A systematic review of barriers to women’s participation in traditional leadership roles in Africa

A systematic review of barriers to women’s participation in traditional leadership roles in Africa

Abgirl Muleya

Issue: Vol. 7 No.2 2026 Article 16 pp. 631 – 650
DOI: https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.20267216| Published online 31st March 2026

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ABSTRACT

Traditional leadership positions in African nations continue to have very few women despite constitutional advancements and worldwide support for gender equality. The purpose of this systematic review is to synthesize the various obstacles that prevent women from participating in traditional leadership positions in Africa. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) framework guided the qualitative synthesis approach to select relevant papers for this review. The review search focused on studies published between 2014 and 2025 in Scopus, JSTOR, SAGE, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases. The total number of papers assessed for this study reached 20 after applying the inclusion criteria. Thematic analysis of included studies in this systematic review revealed four main themes: patriarchal cultural norms and beliefs, societal perceptions and resistance, institutional resistance within traditional structures, and legal and policy inconsistencies. The research demonstrates how legal systems interact with deeply rooted cultural beliefs to keep women in marginalized positions. Governments must align customary laws with constitutional gender equality provisions to prevent cultural or traditional practices from discriminating against women. Traditional leadership acts need revision to establish mandatory gender inclusion and succession provisions that confirm women’s eligibility for traditional positions.

Keywords: Women in traditional leadership, Patriarchy in Africa, cultural resistance, Gender and leadership, and Gender equality.

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ABOUT AUTHOR(S)

Dr. Muleya Abgirl is a gender studies scholar and postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Gender and Sexuality at the University of South Africa. She holds a PhD from the University of Venda, specializing in gender and sexuality and feminist theories. Her research focuses on women’s leadership, gender inequality in higher education, and socio-developmental issues affecting rural communities. She has supervised numerous postgraduate students to completion and contributes actively to academic committees. Her publications address barriers facing women in academia and traditional leadership, offering feminist insights into structural inequality. Dr. Muleya continues to advance scholarship through conference participation, research dissemination, and mentorship of emerging academics.

TO CITE ARTICLE

Muleya, Abgirl.“ A Systematic Review of Barriers to Women’s Participation in Traditional Leadership Roles in Africa,” E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences 7, no.2 (2026): 631 – 650. https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.20267216