The United Nations and African women's movements

Abstract

In this chapter, focus is on the activities and interactions of the United Nations with African women's movements. The efforts of the United Nations on women's rights in Africa and on issues including agriculture, education, violence, economic empowerment, and leadership training, among others, are examined. The interactions of the United Nations with African women's movements over the years, no doubt, have contributed immensely toward setting goals and standards for governments in Africa to introduce legislations and have provided spaces for their engagement at the local level, toward achieving gender equality. Nonetheless, the chapter observes that the success of African women's movements has not been solely dependent on support from the United Nations. African women's movements have been able to make some progress on gender equality and women's empowerment, but they are still limited by factors including lack of institutional capacity and an unstable financial base. The chapter is concluded on the note that gender gaps still exist that allows for discrimination against women in Africa, and recommended among others, that the United Nations should commit more funds and training programs to African women's movements to help in building their skills and abilities in order to challenge discriminatory social and cultural practices while tapping into available political and economic opportunities.