Benin/Women's land rights in Benin: KAS and CAO raise awareness in Zagnanado, Ouinhi, Covè and Zakpota

Published on 16/05/2022 | La rédaction

Benin

Since Tuesday, May 10, 2022, the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) through its project "One World Without Hunger in West Africa" is on an awareness-raising tour of the 8 communes of the Zou department.

This was done through itinerant exchange workshops organized in collaboration with the Africa Obota Center (CAO). Around the theme "Tradition and legal provisions recognizing and protecting women's land rights in Benin", they end this Friday and bring together at each stage, traditional and religious leaders, elected communal officials, executive secretaries, representatives of women's groups.

The Finagnon Hotel in Zagnanado hosted the first workshop of the series organized in the department. The participants came from the communes of Zagnanado and Ouinhi. "Land is our main source of income. Land is the only means of growth we have, and those who are more in this field are the women. More than 70% of us are with women in agriculture. They are upstream and downstream in the agricultural sector. They are found in the production, in the transformation, in the sale, in all the aspects of agriculture. But the only problem women face is that they do not have land for production, for their own crops. There are several traditional and customary obstacles that prevent women from holding these precious production assets for themselves. Célestin Ballé, president of the Africa Obota Center, sets the scene. He continues: "This has a real effect, it hinders economic growth. When it has land, it will give more for the economic growth of our locality, our country, the whole world and thus fight against hunger and poverty. And this is the meaning of the "fight" that KAS has been leading for 7 years through its project "One World Without Hunger in West Africa".The main goal of this project is to strengthen equitable and secure access to resources and land as well as land use rights for women in Benin, Burkina Faso and Togo. "The Foundation's approach consists of strengthening dialogue between the different actors in order to find appropriate solutions to the different problems that arise in the area of women's access to agricultural land through different working methods. The present debate aims at continuing the reflections and exchanges with the elected officials, the traditional chiefs and religious leaders, the executives of the deconcentrated and deThe present debate aims at continuing reflections and exchanges with elected officials, traditional chiefs and religious leaders, executives of the deconcentrated and decentralized administration on women's land rights in order to find solutions to enable rural women to fully participate in local development", explains Mounirou Tchacondoh, national coordinator of KAS. Proceeding to the official opening of the workshop, the Mayor of the commune of Zagnanado, Justin Kanninkpo insisted on the very important role of women in society. He then urged: "The woman is everything. Women are the salt of life. They are our wives, they are our mothers, we have the duty to help the tradition to understand that the woman is important in the society. The parity between men and women must lead us to recognize the true place of women in our traditions.

The highlight of the workshop

After the opening ceremony, the debates continued in a participative approach around two sub-themes: "Tradition and legal provisions recognizing and protecting women's land rights: why should we strengthen the economic role of rural women?and "Economic empowerment of rural women: roles and responsibilities of actors", co-animated by Ella Christine Alotchékpa, consultant lawyer and Justin Sèmassoussi, consultant dignitary. In a pedagogical way, they started from the projection of a TV movie whose main actress is a widow, who helped by a friend and the chief of the village.The main actress is a widow who, with the help of a friend and the village chief, was able to inherit, with her children, the property of her deceased husband, while the brother of the deceased had already monopolized it. Tongues were loosened and practical cases were presented among the participants. Fon, the language of the region, was the most used to better convey the messages. The two facilitators also relied on the provisions of the Land Code and the Code of Persons and the Family to enlighten and put each actor before his responsibilities. In substance, the participants were made aware of the need to educate the girl in the same way as her male brothers, to know that the law provides that the girl has the right to Civil marriage is a great advantage for the woman to be able to benefit or inherit her husband's property. In addition to inheritance, there is the possibility of donation, loan of land for the wife, etc. It must be said that the participants left satisfied with the debates. The same exercise took place on Wednesday, at the Pacific Hotel in Covè, with participants coming this time from Covè and Zakpota. "We are going to multiply these kinds of debates in the future so that things improve," reassured the national coordinator of the KAS, happy to note that the lines are moving because the government is taking action.He is happy to note that the lines are moving because according to him, 7 years ago, "it was not obvious that women speak up and express themselves". Nevertheless, Mounirou Tchacondoh urged the Executive Secretaries who are now the cornerstone at the level of the town halls to take up the issue of women's access to land.

They confided in each other:

Antoine Kakessou, SE/mayor of Covè.
"This is a session that is really welcome in our commune.
... It is important insofar as those who do not know the law make many mistakes and those who know the law know how to apply it in life...And so the crowned heads and all the actors who are invited here today are going to be relays in the villages, the communities so that these rights are applied. As far as I am concerned, as executive secretary of the mayor's office of the commune of Covè, we have many things to do, especially in the area of sensitization, we will have the support of the communal authorities: We will have the support of the communal authorities: the communal councillors, the village chiefs to organize these sensitizations through our districts and villages so that the law is popularized especially with regard to women's access to land".

Rufine Dagbénombakin, P.F, Representative Executive Secretary/Mayor Zakpota
"As Gender Focal Point, we must popularize what we have heard here, that is, women have access to land. As Gender Focal Point, we must popularize what we have heard here, that is, the woman has rights, the woman has a share to take in the inheritance of her late husband, the girl who is orphaned also has her rights. We must popularize these teachings and teach our parents that when the girl has access to land, she can produce, do income generating activities and help her husband in the home. So we must work for the economic empowerment of women. In the markets, it is the women who pay the taxes and who contribute to the improvement of the own resources of the town halls and thus to the development of the communes....
We thank the Konrad Adenauer Foundation and the Africa Obota Center (...) for this very important awareness raising. We ask them to extend it..."

Dah Assiannoun Adantonon of Covè-Gouinli, representing King Zéhè of Agonlin
"This is a good training. I, in particular, was already looking after women's rights. Currently, I have an inheritance file that I am managing. It is a sibling group of five, including three boys and two girls, who have to share a 5-hectare plot of land, their two parents having already passed away. The three boys wanted to give 1 ha to their two sisters and take the remaining 4ha. I opposed them by making them understand that it must be an equitable division: 1ha for each of them. Better still, if their sisters find themselves in difficulty with their respective husbands, they can return to live in their father's house, which remains a common property. I quickly understood these things because my father had been living there for about twenty years. For those who continue to observe a certain resistance, I think that gradually, with these sensitizations, they will fall in line.

Isidore Odjo, Chief of District (Ca) of Sagon (Ouinhi)
"At the end of the different communications, we will not wait to solve the conflicts but rather inform the people of theAfter the different presentations, we will not wait to resolve conflicts but rather to inform the citizens that from now on, women are a salt that cannot be used to prepare a good sauce. It is in our interest to divulge this information that we received during this seminar, especially during the district councils, so that the village chiefs can also be trained in this area and so that, in the future, they will be able to prepare a good sauce.We have an interest in divulging this information that we received during this seminar, especially during the district councils, so that the village chiefs can also be trained and that they in turn can inform their community that from now on nothing will be the same as before, women have the right to the inheritance of their husbands and fathers. Of course, it is necessary to be gentle in order to claim this".

Ella Christine Alotchékpa, CAO Animator
"We noticed that there is progress because it is not the first time that we organize such a session. Many of the Ca, mayors and traditional chiefs have understood what is at stake. There were even testimonies on the resolution of certain cases in families. Many women do not know their rights, they are not legally married... I believe that this sensitization will guide them much more.

Source: matinlibre.com


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