Security of Tenure is one of the cornerstones of Millennium Development Goal 7 on the improvement of the lives of slum dwellers, and is the main focus of the Global Campaign for Secure Tenure
In most countries, a range of land rights and tenure types exists, which forms a continuum (from informal to formal). Whether tenure is informal or formal, it is usually understood, recorded and/or registered in the name of men, leaving women’s secure tenure often dependent on their relations with their in-laws. As women’s access to land and housing is often through their husbands or fathers, they may lose such access after widowhood, divorce, desertion, or male migration. While collective forms of tenure also include women, the decision-making processes are often dominated by men, excluding women from the important decisions regarding the land and housing.
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