Does the Inclusion of Women in African Legislatures Encourage Women's Political Participation?

Abstract

Using Afrobarometer survey data from up to 20 African countries over four time periods spanning nearly a decade and country-level data from a variety of sources, this study tests the hypotheses that: (1) Quota laws requiring minimum proportions of women in African legislatures are positively correlated with women's political activity; and (2) Women are more engaged in politics in countries with greater proportions of women in their legislatures regardless of whether their country has a quota law. It finds that women are more likely to engage in certain political activities (i.e., attend a community meeting and vote) when they live in a country with a quota. However, the actual proportion of a country's legislature comprised of women does not have statistically significant implications for women's political engagement. This study provides limited support for countries in sub-Saharan Africa to adopt some form of quotas as a means of broadening their democracies to better include women's voices. However, because of the limited data available, this study primarily suggests the need for sub-Saharan African countries to compile and release more gender-disaggregated data on voter registration, voting and other political actions.