Land was discussed as fundamental to food production, settlement, cultural expression, and development. It was noted that, because of competing demands for land, control over land use and access had become a key area of contestation. These contestations were discussed as being partly exacerbated by historical land inequalities rooted in colonial rule, which led to the dispossession of many Indigenous communities.The discussion highlighted that land-related structural inequalities, including landlessness, unequal ownership, insecure tenure, and unsustainable land-use practices, remained present in governance systems in many parts of the Global South. The Okavango Delta was presented as an example of similar challenges. As a multi-use landscape important for conservation and tourism, the Delta also supported Indigenous communities. For many Indigenous communities living in and around the Delta, access to productive land and meaningful participation in land-related decision-making remained constrained.The study examined institutional factors that shaped rural households’ perceptions of land-use governance. Data collection was conducted in Tubu and Sankoyo, two villages bordering the Okavango Delta. Both villages had a history of land redistribution linked to the expansion of wildlife management areas. A mixed-methods design was used, combining a household survey of 120 respondents, focus group discussions, and key informant interviews.
The regression analysis indicated that institutional factors significantly influenced perceptions of land-use governance (β = 0.515, p < .001). The findings also revealed negative perceptions of land-use governance, marked by low transparency, restricted access to information, inadequate consultation, distrust in decision-makers, and perceived inequalities in land allocation and benefits. Households expressed concern that conservation and tourism interests had been prioritised over rural livelihoods, leading to feelings of disenfranchisement. Land-use governance was perceived as bureaucratic and externally imposed, with policies viewed as exclusionary and lacking sufficient community input. This pattern reflected the framing of policies as being closely associated with colonial legacies in land-use governance. The study emphasised that addressing conservation–livelihood trade-offs in the Okavango required prioritising co-decision-making mechanisms and recognising local and Indigenous knowledge in land governance.
