Women in Development: The Historical Trends of Changing Roles of Women in African Society

Abstract

The role of women in the advancement of humanity is dated back to the time immemorial. The survival of the family which is seen as a nucleus of the society depends to a large extent on the woman. This is because the woman performs the primary roles a mother, wife, counselor, a home manager, care-giver to mention but few. In addition, African women play significant roles in educating and teaching their children in social, ethical, and moral values which are part of the cultural standards for evaluating a proper and ideal societal behaviour. This is why Manuh argues that ‘…the functions of women in the political and socio-economic development of modern Africa cannot be overemphasized.’ [1] This is to say that their positive contributions to their household, food production system and national economies which are increasingly acknowledged within Africa and by international community. This is as a result of their concerted efforts in organising and articulating their concern as well as making their voices to be heard at every available opportunity. Beyond this, the continued participation of women in all fields of human endeavours has shifted them from the slideshow to the centre stage of development. This is evident in their participatory roles both in the rural and national economies, politics, academia, sports, entertainment, etc. This paper therefore, highlights the indispensable roles of women in African society right from the pre-colonial through post-colonial period. The paper adopts economic, politics, social and so on as a means of interrogating their activities and contributions to the growth and development of the contemporary society.