Women’s Leadership and Political Agency in Fragile Polities

Abstract

Recent evidence from Afghanistan shows that even in the most difficult contexts, women will still protest for their rights. This paper draws on evidence from the Action for Empowerment and Accountability (A4EA) research programme to show how women express their political agency and activism and seek accountability in repressive contexts. A4EA research looked at cases of women-led protest in Egypt, Mozambique, Nigeria, and Pakistan, and explored women’s political participation in Nigeria and Pakistan. The research shows that despite some success in claim-making on specific issues, ‘sticky norms’ and male gatekeeping prevail and govern women’s access to public space and mediate their voice in these contexts. The paper concludes by calling on donors to go beyond blueprints in programming, and to work in agile and creative ways to support women’s rights organising.

Women’s Agency and Humanitarian Protection in North and South Kivu, DRC

“…Building alliances is a central element in women's collective strategies to participate in community protection. In contexts where active conflict has ended but where multiple public authorities exist (e.g., armed groups, the military, local government officials, customary and religious authorities) women must negotiate with these multiple authorities for their various protection and security needs (Nazneen 2022). Hence, we focus here on the ways in which women in the Even though the idea of women's leadership is generally welcome in communities, it is often met with resistance from customary and religious leaders.…”