Women and Politics

Research on women and politics in Africa has made important contributions to both scholarship on African politics and the more general literature on women/gender and politics. Scholarship on African politics and women is fast evolving and has made key advances, particularly in explaining increasing rates of female legislative representation; the impact of women on gender and other reforms; state policies regarding women’s rights; women and patronage politics; and the role of traditional authorities with respect to women’s leadership and rights. Women, as a group, have long been excluded from the highest levels of power, particularly with the onset of colonialism, the spread of Islam and Christianity, and the turn to single-party and military rule after independence. With a few exceptions, little effort has been made to incorporate women’s experiences into the broader study of parties, legislatures, elections, the military, and other key institutions in African politics, not to mention the study of the state, patronage, conflict, ethnicity, religion, political liberalization, and many other aspects of African politics. Nevertheless, women have had a significant impact on politics in Africa, especially since the 1990s, as voters, leaders, and activists within civil society. The gender and politics subfield focuses largely on women’s roles, with less written on the gendered nature of various institutions and political practices. Before the 1990s, sociologists, anthropologists, and historians dominated scholarly work on women and African politics. It was also dominated by non-Africans. This has changed radically as more political scientists and African scholars are working in this area today. The subfield has also incorporated more quantitative methods than in the past. The heavy focus on women in legislatures has expanded to include women in the executive and judiciary. However, more research is still needed into women in politics at the subnational level, in the bureaucracy, and in political parties. Similarly, there is still little comparative work in this area in Africa as most studies are situated in single countries. This bibliography reflects work done in the general area of women and politics as it relates primarily to the post-independence period in sub-Saharan Africa. It privileges published works that are accessible to an international readership. The themes are selected based on the literature available and are suggestive of the main areas that have garnered interest among scholars. The selection seeks to highlight scholarship from the continent that is available in international venues.