Her land, her rights: Justice through technology

A Contribution by Bérénice Usner

In Kenya’s Kakamega County, land conflicts are deeply embedded in the lived everyday realities of many women. New digital approaches are helping to address existing inequalities and to strengthen women’s land rights in practice.

In Kenya's Kakamega County, land disputes are a daily reality. Widows and women farmers bear the heaviest burden. Although Kenyan law protects women's land rights, entrenched social norms and limited access to justice leave many women without recourse.

Jemimah Oronoga knows this first-hand. After her husband evicted her and her children from their home, local authorities ignored her case. Then she found Haki Ardhi (meaning “land justice” in Swahili), a community-based reporting tool developed by TMG Think Tank for Sustainability, Kenya Land Alliance, and Rainforest Foundation UK, with support from GIZ's “Women’s Empowerment for Resilient Rural Areas” (WE4R) project.

“When I sent an SMS to Haki Ardhi, Shibuye Community Health Workers responded straight away. They got me a lawyer to defend my case. He knew that the law would acknowledge my right to land, so my husband then let me stay.”  – Jemimah Oronoga, Resident, Matiola, Kakamega County

Through a simple SMS to a toll-free hotline, Jemimah reported her case. Shibuye Community Health Workers responded immediately, connecting her with a lawyer. Her husband, confronted with the law, backed down. She stayed.

Haki Ardhi does more than resolve individual cases. It equips community workers and local leaders to respond to land rights violations and generates data that strengthens accountability across local governments and the judiciary. When women can report safely and receive real support, land rights stop being a promise on paper and become a lived reality.