| Abstract: | This paper focuses on the participation of women in two types of decentralized agencies set up by the Malawi government, namely Local Councils and District Development Committees. It deals with educational, economic and attitudinal impediments that restrict women's access to these institutions and, then, limit the effectiveness of those few women who manage to enter the male-dominated domain of formal local politics. The paper argues that we can learn about gender relations by focusing on formal political institutions and, in the conclusion, attempts to demonstrate the sort of contribution this kind of research can make. |
|---|