African Women's Movements: Transforming Political Landscapes

African Women's Movements: Transforming Political Landscapes
ISBN-10
0521879302
ISBN-13
9780521879309
Category
Political Science
Pages
280
Language
English
Published
2008-11-17
Publisher
Cambridge University Press
Authors
Aili Mari Tripp, Isabel Casimiro, Joy Kwesiga

Description

Women burst onto the political scene in Africa after the 1990s, claiming more than one third of the parliamentary seats in countries like Angola, Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, and Burundi. Women in Rwanda hold the highest percentage of legislative seats in the world. Women's movements lobbied for constitutional reforms and new legislation to expand women's rights. This book examines the convergence of factors behind these dramatic developments, including the emergence of autonomous women's movements, changes in international and regional norms regarding women's rights and representation, the availability of new resources to advance women's status, and the end of civil conflict. The book focuses on the cases of Cameroon, Uganda, and Mozambique, situating these countries in the broader African context. The authors provide a fascinating analysis of the way in which women are transforming the political landscape in Africa, by bringing to bear their unique perspectives as scholars who have also been parliamentarians, transnational activists, and leaders in these movements.

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