Article
Women's Decreased Political Representation in Postwar Sierra Leone: A Backlash or Lethargy?
African Conflict & Peacebuilding Review
(2023)
Abstract
Women's political empowerment strategies have produced important policy and institutional changes, including increased women's political representation in postwar Sierra Leone, notably at the appointment level. However, these advances seem to be consistently met with different forms of resistance, including violence. The awareness among women and men of the importance of women's political representation is not reflected in the number of women nominated by their political parties even as many women continue to aspire for elected positions. This article examines reasons for this trend, focusing on the firsthand perspectives from both male and female politicians on the policies and programs of women's advocacy organizations geared at increasing women's political participation using the 50/50 Group, one of the oldest women's advocacy organizations in Sierra Leone, as a case study.
Keywords
- Sierra Leone,
- postwar,
- women,
- political representation
Disciplines
Publication Date
Spring 2023
DOI
10.2979/africonfpeacrevi.13.1.04
Citation Information
Fredline A. O. MCormack-Hale and Aisha Fofana Ibrahim. "Women's Decreased Political Representation in Postwar Sierra Leone: A Backlash or Lethargy?" African Conflict & Peacebuilding Review Vol. 13 Iss. 1 (2023) p. 77 - 105 ISSN: 2156-7263 Available at: http://works.bepress.com/fredline-mcormack-hale/29/