Abstract

Despite the importance of inclusive policy-making, pronouncements and practice are two different things resulting in a big schism between the two. Resultantly, women are more excluded from policy-making arenas given their few numbers in key policy-making institutions such as local councils and parliaments. While this is an enduring problem globally, it is more pronounced in Africa. Although gender exclusion is a multi-causal phenomenon, the leading cause in Africa is patriarchy. The subsequent socio-economic exclusion results in feminised poverty and diseases of poverty such as tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS and malnutrition. Grounded on feminist approaches, this chapter surveys the role of women in policy-making in Africa. It calls for a reconfiguration of the architecture of gender relations in Africa to put men and women on the same pedestal for equal citizenship, inclusive economic growth and development.