Women and Security Governance in Africa

When United Nations Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security was adopted in October 2000, it was hailed by policy analysts and international observers alike as a path-breaking move. It was the first time that the security concerns of women in situations of armed conflict and their role in peace building were placed on the agenda of the UN Security Council. In the field of international security, there is a tendency to relegate discussions on women and children to the margins. This book addresses a broader debate on security and its governance in a variety of contexts while at the same time making the argument that human security cannot be achieved without placing women at the centre of this policy agenda – for perhaps the single most important measure of the effectiveness of security governance is its impact on women. But this is not just a book about women. Rather it is a book about inclusive human security for Africans, which cannot ignore the central place of women. Written by academics and activists from around Africa, this book fills a gap in the growing field of gender and security. Its African-centred approach – both analytically and through derivative experiences – builds a corpus of approaches that will shape interventions, policy advocacy and programmatic approaches on women’s rights and security sector governance.