Women in Rwanda should utilize and make use of agricultural land given that they own 2,158,221 parcels in agriculture while men own 1,272,133 parcels as of 2023, according to the State of Gender Equality report in Rwanda.

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The report by the Gender Monitoring Office (GMO) is set to be launched soon as part of International Women’s day celebrations.

"Rwanda has made significant progress regarding gender equality in land ownership, use, and control. This is crucial for empowering women as land is an essential resource for food production, income generation, and collateral for credit,” reads the report.

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Women were previously largely excluded from land inheritance and were usually just able to use the land but not to own.

In 1999, the government of Rwanda passed and implemented reforms which granted women rights to own and use land on an equal status with men.

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Although women currently own more agricultural land than men, the report shows that "women farmers face a gap in the agricultural sector due to limited purchasing power on seeds and fertilizers, lack of access to information on input subsidies, and limited land size.”

Access to subsidies is mainly targeted at cash crops cultivated by men, while women focus on traditional subsistence crops, says the report.

"To address these gaps, the national agricultural input subsidy program should be revised to accommodate the specific needs of smallholder farmers.”

Recent data shows that women-led households’ access to improved seeds increased by 10 per cent from 2018 to 2021/22.

Men-led households recorded a 14.2 per cent increase.

However, access to organic and inorganic fertilizers is still limited for both genders, with female farmers facing more significant challenges.

The gender gap ranges from 6.2 per cent for organic fertilizers to 12.4 per cent for improved seeds.

From a gender perspective, male-headed households tend to own more cattle than female-headed households, with an estimated difference of 11.9 per cent based on agricultural household surveys.

However, the Girinka program has made significant strides in breaking cultural misconceptions regarding women owning cows.

Although women have limited cattle ownership due to traditional cultural norms, limited land for livestock, and related costs, they predominantly raise goats, with a 5.3 per cent difference compared to male headed households according to the analysis.

"Given the multiplier effects, especially from a business perspective, it is crucial to encourage women to own cattle. Owning cattle can also provide access to organic fertilizers, milk for consumption, and a source of income,” the report recommends.

Access to agricultural loans

Access to loans for women farmers has reduced by 78.5 per cent, compared to 57.4 per cent for men farmers during 2019-2023.

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In 2019, agricultural loans were accessed by 14,882 men and by 3,836 women while in 2023, loans were accessed by 6,337 men and 822 women.

"This gender gap is due to limited control over productive resources such as land, and women’s higher representation in subsistence agriculture that does not receive support from financial schemes.”

COVID-19 has further constrained access to loans and repayment capacity.

To address this, the report points out that, "financial institutions should design agricultural financial products for small-scale farmers, particularly women-headed households, and aim to increase farmers’ saving capacity and put in place incentives that attract more women to agribusiness.”

It has been observed that men have more bank accounts and receive more loans than women in terms of quantity and value.

This could be because men traditionally have greater control over productive assets, such as land and livestock, which can be used as collateral for bank loans, explains the report.

In Rwanda, 77.7 per cent of women rely on agriculture as their primary source of income.

To promote sustainable agriculture, gender equality is crucial, recommended the report.

"Women’s inability to utilize their land is linked to renting their agricultural land, which reflects a decrease in their productive capacity. This negatively affects their economic empowerment prospects.”