Sri Lanka: Realizing Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources

Introduction

The purpose of this publication is to provide detailed guidance for lawmakers and policymakers, as well as civil society organizations and other stakeholders, to support the adoption and effective implementation of laws, policies and programmes to respect, protect and fulfil women’s rights to land and other productive resources. It is based on the results of an expert group meeting held on 25-27 June 2012 in Geneva, Switzerland, during which papers were presented from various sectors and regions. These papers, and the discussions which were informed by them, helped to bring to the surface many of the critical issues facing women today in relation to the enjoyment of their land rights. The publication also incorporates additional case studies submitted by key experts, as well as extensive thematic research. Other Productive Resources The land itself can be understood to include farmland, wetland, pasture, rangeland, fishery, and forest, as well as harvesting and hunting territories. Throughout this publication, the phrase “women’s rights to land” must be understood holistically and in a manner which is grounded in the international human rights framework. These rights entail the ability of women to own, use, access, control, transfer, inherit and otherwise make decisions about land and related resources. They also encompass women’s rights to secure land tenure and to meaningfully participate at all stages of land law, policy and programme development, from assessment and analysis, programme planning and design, budgeting and financing, and implementation, to monitoring and evaluation. Women’s land rights must also be understood in the context of intersecting forms of discrimination.

Sri Lanka has laws and constitutional guarantees that support gender equality, yet many women continue to be deprived of land ownership and access to other wealth-generating assets. This report examines how Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources is recognized formally but often not realized in practice. Land, combined with resources such as credit, seeds, water, forests, tools, and knowledge, forms the foundation on which women can build livelihoods. Ensuring Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources is therefore not only a matter of justice but also crucial for food security, economic resilience, poverty reduction, and sustainable development.

Legal, Policy & Institutional Framework

Sri Lanka’s legal framework includes constitutional provisions for equality, statutory laws on land, inheritance, and international obligations under treaties like CEDAW. These frameworks affirm Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources by establishing that women have entitlement to own, inherit, and use land and associated productive assets. However, institutional mechanisms—like land registries, local administration, and customary authorities—play a vital role in translating these rights into reality, affecting whether Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources is actually claimed and protected.

Barriers to Realization

Despite the legal recognition, multiple impediments hinder the realization of Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources in Sri Lanka:

  1. Customary Norms and Social Practices
    Deeply rooted traditions favor male inheritance. Many women are socially discouraged from claiming land or recognized as equal heirs. This limits their access even when laws exist. Without changes in norms, Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources remains de facto denied.

  2. Lack of Awareness & Information
    Many women do not know their legal rights, lack access to information on land registration or inheritance law, or are unaware of how to navigate legal procedures. Thus awareness is essential for Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources to become actionable.

  3. Institutional & Administrative Obstacles
    Land registration systems may require male co-applicants or not allow joint titles. Procedures are often complex, costly, or slow, which discourages women. When administrative practice excludes women, Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources is compromised.

  4. Economic Constraints
    Even with rights to land, women may not have access to other productive inputs—credit, livestock, agricultural inputs, tools—that would allow them to use land productively. Without these, Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources is of limited benefit.

  5. Post-Conflict, Displacement, or Disaster Impacts
    Sri Lanka has had conflicts and natural disasters that lead to loss of documentation, displacement, and disruption of land tenure. In these situations, restoring Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources is especially challenging.

  6. Gender Bias in Customary & Legal Systems
    Legal loopholes, biases in local decision-makers, and judicial practice sometimes favor men, reducing women’s real claims. When customary leaders or even courts act in discriminatory ways, Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources is undermined.

Impacts of Denial

When Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources is denied or only partial:

Best Practices & Successes

The report highlights several initiatives that help strengthen Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources:

Recommendations & Pathways Forward

To fully realize Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources, the report suggests:

  1. Legal reform to ensure joint ownership, simplify registration, remove gendered requirements for applications.

  2. Strengthened institutional practice: ensure land administration staff are gender-sensitive, reduce bureaucratic barriers, lower fees, speed up procedures.

  3. Awareness raising and capacity building for women, rural communities, local leaders, and customary authorities so that Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources is acknowledged socially and legally.

  4. Combine land rights with livelihood supports—access to credit, inputs, training—so that land is not just nominally owned but used productively.

  5. Ensure that in cases of displacement or disasters, women’s claims to land and other productive resources are restored; documentation is preserved or reissued; women are included in restitution schemes.

  6. Collect and use data disaggregated by gender on land ownership, use of productive resources, participation in decision-making, so that progress on Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources can be tracked.

  7. Engage customary institutions, religious leaders, community elders to shift norms so that women’s claims are socially accepted, not just legally permitted.

Institutional Roles & Accountability

To move from policy to practice:

Challenges & Limitations

Even with good recommendations, several limitations are noted:

Vision & Expected Outcomes

If Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources is realized fully, the expected outcomes include:

Conclusion

The report makes it clear that Women’s Right To Land And Other Productive Resources is a multi-dimensional issue: recognition in law is just one dimension; access, control, use, and benefit are equally important. Only when women have secure land ownership and access to credit, inputs, tools, knowledge, and other assets (the “other productive resources”) can their rights be fully meaningful. Addressing legal, institutional, cultural, and economic barriers, implementing reforms, and ensuring accountability are the key levers to make this realization possible in Sri Lanka.

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