Empowered with Ownership

A rare study originating in Africa, on the gender impact of housing privatisation in Zambia; and on the impact of privatisation on social class and the overall constitution of the housing stock. It considers questions such as: whether privatisation mainly benefits men and thus implies a masculisation of ownership; whether it benefits mainly rich people; what tendencies can be identified regarding housing maintenance and extensions of housing stock; how the policy of privatisation was formulated and implemented by government and loca authorities, to what extent these policy formulations were democratic; how gender policy and activism responded to the privatisation of housing; and whether it affects gender power relations. The author is Associate Professor of Peace and Development Research at Gothenburg University, Sweden.