Freedom through Association: Assessing the Contributions of to Gender-Sensitive Police Reform in West Africa

Abstract

The views expressed in this research paper are the author’s alone and are not necessarily the views of The North-South Institute or the funders of this research project. research for a fairer worldExecutive Summary Security sector reform (SSR) is a key element in the state-building process. SSR traditionally focuses on re-equipping and re-training security sector institutions, changing policies and practices, and creating oversight mechanisms in contexts emerging from conflict or oppressive regimes. Little focus is placed on changing the culture within the security sector in favour of inclusivity and rights for women and minorities. Moreover, little attention is paid to what internal actors can do to ensure that this type of progress occurs. This is changing. A small body of literature exists on the role that police associations for minority and female police officers can play in changing the culture of policing. Situated within the security sector and therefore enjoying the support of police staff associations, female police associations are well placed to take concrete steps toward achieving women and minority rights. This study explores what women are doing in police services to change the nature of their work i