FEMALE PARTICIPATION IN LEADERSHIP: A MEASURE TO ENHANCE GLOBAL STABILITY

Most African States have the background of seeing women as a ‘Chattel’ bought over with the payment of bride price and whose core objective in life is to get married to one man, give birth to many children and always do some agricultural work and home keeping. However, some African cultures during the Pre-Colonial Era shows that females such as Ana Nzinga, Kongo Prophet, Idia Queen Mother of Benin, Dona Beatriz, Madam Tinubu and many others held sensitive positions and thus exhibited charismatic leadership skills with proven results in their respective communities. However, during the invasion of the colonial masters, most of these women were relegated due to the then Western stereotyped style of male leadership and the African inherent patriarchal mode of inheritance. This paper considers historically the place of female in leadership in the pre-colonial era in Africa, and the current trends of attaining utmost female participation as same has been proven to enhance global stability. Results have shown that female/women in leadership enhances growth, productivity and proper utilization of the available resources in the interest of the populace. The study recommends that more women at all levels and spheres of life be encouraged to break out of the traditional limitations of cultural impediments and wrong mindset and thus maximize their leadership potentials within their scope of interest.

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