for receiving inputs, extension services, financial services, and technology. Division of labor in cocoa farming households is highly gendered, with activities with social and economic value reserved for men. Women are primarily responsible for unpaid household and caring tasks and have less availability to work in cocoa farming (producing less cocoa as a result), attend trainings, and engage in income diversification activities. Women have little to no involvement in the sale of cocoa and limited decision-making power over the use of income from cocoa production.

Evidence from other women’s empowerment initiatives has shown that empowering women in the cocoa value chain leads to increased productivity and benefits for women, cocoa farming families, companies, and the cocoa sector more broadly. Empowering women includes the establishment of an enabling environment by engaging men to shift harmful gender norms on division of labor, access and control of resources, decision-making power, and gender-based violence. It also involves equipping women with the skills necessary for them to take a greater role in cocoa farms, join producer groups, take on leadership positions, and pursue alternative income-generating opportunities. To that end, it is important to provide women with training on self-confidence, financial literacy, entrepreneurship, and several socioemotional (or “soft”) skills necessary for them to succeed as cocoa farmers and entrepreneurs.

This manual is designed as a practical guide for facilitators to deliver empowerment and entrepreneurship training to women in cocoa communities. In the spirit of collaboration and efficient use of available resources, it draws on existing and publicly available training approaches1, which have been adapted to the context of the cocoa value chain in Ghana.

Introduction

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is working with Ecom Agroindustrial Corp. (ECOM), a global commodity trading and processing company specializing in coffee, cocoa, and cotton, to strengthen women’s land rights and economically empower women in the cocoa value chain in Ghana.

An initial gender assessment showed that cocoa is considered a man’s crop, and gender inequality is pervasive in the cocoa sector in Ghana. Although women are involved in nearly all activities of cocoa production, their role and contributions remain unseen, undervalued, and often unpaid. This is caused by a combination of unequal access to productive resources, unbalanced power relationships, and harmful gender norms.

Because women typically do not own land independently, they are often not perceived as farmers by themselves or others and have low representation in cocoa producer groups, which are an important vehicle for receiving inputs, extension services, financial services, and technology. Division of labor in cocoa-farming households is highly gendered, with activities with social and economic value reserved for men. Women are primarily responsible for unpaid household and caring tasks and have less availability to work in cocoa farming (producing less cocoa as a result), attend training, and engage in income diversification activities. Women have little to no involvement in the sale of cocoa and limited decision-making power over the use of income from cocoa production.

Evidence from other women’s empowerment initiatives has shown that empowering women in the cocoa value chain leads to increased productivity. To that end, it is critical to shift harmful gender norms on division of labor, resource access and control, decision-making power, and gender-based violence. This will allow women, cocoa farming families, and the cocoa sector more broadly to enjoy greater equality and productivity.

ECOM provides regular Good Social Practices (GSP) training to men and women farmers, with the goal of promoting well-being and social development in cocoa communities. This manual is a tool for integrating gender norms change content into GSP training to foster dialogues about harmful gender norms at the household level, where most decisions about cocoa farming are made. This effort will enhance ECOM’s position as an industry leader in gender-responsive and inclusive business models that bring social and economic benefits for farmers and companies, improving women’s empowerment, productivity, profitability, compliance with sustainability goals, and positive brand image.

Zambia Community-Based Natural Resources Management (CBNRM) Governance Manuals

The Wildlife Act (14 of 2015) indicates that Community Resources Boards (CRBs) are co-responsible for management of natural resources in Game Management Areas (GMAs). One of the important aspects of this responsibility is the community management of wildlife and other natural resources. This management includes the monitoring of animal numbers, protecting wildlife from illegal activities, managing the co-existence of wildlife and human beings and making sure that the wildlife resources are
used in the correct way.

The Board carries out the day to day running and administration of the CRB and is responsible for implementing the decisions on behalf of communities of the Chiefdom. The Board has sub-committees, one of which is the Natural Resources Committee (NRC) which is responsible for activities required to manage and protect wildlife resources. This sub-committee has to work closely with the Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW) officers in charge of the GMA.

While the NRC members cannot be expected to carry out the management activities themselves, they are responsible for making sure that the activities take place and are reported to the Board and the DNPW. The NRC of the CRB supervises the employment of community scouts (CSs) who work in the GMA under the supervision of a Wildlife Police Officer (WPO) in carrying out patrols for the monitoring and protection of wildlife. The success of these activities can be measured by the wildlife numbers in the GMA and the extent of the benefits they generate.

