We explore the determinants of land titling by smallholder farmers in Zambia, and
evaluate the impacts of titling on land productivity investments. We examine plot-level
outcomes, and test for gendered differences in titling impacts. We find generally
positive impacts of titling on investments, including strong gender-specific pathways
of impact. Although female-headed households are less likely to make investments
than male-headed households, female title holders are significantly more likely to
make investments than male title holders (at least for labor intensive investments). We
posit that these results are related to the systematically weaker rights of women in
customary tenure systems, under which the security-enhancement of formal land title
plays a relatively greater role in incentivizing long-term farm investments. Our results
suggest the importance of facilitating access to titling mechanisms (and other tenure
security mechanisms) by female farmers.