Although democratic countries historically have had stronger outcomes in advancing gender equality than other regime types, many authoritarian regimes in Africa have proved rather adept at adopting women’s rights provisions, making extensive constitutional and legislative reforms, and promoting women as leaders. These outcomes are particularly evident when it comes to women’s political representation, where one finds little difference between authoritarian and democratic regimes in Africa. This essay explores how authoritarian regimes in Africa came to promote women leaders and how the instrumentalization of women leaders served to enhance the longevity of their rule.

中文翻译：

---

非洲独裁者如何利用女性领导人

尽管民主国家历来在促进性别平等方面比其他政权类型取得了更大的成果，但事实证明，非洲的许多专制政权相当善于通过妇女权利条款，进行广泛的宪法和立法改革，以及提拔妇女担任领导人。当涉及到妇女的政治代表权时，这些结果尤为明显，人们发现非洲的专制政权和民主政权之间几乎没有什么区别。本文探讨了非洲的专制政权如何提拔女性领导人，以及女性领导人的工具化如何有助于延长其统治的寿命。