Women disproportionately bear the negative impacts of large-scale land investments (in agribusiness, extractives, logging) in the global South.

▪▪Lack of formal land rights and their subordinate role in the household and community lead to the marginalization of women in decision-making processes and the bypassing of them in the distribution of compensation and the planning and implementation of resettlement.

▪▪In Tanzania and Mozambique, two countries that promote commercial land-based investments, laws require
community consultations and the payment of compensation to affected local communities, but they fail to adequately account for women’s concerns and perspectives. Gaps in the legal frameworks include lack of consideration of women’s land interests and farming activities and their need for access to common property resources (such as water, firewood, and wild plants) and social infrastructure to help rebuild livelihoods.

▪▪Women are underrepresented in decision-making bodies, and laws lack mechanisms to ensure meaningful participation in community consultation and consent processes.

▪▪Regulatory changes—including reforms of compensation eligibility and payment mechanisms, gender quotas in decision-making entities, more participatory processes and grievance mechanisms, community awareness-raising, and gender sensitization of government authorities and investors—could make compensation and resettlement processes more equitable for women.