KABUL (SW) – In this ongoing series of in-depth surveys, Salam Watandar has reached out to women and girls across the country to gauge their inheritance and ownership rights of property and assets at various stages of their lives.
Statement
Ownerships of various sorts are a set of individual rights inherent to every humans regardless of their gender and all other differences. However, women’s ownership rights in developing countries are faced with numerous challenges. Despite natural values that deem ownership rights intrinsic and unchangeable, many women in the third world countries are deprived of this basic and inherent right.
The fundamental subject of study in this research is to determine how many of the women participating in this statistical survey have their ownership rights and the methods and mechanisms they employ to practice these rights. This research aims to use a statistical sample to assess the extent to which women enjoy ownership rights. Hence, the main question is: Do women have access to ownership rights, and if so, how do they exercise this right?
Main questions
- To what extent do women in Afghanistan have access to ownership rights?
- How do women practice their ownership rights?
- Who primarily restricts women’s ownership rights?
Background
Generally speaking, there have been limited efforts to safeguard and promote women’s rights, but more specificallyو there has been a noticeable lack of systematic and statistical examination of women’s inherent rights, particularly ownership rights. To address this gap, Salam Afghanistan Media Organization (Salam Watandar) has initiated a survey across 24 provinces to investigate women’s ownership rights. This survey aims to use the collected data to assess the extent of women’s access to ownership rights and the way they practice this right.
Survey objectives
1. The primary objective of this research is to determine the extent of women’s ownership rights in Afghanistan.
2. To provide statistics on the number of women who have access to ownership rights.
3. To examine how women practice their ownership rights.
4. To identify the individuals or entities that influence or restrict women’s ownership rights.
Survey timeline
This research was conducted over a period of four months starting on February 26 and completing on May 27, 2024.
Method of data analysis
The data for this research was collected using a questionnaire distributed via Google Document forms. The analysis and interpretation of the data were done using the SPSS software, and further examined the google documents.
Survey challenges
Conducting a research on fundamental issues related to women and girls in the Afghan society is challenging and fraught with difficulties. This is particularly true for topics such as women’s rights and women’s ownership rights where many women lack sufficient information. The challenges marked below were prominent during this research:
- Investigating women’s ownership rights in Afghanistan is difficult and fraught with challenges partly because many women were reluctant to participate in the survey.
- Most women participating in the survey were unaware of their ownership rights finding the topic unfamiliar and incomprehensible.
- Some women feared their husbands would find out about their participation in the survey.
- Geographic limitations posed another challenge, as women were not concentrated in one location and had to be surveyed individually.
Survey variables
Ownership rights, women, dowry rights, inheritance rights, patriarchy.
Summary of the survey report
Most women participating in this survey are aged between 18 and 25. Findings from the survey, which included 370 women across 24 provinces in Afghanistan, reveal that nearly 90% of the respondents do not own any assets and properties. Additionally, around 80% of the women reported that valuable properties are not purchased in their names but rather in the names of their fathers, husbands, or brothers. Furthermore, 64.6% of the participants stated that they are not provided with the economic means necessary to own property.
Comprehensive report
This survey, conducted by Salam Watandar, aims to assess women’s ownership rights and their authority over assets.
The survey covered 24 provinces with the participation of 370 women. Kabul had the highest participation rate at 59.7%, while the provinces of Helmand, Faryab, Khost, Kunar, and Daikundi each had the lowest participation rate at 0.3%. The findings will help determine the extent to which women have ownership rights or control over their property and assets.
Education levels
The women participating in this survey have varying educational levels, with more than 90% being literate.
Age range
The age group of the women surveyed shows that 65.1% are between the ages of 18 and 25.
Career status
The survey also examined the career status of these women, revealing that 78.4% are unemployed, while 21.6% are employed.
Job loss
Among the unemployed women surveyed, 36.2% lost their jobs following the recent political changes in the country.
Property ownership
The survey results indicate that nearly 90% of the participating women do not own any property. Only 5.1% own assets, 3.0% possess some jewelry, and 3.2% have some cash savings.
Property registration practices
Furthermore, 60% of the women stated that valuable items and properties are typically registered under the names of their father, brother, or husband, as per cultural norms.
Authority over assets
The survey also examined the level of control women have over their assets. It found that 73% of the women do not have full authority over their assets, while 26.8% reported having complete authority.
Partial authority over assets
Among those women who do not have full authority over their assets, 62.7% said they can somewhat use or control their assets, but 37.2% stated they have no authority at all over their assets.
Reasons for lack of ownership
The survey explored reasons why nearly 90% of the participants do not own property or assets. Among them, 64.6% cited economic conditions as the barrier to owning property, while 13.1% mentioned that they gave away their property and assets to the male family members due to cultural norms.
Inheritance rights
Inheritance rights were also scrutinized. The survey found that 73.5% of the participants had not received their rightful inheritance rights.
Reasons for lack of inheritance
Among those who had not received their inheritance, 67.9% stated that they had not claimed it themselves, and 32.1% said their families had denied them this right based on prevailing cultural norms.
Receiving inheritance
Among the women who had received their inheritance, 72.5% indicated that it was due to family decisions, while 27.5% said they had claimed and secured their inheritance rights through their own efforts.
Dowry rights
The survey also examined women’s decisions regarding their dowry rights. Of the 370 women surveyed, 56.5% expressed a desire to claim their dowry, while 43.5% did not.
Among those who wanted to claim their dowry, 73.7% said they would accept it if their husband agreed to give it to them, while 26.3% were prepared to pursue legal action to obtain it.
Meanwhile, among those who did not wish to claim their dowry, 56.5% said they would forgo it to their husbands, while 43.5% felt compelled to forgo it to avoid conflicts and maintain their marital relationship.
Conclusion
The survey highlights significant barriers Afghan women face in accessing ownership rights. Over 90% of the 370 participants do not own any assets, with only 5.1% own some property.
More than two-thirds lack full authority over their assets, reflecting cultural and social constraints.
Furthermore, over 73% of women participated in the survey have not received their inheritance, often due to not demanding it or being denied by their family members.
Regarding dowry rights, more than half of the surveyed women want to receive their dowry; however, over 40% are not inclined to do so. Among those, more than two-thirds are willing to accept their dowry if their husbands give it to them.
