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South Sudan Strengthens Gender-Responsive Land Governance in Eastern Equatoria
ORIT, South Sudan — 28 August 2026
South Sudan is strengthening institutional capacity around land governance and women's land rights through a new regional-supported initiative in Eastern Equatoria State.
The Intergovernmental Authority on Development, working with the Government of South Sudan, concluded a three-day capacity-building workshop on 28 August under the Building Women’s Economic Resilience for Sustainable Peace Project.
The training brought together 41 participants from national and state ministries, land administration institutions, civil society and other organisations involved in land governance and women's rights.
Land is a major development issue in South Sudan, where access to productive resources is closely linked to livelihoods, food security, displacement, conflict and household economic resilience.
Women can face additional barriers to land ownership and control, limiting their ability to invest in agriculture, access finance or participate fully in local economies.
The workshop therefore connects land governance with both economic empowerment and peacebuilding.
IGAD's approach reflects a broader recognition that sustainable peace cannot be separated from how communities access and manage natural resources. Transparent and inclusive land institutions can reduce disputes while creating more predictable conditions for livelihoods and investment.
For South Sudan, strengthening officials and civil-society actors at state level is particularly important because land governance is experienced locally. National laws and policies require capable institutions at the community and state levels to become meaningful.
The development challenge remains substantial. Capacity-building needs to be followed by effective implementation, legal protection, accessible dispute-resolution mechanisms and genuine participation by women.
The latest initiative nevertheless represents an important step toward linking land administration with economic resilience.
For East Africa's wider development agenda, the lesson is significant: secure and inclusive land rights can contribute simultaneously to food security, women's economic participation and peace.
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