ISSN 2736-1578
African Journal of Gender and Women Studies | Vol. 11, No. 10, October 2026 | pp. 71–84
DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/001320
Article Type: Research Article
Title: Women in STEM Higher Education: Navigating Epistemic Injustice and Laboratory Cultures
Names of Author: Chinyere Obi-Okoye¹, Rajeshwari Subramanian², & Hannah McAllister³
Author's Affiliation: ¹Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria; ²Department of Biotechnology, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai, India; ³Faculty of Science, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
Abstract:
While targeted scholarship initiatives have increased female enrollment in undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) programs, women remain severely underrepresented in senior research fellowships, patent ownership, and principal investigator roles. Beyond overt discrimination, female scientists routinely experience subtle forms of epistemic injustice—including the dismissal of their methodological contributions, exclusion from informal grant-writing consortia, and disproportionate allocation of routine laboratory maintenance duties. This paper investigates the everyday institutional and laboratory cultures shaping women’s academic persistence in STEM faculties across Nigeria, India, and Australia. Grounded in feminist epistemology of science and organizational sociology, the research draws on 54 semi-structured interviews with female doctoral candidates and faculty members. The findings reveal that dismantling the leaky STEM pipeline requires reforming opaque peer-review networks, auditing research funding distribution, and institutionalizing sponsor-backed career advancement.
Keywords: Women in STEM, epistemic injustice, higher education, laboratory culture, feminist epistemology, gender equity, research funding, academic persistence
Manuscript Timeline: Received: August 15, 2026; Revised: September 16, 2026; Accepted: September 20, 2026; Published: October 15, 2026.
Citation: Obi-Okoye, C., Subramanian, R., & McAllister, H. (2026). Women in STEM Higher Education: Navigating Epistemic Injustice and Laboratory Cultures. African Journal of Gender and Women Studies, 11(10), 71–84. DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/001320
7.
African Journal of Gender and Women Studies | Vol. 11, No. 10, October 2026 | pp. 85–98
DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/001321
Article Type: Research Article
Title: Indigenous Midwifery, Cultural Safety, and the Decolonization of Maternal Healthcare
Names of Author: Halima Toure¹, Valeria Quispe², & Sarah Henderson³
Author's Affiliation: ¹Department of Anthropology, University of Bamako, Bamako, Mali; ²Faculty of Health Sciences, Mayor de San Andrés University, La Paz, Bolivia; ³School of Nursing, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
Abstract:
Global maternal health policies have historically marginalized traditional birth attendants and Indigenous midwives, framing ancestral birthing practices as unscientific obstacles to biomedical modernization. Yet in rural and Indigenous communities where state hospitals are geographically distant or culturally alienating, traditional midwives remain trusted providers of holistic prenatal, birthing, and postpartum care. Prohibitive policies that criminalize traditional midwifery without providing culturally respectful clinical alternatives often deepen maternal health inequities. This paper explores collaborative models integrating Indigenous midwifery knowledge with public obstetric services in Mali, Bolivia, and Canada. Anchored in decolonial feminist health frameworks and cultural safety theory, the study synthesizes participatory dialogues with 42 traditional midwives, biomedical obstetricians, and mothers. We argue that equitable maternal care depends on mutual epistemic respect, legal recognition of Indigenous birth workers, and community-governed birthing centers.
Keywords: Indigenous midwifery, decolonizing healthcare, cultural safety, maternal health, traditional birth attendants, reproductive justice, Mali, Bolivia
Manuscript Timeline: Received: August 18, 2026; Revised: September 18, 2026; Accepted: September 22, 2026; Published: October 15, 2026.
Citation: Toure, H., Quispe, V., & Henderson, S. (2026). Indigenous Midwifery, Cultural Safety, and the Decolonization of Maternal Healthcare. African Journal of Gender and Women Studies, 11(10), 85–98. DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/001321
8.
African Journal of Gender and Women Studies | Vol. 11, No. 10, October 2026 | pp. 99–112
DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/001322
Article Type: Research Article
Title: Gendered Impacts of Sovereign Debt, Structural Adjustment, and Privatized Social Services
Names of Author: Makena Njoroge¹ & Lorenzo Bianchi²
Author's Affiliation: ¹School of Economics, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya; ²Department of Economics and Management, University of Florence, Florence, Italy.
Abstract:
Escalating sovereign debt repayments across low- and middle-income countries have revived creditor-mandated austerity measures, including public sector wage freezes, subsidy removals, and the privatization of healthcare and water utilities. Feminist economists have long demonstrated that macroeconomic adjustment policies are never gender-neutral; when public infrastructure contracts, women absorb the resulting deficit through intensified unpaid care work and precarious informal employment. Furthermore, user fees for privatized essential services disproportionately exclude low-income women and girls. This paper analyzes the gendered socio-economic consequences of recent debt restructuring agreements in Kenya and Zambia between 2020 and 2025. Utilizing feminist macroeconomic modeling and household expenditure data alongside community focus groups, we illustrate how debt-driven fiscal consolidation erodes gender equality gains and advocate for human-rights-based debt cancellation and progressive wealth taxation.
