25 November 2020, Mazar-e-sharif. Most land in Afghanistan’s cities is documented through customary means, which provide minimal protection of the property rights of women.

In response, global-best practice suggests that legal property registration makes great gains in securing women’s land rights, and results in a range of positive benefits, from economic strengthening to increased participation in decision making fora.

The City for All programme, implemented by the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan with technical support from UN-Habitat, legally registers women’s land rights at scale across Afghanistan. Beginning in 2016, the programme is currently surveying and registering properties in the cities of, Kabul Herat, Kandahar, Farah, Jalalabad, Mazar-e-Sharif, Bamyan, and Nili and the districts of Meerbach kot in Kabul, Enjil in Herat, Speen boldak in Kandar and Balkh in Mazar-e-sharif. To date, over 800,000 properties have surveyed, and 30,000 Occupancy Certificates distributed.

Feroza, the resident of Mazar-e- sharif city received her OC from the government of Afghanistan, under City for All programme

Feroza, a domestic worker living in District 9 of Mazar-e-Sharif city, is one beneficiary of the programme. Her story highlights the enormous difference the programme is making to the lives of women by providing legally secure rights to their land.  Here is Feroza’s story:

“I worked hard to save money and buy a 280m² plot in Mazar-e-Sharif, which was facilitated by customary documents. But these customary documents did not provide me with security. On occasions, people threatened to remove me from my home, saying things like ‘you should go from here, this is not your land and house, give us your documents’. One day, staff from UN-Habitat came to the Mosque/ Masjid and provided information about the City for All land registration programme. At the time I did not take it seriously, but some days after, programme staff came to survey and register my house and land. Recently, I have received an Occupancy Certificate in my name and with details of my home; now I am happy and feeling safe, no one can grab my house or tell me by force to leave my house.”

With financial support from the EU and technical assistance from UN-Habitat, City for All has opened a new chapter of land reform in Afghanistan by strengthening security of tenure for all urban dwellers, including women.