Men are three times more likely to own property or land. And for the 11% of women that do, 59% cede authority on all household decision making to male partners.
- Nigerian women seek permission from men before owning a home;
- Gender disparity has gotten worse over time in Nigeria;
- Some factors responsible for the lacuna include decision making, earnings, and customary practices;
- Apart from ownership, women also have a slim chance of inheriting land over men in society.
Despite having equal rights and opportunities to own land and properties in Nigeria, women sought consent from men in acquisition and ownership of assets. Again, customary practices continue to affect the inalienable right of women in society. Unlike women, men are over three times likely to own a house or land. Reports have it that 37% of men own houses as against some 11% of females.
Now, while there is no comprehensive data on homeownership between men and women in Nigeria, DATAPHYTE captured the disparity in a forthcoming report. But perhaps most noteworthy was how cultural norms and bias affected women’s economic attainment.
Cultural norms often hinder female economic empowerment
For instance, it is customary for a woman to defer to her male partner on all household decisions, even the ones affecting her. Dataphyte’s analysis captured this revealing how 59% of male partners decided on household purchases solely.
Another obvious reason for women’s low attainment on property is salary inequality. First off, women make up a greater percentage of our working age population, 51.6%. Despite this, the margin of female to male labour force participation is wide. So maybe this is why 84% of men earn more than their female partners. However, it still does not account for scenarios where both sexes work the same job, and men get better pay. To say nothing of the fact that the wide margin reflects hiring biases.
Decline in equal opportunities on landed property
Apart from ownership, women also have a slim chance of inheriting land over men in society. And according to a Global Strategy to improve Agricultural and Rural Statistics (GSARS) report, less than two percent of women in Nigeria own land by themselves compared to 17% of men. A GSARS Hilton Prize Coalition fellow, Izehi Oriaghan, further itemised the vast gender gap between women and men in land ownership in Nigeria.
And based on the Dataphyte’s findings, this has gotten worse with time. The percentage of women who own a house alone or jointly with someone declined from 18% in 2013 to 11% in 2018. However, over the same period, land ownership among men increased from 34% to 38%. In such scenarios, male partners still determined most of the decisions. Putting it in perspective, about 59% of husbands manage decisions about major household purchases, and this extends to other facets of life.
Again, this disparity contradicts Section 43 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This legislation recognises the right to gain property and own immovable property anywhere in the country, not limited to men.
The right of every human is the right of every woman
To fight this eroding rights, gender activists and stakeholders must ensure that the government enacts policies and laws that favour the Nigerian women in land ownership. There is also the need for gender balance in housing, land, and property, including inheritance. There is also the need to re-orientate the people on some outdated cultural norms is also essential.
The right of every human is the right of every woman, hence, the government must protect and guarantee it. And concerning property and land acquisition, a World Bank working paper suggested government’s implement reforms that strengthen women’s statutory rights.