This annual report of the Women's Legal Rights Initiative (WLR) discusses best practices and reviews lessons learned, approaches, and activities that offer ideas about what works best in a given situation -- or how not to do something. This third annual report takes a broader perspective on best practices and lessons learned than previous reports did. It still focuses on WLR country program activities but considers the process used for developing the activity within each of the project's intermediate results, the need for and benefit of sound monitoring and evaluation plans, including indicators and data collection, and strategies for project management.

The subject of inheritance has always been very close to the hearts of many Basotho, and it is often at the center of legal disputes. Lesotho has a dual legal system, meaning that it operates and maintains in parallel two legal systems, customary and statutory. This report deals with both legal systems.

This brochure, offered in both the English and Sesotho languages, describes how to create a sound and accurate will and provides a sample of a will. While the Basotho people are not used to drawing up wills, doing so has become necessary for everyone, especially in light of HIV/AIDS. In addition, wills are of the utmost importance in protecting women's and children's inheritances.

This report describes a paralegal training activity in Leribe district, Lesotho, which was undertaken by the Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) and received financial support from USAID and other donors. The 17 participants included youth leaders, support groups, a teacher, a farmer, a chief, and a police officer. The program aimed to equip participants with knowledge of the rudiments of marriage and inheritance, child welfare, sexual offense, land, and labor laws in order to enable them to appreciate and deal with  the day-to-day problems they encountered in their communities.

This brochure describes Lesotho's statutory and customary marriage laws. Topics covered include consent, divorce, child custody and care, and division of property. Also discussed are the conflicts in marriage law posed by Lesotho's dual legal system.

This manual, revised by the Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA-Lesotho) in 2006, is designed to assist in the training of paralegals in Lesotho. The manual serves as a guideline that trainers can adapt to their own training strategies. The manual includes information on Lesotho's legal system; criminal and civil law procedures; family, inheritance, labor, and property laws; and sexual violence and human rights.

This brochure, created by the Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), aims to simplify Lesotho's 2003 Sexual Offenses Act. The Act is meant to consolidate and repeal all laws relating to sexual offenses. Its main objectives are to combat sexual violence (including child prostitution) and to prescribe appropriate sentences for sexual offenses.

This document presents several stories to illustrate how women in Lesotho were powerless under the old constitution and laws governing marriage and how the amended new constitution of equality of married counterparts attempts to rectify this. Under the new constitution, all laws giving men sole power in marriage and in community of property will be done away with. A married woman will have the power to make her own decisions about money and employment and about her children (including regarding their education and marriage); she will also be able to inherit property and have a say in matters affecting family property.

This brochure attempts to simplify the Lesotho government's new Land Bill. The Bill's objectives are to provide for the granting of land titles, facilitate the conversion of land titles, better secure titles to land, manage land, grant public servitudes, settle land disputes, and repeal earlier land laws. The Bill protects the rights of women specifically by placing them on the same footing as their male counterparts.

This is the final report of the Women's Legal Rights Initiative (WLR). The WLR worked to advance the legal, civil, property, and human rights of women in 10 developing countries: Albania, Benin, Guatemala, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, and Swaziland.  It was implemented from 2002 to 2007 by Chemonics International in partnership with the Centre for Development and Population Activities (CEDPA), MetaMetrics, Inc., and Partners of the Americas.