Keywords: Sovereign debt, feminist macroeconomics, austerity, privatization, unpaid care work, social services, Kenya, Zambia
Manuscript Timeline: Received: August 20, 2026; Revised: September 20, 2026; Accepted: September 24, 2026; Published: October 15, 2026.
Citation: Njoroge, M., & Bianchi, L. (2026). Gendered Impacts of Sovereign Debt, Structural Adjustment, and Privatized Social Services. African Journal of Gender and Women Studies, 11(10), 99–112. DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/001322
9.
African Journal of Gender and Women Studies | Vol. 11, No. 10, October 2026 | pp. 113–126
DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/001323
Article Type: Research Article
Title: Feminist Podcasting, Oral Storytelling, and Counter-Public Spheres in Contemporary Africa
Names of Author: Efia Boateng-Acheampong¹, Maya Deshmukh², & Chloe Tremblay³
Author's Affiliation: ¹Department of Communication and Media Studies, University of Education, Winneba, Ghana; ²Department of Cultural Studies, Savitribai Phule Pune University, Pune, India; ³Department of Communication, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montreal, Canada.
Abstract:
Digital audio platforms and independent podcasts have rapidly emerged as accessible, intimate spaces for feminist dialogue, sexual health education, and political critique across urban and diasporic African communities. Unlike tightly regulated state broadcasters or algorithmically volatile visual social media platforms, podcasting enables female hosts and listeners to engage in nuanced, long-form conversations about taboo subjects such as reproductive autonomy, marital expectations, mental health, and queer identity. This paper examines how independent feminist podcasts cultivate transnational counter-public spheres and intergenerational solidarity. Grounded in feminist media theory and African oral storytelling traditions, the study analyzes 45 episodes from prominent feminist podcasts produced in Ghana, Kenya, and South Africa alongside listener focus groups. We argue that digital audio storytelling revitalizes indigenous traditions of communal female dialogue while fostering safe spaces for collective consciousness-raising.
Keywords: Feminist podcasting, oral storytelling, counter-public sphere, digital media, African feminism, consciousness-raising, Ghana, Kenya
Manuscript Timeline: Received: August 22, 2026; Revised: September 22, 2026; Accepted: September 26, 2026; Published: October 15, 2026.
Citation: Boateng-Acheampong, E., Deshmukh, M., & Tremblay, C. (2026). Feminist Podcasting, Oral Storytelling, and Counter-Public Spheres in Contemporary Africa. African Journal of Gender and Women Studies, 11(10), 113–126. DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/001323
10.
African Journal of Gender and Women Studies | Vol. 11, No. 10, October 2026 | pp. 127–140
DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/001324
Article Type: Research Article
Title: Caregiver Burnout, Eldercare Policies, and the Intergenerational Sandwich Generation
Names of Author: Nomvula Zungu¹, Mei-Hua Lin², & Katarzyna Nowak³
Author's Affiliation: ¹Department of Social Work, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa; ²Institute of Health and Welfare Policy, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan; ³Institute of Sociology, University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland.
Abstract:
Increasing life expectancy, urban migration, and declining state investment in public eldercare have placed unprecedented caregiving demands on midlife women belonging to the "sandwich generation"—those simultaneously raising children and caring for aging or chronically ill relatives. Because cultural norms across diverse societies naturalize women’s unpaid caregiving as a moral duty, female caregivers experience acute physical exhaustion, career interruptions, and reduced retirement savings without institutional recognition or financial compensation. This paper examines the lived experiences of sandwich-generation female caregivers in South Africa, Taiwan, and Poland. Anchored in feminist care ethics and comparative social policy analysis, the study draws upon 60 in-depth caregiver interviews and evaluations of national eldercare support schemes. The findings underscore that achieving gender equity across the life course requires universal public eldercare infrastructure, paid family care leave, and caregiver pension credits.
Keywords: Eldercare, sandwich generation, caregiver burnout, feminist care ethics, unpaid care work, social policy, aging, gender equity
Manuscript Timeline: Received: August 25, 2026; Revised: September 25, 2026; Accepted: September 29, 2026; Published: October 15, 2026.
Citation: Zungu, N., Lin, M.-H., & Nowak, K. (2026). Caregiver Burnout, Eldercare Policies, and the Intergenerational Sandwich Generation. African Journal of Gender and Women Studies, 11(10), 127–140. DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/001324
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