HIV/AIDS Programme
Working Paper 5

Vulnerability and Property Rights of Widows and
Orphans in the Era of the HIV and AIDS Pandemic:
A Case Study of Muleba and Makete Districts,
Tanzania

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Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Rome, 2008

ABSTRACT

Safeguarding property rights of vulnerable people is an important policy issue, not least in the quest for poverty reduction in poor societies. This issue has become urgent due to recent developments, including the AIDS epidemic, globalization, climate change and other similar social and natural forces. This paper explores the extent to which property and inheritance rights of widows and orphans are violated or protected in the context of HIV and AIDS in two rural communities in Tanzania.

The study takes into consideration two major interrelated aspects: the socio-economic system within which property rights systems are embedded and the constellations of legal pluralism which regulate property rights in Tanzania. While aiming at providing in-depth knowledge on the context and dynamics of the problem, the research goes further to explore the capacity of service providers to protect the property and inheritance rights of women and children.

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