In particular, women in unregistered customary law unions, including polygamous unions, often have no legal entitlements, as do those cohabiting without formal or customary marriage. This translates into substantial competitive disadvantages for female-headed households, for example, in accessing and using market information and extension services; applying for credit; and complying with importing countries’ product standards, particularly in relation to sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures (UNCTAD 2011; UNCTAD 2014). Malawi exemplifies both the resilience and the complexity of such practices. Formally, when a husband dies, the property is inherited by his wife and children. Actual practices, however, are varied and more complex. In some districts, besides the surviving wife, property can be inherited only by male children, based on an assumption that any land held by girls would be lost to outsiders after their marriage.