New Book Release - "Gender, Poverty and Social Transformation: Reflections on Fractures and Continuities in Contemporary Uganda"

The editors, Prof. Grace Bantebya (C), Assoc. Prof. Josephine Ahikire (L) and Dr Florence Kyoheirwe Muhanguzi.

The latest publication by members of staff from the School of Women and Gender Studies entitled; “Gender, Poverty and Social Transformation: Reflections on Fractures and Continuities in Contemporary Uganda” was launched by Dr Marilyn P. Safir on 20th August, 2014  during the Women’s World Congress held at the University of Hyderabad, India. Dr Safir is Professor of Clinical and Social Psychology in the Department of Psychology at the University of Haifa in Israel. She is a founding member and first president of the Israel Association for Feminist and Gender Studies. She has received many international awards in recognition of her life's work dedicated to the advancement of women. For details on Dr Safir, click on: http://jwa.org/encyclopedia/author/safir-marilyn

Prof Marilyn (C) and the authors, Prof. Bantebya (2nd R) and Dr Muhanguzi during the launchAbout the book

 The book is a product of a five-year collaborative project of the School of Women and Gender Studies, Makerere University and the Centre for Women and Gender Research, University of Tromso, Norway.  It brings together a collection of works and analyses obtained through a multi-disciplinary gender-focused research project conducted in Uganda by the staff and PhD students of the two collaborating institutions. The project was funded by the Norwegian Programme for Development, Research and Education (NUFU).

Within the broad theme of Gender, Poverty and Social Transformation: Reflections on Fractures and Continuities in Contemporary Uganda, the book addresses key questions relating to the current debates on gender equality in Africa. While there is increasing scholarship in this area, much of the writing has focused on women as victims of gender inequalities and patriarchy.

The book is informed by two motivations. One, it addresses the representation of African women and attempts to move beyond stereotypes. This motivation points specifically to the need to go beyond women as eternal victims, taking the orientation of African women as social agents. Whereas it is an undeniable fact that women have been historically disadvantaged relative to men, looking at them as eternal victims creates a discourse of lamentations, which has tended to dominate the knowledge created about the African woman. The discourse of lamentations is without a doubt informed by the undeniable fact that Africa is a continent in crisis. Widespread poverty, war and displacement, and global marginalisation all make Africa a continent struggling with the problem of development. This problem of development then translates into developmentalism, especially in gender studies. This book is part of the overall effort to build resources for bottom-up agency (women and/or men).

The second motivation relates to moving beyond generalizations to illuminate concrete realities in gender relations. The authors acknowledge that whereas gender relations are in a continuous flux, scholarship in the field has not kept up the pace. In Uganda, especially, scholarship in gender studies has tended to lag behind the changes, thereby limiting sensibilities as well as innovations in gender development practice. The authors have a strong feminist focus and reveal new insights, both at the practical and theoretical levels.

Within the broad context of poverty, public-sector reforms and information communication technologies (ICTs) in Uganda, the book maps out the changes and continuities in gender relations in Uganda today. It explores critical issues relating to gender transformation as an aspect of social transformation, in aspects of health provisioning, sexuality, poverty transitions, dynamics of productive resources, culture, and new realities of women’s subordination. The authors mapped out the rhythm of gender relations in these areas, addressing themselves to the need to bring new knowledge in the area of gender studies.

The book comprises 11 chapters under four themes. It was edited by Prof. Grace Bantebya Kyomuhendo, Assoc. Prof. Josephine Ahikire and Dr Florence Kyoheirwe Muhanguzi from the School of Women and Gender Studies as well as Prof. Siri Gerrard from the Centre for Women and Gender Research, University of Tromso, Norway. 

The book can be accessed at the School of Women and Gender Studies, Makerere University.

For details, click on the PDF document herewith attached

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