Zambia Community-Based Natural Resources Management (CBNRM) Governance Manuals

The Wildlife Act (Act no 14 of 2015) provides for Community Resource Boards (CRBs) to be formed. The CRBs are constituted from representatives from the Village Action Groups (VAGs). CRBs are responsible for community management of wildlife and other natural resources within their chiefdom. In most cases, a CRB covers a large area, and it would be difficult for a single committee to represent or interact with all the community members in the area. To address this, Chiefdoms are divided into zones which are referred to as VAGs.

A village action group consists of all the members living in a zone within the CRB. The village action group carries out community activities in that area in coordination with the CRB.

Zambia Community-Based Natural Resources Management (CBNRM) Governance Manuals

The Wildlife Act (Act 14 of 2015) provides for Community Resources Boards (CRBs) to be formed from representatives from the Village Action Groups (VAGs). CRBs are responsible for community management of wildlife and other natural resources in Game Management Areas (GMAs) and Open Areas. One of the important aspects of this responsibility is to facilitate the co-existence between the people living in a GMA and the wildlife. Many of the resources that people living in the GMA rely on for their livelihoods are the same resources that wildlife use.

The Board in coordination with the Secretariat carries out the day to day running and administration of the CRB and is responsible for taking action on behalf of communities of the Chiefdom. This means that the Board is also responsible for supporting the members in their efforts to co-exist with wildlife.

While the Board members cannot be expected to carry out the actions to prevent or minimize losses due to wildlife, they are responsible for making sure that there are strategies and options for communities in the Chiefdom to use to prevent or minimize damage or losses due to wildlife.

Human-wildlife co-existence is a collection of strategies and actions that support people living in GMAs and open areas to minimize losses due to wildlife.

Zambia Community-Based Natural Resources Management (CBNRM) Governance Manuals

Gender equality and inclusion are an integral part of Zambia’s wildlife policy framework and are the collective responsibility of all stakeholders. The Constitution of Zambia gives men and women equal rights. Similarly, the laws and policies of the nation mandate all public and private bodies to develop special measures to achieve at least 50 percent representation and attain meaningful participation of women in decision making structures (Gender Equity and Equality Act of 2015, National Gender Policy of 2014).

• Gender refers to the defined roles and responsibilities that society has assigned to a woman or man. These roles shape how women and men relate. The roles are different from one society to the other and change over time. E.g., in Zambia cooking is assigned to women and decision-making to men. Gender is different from sex which is the biological difference between women and men. E.g., falling pregnant is a biological role for women and sperm production is for men.
• Gender inequality occurs because of societal and power differences between men and women, which lead to unequal access to resources, claims, responsibilities, and decision making, among other areas. These differences between women and men manifest in the form of discrimination also called gender inequality.
• Gender equality is when men and women have equal social conditions so that they both can experience the same opportunities, rewards, and potential to contribute and benefit from natural resources.

Zambia’s Wildlife Act No. 14 of 2015 and National Parks and Wildlife Policy of 2018 both commit government to ensuring equitable and effective participation of local communities and traditional leaders in wildlife management. The policy recognizes both gender mainstreaming in wildlife conservation and creating equal opportunities and conditions for women, men, and youth to participate and benefit equally from natural resources. In National Development Plans, government commits to increasing women’s access to job opportunities in the tourism industry and other sectors.

Due to cultural and social norms, women are often marginalized with regard to access, control, benefits from, and participation in the management of natural resources. Zambia has a dual system of the law that allows statutory and customary laws to operate side by side hence, rights that women enjoy under statutory law are often ignored under cultural practices, thereby leaving women exposed to discrimination.

This Booklet provides basic information on the value of gender equality and social inclusion (GESI) and the benefits to natural resource management (NRM). It provides approaches for community governance structures such as Community Resources Boards (CRBs) to ensure that resource governance includes everyone and all can fairly benefit from wildlife resource.

Zambia Community-Based Natural Resources Management (CBNRM) Governance Manuals

To provide for local level governance structures to support the implementation of the Wildlife Act (2015) and the National Parks and Wildlife Policy (2018), provision is made for Community Resources Boards (CRBs) that are responsible for community management of Game Management Areas (GMAs) or Open Areas. GMAs are buffer zones around national parks where multiple land uses are permitted including settlement and crop cultivation among other activities. The Boards are constituted by elected Village Action Group (VAG) executive members as representatives of the community living within the Chiefdom and once elected, they need to fulfil the responsibilities allocated to them.

As soon as possible after a new Board is constituted, the Board members should be given induction training. Induction training will provide them with an overview of the functioning of the CRB and its responsibilities as well as the requirements for compliance with the Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW) regulations. The induction training provides the new Board with the knowledge they need to deliver on their roles.

The purpose of this Facilitator’s Guide (FG) is to provide guidance to those responsible for providing induction training to the new Board.