Right to stay? Long-run experimental evidence on land formalization and widows’ tenure security in Benin

Bibliographic Data

ID11890214
AuthorsIona Botea (0009-0004-2145-1430, corresponding author), Ioana Botea (World Bank), Marjorie Goldstein (0000-0002-6971-7259, Center for Global Development), Kenneth Houngbedji (0000-0003-2490-9844, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, corresponding author), Florence Kondylis (0000-0001-7012-1893, World Bank), Michael O’sullivan (0000-0002-9396-9691, World Bank), Harris Selod (0000-0002-0886-1265, World Bank)
Year2025
Volume179
Pages103675-103675
Publication date2025-11-06
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Development Economics (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0304-3878 • E-ISSN: 1872-6089
PublisherElsevier BV (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1016/j.jdeveco.2025.103675
OpenAlexW4415972515
LanguageEN
References cited21

In many parts of the world, women’s land rights remain informal, leaving widows – especially those without a male heir – at high risk of losing access to their land and homes when their husbands die. We study whether large-scale land formalization programs can improve widows’ tenure security, using data from a randomized controlled trial in rural Benin. Four years after the intervention, widows in villages with land formalization were significantly more likely to remain in their homes, with the strongest effects among those without a male heir. We identify two key mechanisms: increased community recognition of women’s land rights and greater decision-making power over land resources. These findings highlight the potential of land formalization to strengthen women’s tenure security and promote their long-term economic stability in similar settings.

Developing country · Incomplete contracts · Land rights · Land tenure · Agricultural risk and resilience · Land Rights and Reforms · Microfinance and Financial Inclusion

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