In 2004,  the lectures focused on ‘Gender and Democracy’.

The lecture tour aims at contributing to the development of the South-South debate on this theme. The increasing involvement of women in politics makes it necessary to open the debate and promote critical analyses on this theme. Indeed, there is  a poor record of historical reflections on the relations between women and politics in Southern countries, at least in comparison with the abundant scientific production on this theme in the Anglo-Saxon Western world. Besides, this theme is fundamental, knowing that the concept of democracy was built on the ideals of freedom and individual liberties. But women, who are still generally kept  in the domestic sphere, have long been excluded from the political world. After decades of fighting for gender equity, they have gradually started to  convince the world that they can be involved in the definition and management of power in the public arena, particularly in politics.

Selection of the Lecturer

Prof Rhoda Reddock, a professor at the « Centre for Gender and Development Studies (University of the West Indies, Trinidad and Tobago), presented one of the best profile for the themes of the lecture tour. Indeed, she is one of the main Caribbean sociologists and is a prolific author, who has written and edited a lot of books and articles on the history of Caribbean women and on feminism. The originality of Prof. Reddock is the freshness of her approach and the way she deals with such conventional issues as democracy, which she relates to gender.   

Venues and Organization of the Lecture Tour  

The tour was organized in January 2004 in various universities in Nigeria, Mali and Senegal.

As far the Senegalese part of the tour is concerned, CODESRIA has organised a public lecture in the auditorium of the Cheikh Anta Diop University, in the afternoon of 06 January 2004.  

A specific itinerary was chosen, to enable the lecturer to deliver a public lecture in the morning, on 08 January, at the Djoliba centre of Bamako, which is the place for Malian intellectual meetings. The co-director of Point Sud (centre of local knowledge), Dr Moussa Sissoko, was in charge of the organisation of the tour in Mali. The public lecture was chaired by Prof Mamadou Diawara, director of Point Sud. 

In Nigeria, Prof Ayodeji Olukoju (Department of History, University of Lagos) and Dr Adesina, Department of History, University of Ibadan) were in charge of organising the tour respectively in the universities of Lagos on 12 January and Ibadan on 14 January 2004.

For each public lecture, some women scholars from the host country were appointed, to discuss Prof Reddock’s paper. They also presented a brief reflection on the same theme adapted the realities of their own country or sub-region. They directed the discussions and debates onto this theme and particularly onto the lecturer’s text.

In Nigeria, the discussants were Prof. T.A Ezeigbo, (Head of the English Department, University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria) and Dr Ronke Adesanya (Institute of African Studies, Ibadan, Nigeria); Dr Bintou Founé Samake Bouare (Bacodjicoroni ACI 2000 Bamako Mali) has been appointed in Mali and Dr Rokhaya Fall Sokhna (History Department, Cheikh Anta Diop University, Dakar, Senegal) has been appointed in Senegal.