Transparency International recently teamed up with a graduate consulting group from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs to analyse the intersectionality of land, corruption, and gender in Uganda, and the potential for tech to empower women in the country. Here's what the team discovered:
Land, corruption, and information communication technologies (ICTs) are complex and dynamic issues, playing significant roles in Ugandans’ lives. On one hand, they promote or even generate wealth, but on the other, they create or increase vulnerability.
Gender in Uganda is nuanced as well, intersecting and influencing land rights, exposure to corruption, and access to technology.
While ICTs are often viewed as a panacea for development, significant rural-urban, gender, and socio-economic divides in Uganda mean there is no standard solution.
Empowering women to combat land corruption is dependent upon a multitude of other issues as well. For example, giving women access to mobile phones will not automatically secure their land rights. Civil society organisations also need to empower citizens with relevant knowlege, work with land authorities, and sensitize communities around land corruption risks. This, together with access to ICTs, has the potential to strengthen Ugandan women's fight against land rights abuses.