no less favourably than an equivalent application from a man, a group of men or a mixed group of men and women. Again, the Act prohibits adverse or discriminatory practices or attitudes towards any person who has applied for a customary estate. This in turn guarantees a woman’s access to land. 241 The Malawi National Land Policy 2002 identifies women as a vulnerable group whose land rights have been denied on the basis of customs and traditions that are no longer relevant, or they are totally disregarded due to prejudice and lack of effective representation. 242 Considering that most of the land in Malawi is customary, women access land through lineage. In matrilineal societies, women have better access to land than in patrilineal societies where women’s access to land is dependent upon their husband. In Malawi, as in several other African countries, national laws dealing with women’s right to own land coexist with a parallel set of customary laws. For example, when divorced women return to their natal villages (birthplaces), they may only use land through their male members of the family, or be allocated a piece of land by the chief or their clan members. In many cases, however, most widows are chased away from their natal villages. In recent years, efforts have been made to sensitize communities of women’s rights to land. As part of the Women’s Land Rights in Southern Africa (WOLAR) Project, rural women, men and traditional leaders have been sensitized on women’s rights and national land policies, and were educated through the REFLECT (Regenerated Freirean Literacy through Empowering Community Technique) methodology. Currently, there are 91 REFLECT Circles across Malawi, and a total of over 2,000 landless women were allocated land through the WOLAR Project. Articles 20, 21, 22 and 23 - Rights of Specially Protected Women Groups 243 In 2011 Malawi passed the Deceased Estates (Wills, Inheritance and Protection) Act (DEWIPA). The Act makes for provision for protection of deceased estates; the administration of deceased estates; the prosecution of offences relating to deceased 100