The recent South African election marked a historic shift, as the ANC lost the parliamentary majority it had held ever since the end of apartheid. Women remain underrepresented in both parliament and government. Leaving aside the numbers, the new political landscape, with its multiparty cabinet and increasingly violent opposition, has brought fresh challenges for women in politics. They will have to join forces across party lines to resist the rise of big man politics, marked by patriarchal behaviour and violent masculinity.
During the course of the past three decades efforts of democratisation and institutional reforms have characterised the African continent, including demands for gender equality and women's political representation. As a result, some countries have introduced affirmative action measures, either in the aftermath of conflicts or as part of broader constitutional reforms, whereas others are falling behind this fast track to women's political representation. Utilising a range of case studies spanning both the success cases and the less successful cases from different regions, this work examines the uneven developments on the continent.
By mapping, analysing and comparing women's political representation in different African contexts, this book sheds light on the formal and informal institutions and the interplay between these that are influencing women's political representation and can explain the development on women's political representation across the continent and present perspectives on an 'African feminist institutionalism'.
A new book, Gendered Institutions and Women’s Political Representation in Africa calls for a focus on institutional barriers to women in politics – formal and informal – as an introduction of isolated formal gender equality reforms have provided mixed results. Despite this, African countries without quotas are still looking towards these reforms as the main model for promoting political empowerment. This policy note argues that these need to be combined with a regendering of institutions working against more women in politics and suggests steps towards an African feminist institutionalism for women in politics.
With its high level of female representation and its successful reconciliation process after the 1994 genocide, Rwanda has emerged as something of an African and global 'model' of gender equality and conflict resolution. But beyond the 'politics of numbers' lies a male-dominated structure, where women and feminist thinking have little or no influence. This policy note assesses how Rwanda has adopted UN Security Council Resolution 1325, and offers policy advice on how to break gender barriers in the traditionally masculinist security sector.
With only 13 per cent female representation in parliament, Ghana is lagging behind most other African states. A proposal for affirmative action is currently being debated. This policy note assesses the barriers to women’s political representation in Ghana, and gives recommendations on how the issue might be addressed.
In the forthcoming Ghanaian elections, for the first time ever a woman has emerged as a vice-presidential candidate for one of the two major parties. Her candidacy has given rise to hopes of progress on gender equality issues, but it has also led to anti-feminist and misogynistic comments. This policy note addresses certain challenges and opportunities to break the male dominance of Ghanaian politics.
This chapter explores the dynamics of contemporary political citizenships in West African Ghana and East African Uganda with a focus on junctures of convergences and divergences shaping the pathways for gendered in-/exclusions of citizenships. It interrogates the ways women’s political citizenships have developed and the pathways to power in the two countries. It draws on the notion of Ubuntu and afro-communitarianism as a pathway for understanding collective political citizenships and belongings as an alternative to Western state centric and individualised notions of citizenship. By mapping historical trajectories, the chapter seeks to understand the continuities, and changes defining present gendered citizenships. Despite being on similar paths in terms of the development of political systems, institutions and the gender subtext in the postcolonial eras, the two countries have developed unevenly. Whereas Uganda is characterised by authoritarian features with a relative high level of women’s political representation, the more democratic Ghana has a low level of women’s political representation. It concludes, that related to the notion of Ubuntu the achievement of women’s substantive political citizenship will be located within women’s collective lived realities and demands a broad based intersectional mobilisation.
From a gender perspective, three main lessons can be learnt from the general election. First, gender issues are on the rise, a fact shown not least by the appointment of the first-ever women running mate for one of the two main presidential candidates. Second, although the ratios of women representatives at all levels are slowly but steadily increasing, the gender quota is just window dressing, which the parties blatantly ignore or work around by nominating women candidates to top-up lists. Third, violence against women in politics poses a serious threat to women’s political inclusion and citizenship.
In this year's elections in Zimbabwe, the number of women nominated and elected to national office decreased. This decline can be attributed to increased online harassment of women in politics, as well as financial obstacles and patriarchal attitudes. To reverse this trend, it is crucial for the government, political parties and civil society to address gender-based electoral violence effectively. Additionally, the government should genuinely implement gender quotas, focusing on empowering women in politics rather than using quota as a means to improve their international image, attract international donor funds and secure more women voters.