A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science, School of Environment, Resources and Development

Thesis (M.Sc.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2002

In the context of market driven society, the prepotency of shrimp culture are being taken stock in economic growth and the state policies of economic growth and development planning at all levels has created complicated convulsion on land issues. In that such circumstance, Vietnamese women's land use rights are also affected. And in the present context, land price being changed much, series of legal documents issued in order to improve land use management of the government both men and women are get involved in the complex situation especially in land use disputes. Although Vietnamese society easily accepts the fact that women being the land use holders, this privilege still belongs to men due to the traditional practice that men are usually heads of households. In term of using, women can fully exercise their rights; they can take part in all stages of productive activities for their family earnings. But in managing and control aspects, men still take the role of decision-making. Women's limitations on education, time for public activities, access to sufficient land use information had put them in the weak position in front of the authorities and in land use dispute situations. Moreover, gender blindness in state policies on land use and management also contribute to limit women fully exercise the land use rights. These constraints should be alleviate in order to promote women's land use rights by facilitating women access to land use information sufficiently and raising the gender sensitiveness in the process of land use registration.