ABSTRACT
The book concludes with a comparative analysis that draws out (1) what the cases tell us about advancing transformative policies in countries with different kinds of political settlement; (2) the value added by the ‘power domains’ framework employed here in comparison with existing frameworks for feminist analysis of gender equality policy processes; and (3) how this framework might support future strategic analysis of the political opportunities for gender equity advocacy. The conclusions draw out striking similarities in the domestic violence policy processes that unfolded in Ghana, Bangladesh, and India and demonstrate how the framework helps explain both the similarities and differences in the cases of Uganda, Rwanda, and South Africa. A particularly striking finding is that the implementation of legislation on domestic violence has gone furthest within the dominant party context of Rwanda, whereas the established multiparty democracies of Ghana, Bangladesh, and India have experienced slow progress, in part because of the intensification of clientelist politics. Uganda, where the political dominance and ideological commitment of the president have both weakened over time, and institutions have become increasingly personalised, seems to represent the least promising type of context for the politics of achieving gender equity, within the limitations of our sample. The comparative analysis shows both the opportunities and risks of having to align with the interests and ideas of dominant actors in order to achieve progress. The chapter concludes by identifying the political and policy implications for civil society organizations, governments, and transnational actors and by posing critical questions for future research in this area.
