Institutionalising African Gender Studies and the Centre for Gender Studies and Advocacy at the University of Ghana

Abstract

The 21st century solidified the quintessential role of gender in the political and academic spheres. The contestations over the idea of gender as a valid analytical concept and the viability of feminist methodologies, approaches and analyses as legitimate scientific inquiry have essentially become a moot point. The discipline of gender studies in sub-Saharan Africa has evolved with active contestations around power, representation, sexuality, masculinity and knowledge production. This study examines the evolution and role of gender studies centres in making gender a legitimate business of the University of Ghana. The institutionalization of the concept of gender within the Ghanaian academe contributes to the theorisation of African women's experiences from multiple angles. It problematises the forces that shape women's differentiated lives, raising the bar on feminist scholarship on the African continent.