I came to know Dr. Time, referred to as Vickie by friends and some colleagues, two decades ago. She was applying for a PhD program in criminology at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and at that time I happened to be the contact person for recruitment into the doctoral program. Email was yet to become conventional, and our correspondence required old-fashioned paper and stamped envelopes. From...

Despite its richness in raw materials and mineral resources, Africa remains retarded when compared to other continents. The economy of most African countries is severely anemic; corruption is rife; poor governance is pervasive; and wars, conflicts, famine and diseases abound.

I wish to thank Dr. W. Timothy Austin, who was my professor and now is a mentor, and a very close friend. He wrote the foreword. Many thanks also to Dr. Ronald Shafer, one of my former professors and now an avid cheerleader of mine. I wish to thank Drs. Chandra de Silva, Roderick Graham, and Mengyan Dai for meticulously reviewing the substantive content of this work and for their various comments...

In this book the word “marginalization” is used to explain deprivation of women from opportunities and resources that men have. “Victimization” relates to certain acts that constitute bad or cruel treatment, for example, forced marriages, domestic violence, and trafficking among others. However, at times, as Davies et al. (2007) explain, and as obvious in this book, there...

Part I

Following customary practices in Africa, women have felt obligated, if not compelled to be submissive to men. Women are raised to be nurturing, and decades ago priority in getting an education was given to males in the family. This practice still goes on today in many African countries even if it is to a lesser extent. Young girls are brought up to take care of their younger siblings and in some...

Part II

The World Bank Organization defines poverty thus:

Philosophers such as Aristotle and Plato had lauded the benefits of education especially as a tool that enriches the mind and the general health of a society. Contemporary researchers concur with this as they highlight facts that educated people are more likely to be healthier, happier, wealthier, more engaging in civic duties, and more likely to make better choices in life (Baum and Payea 2004;...

An anemic economy disproportionately affects women. Many African countries are chronically poor, the economy persistently remains stagnant, employment is constantly low, unemployment is high, and while earnings for both men and women drop, women are more impacted since they are usually paid lower than men. Influence over the economy is primarily that of men in most countries following the...

While UNICEF, and some NGOs and private organizations such as churches, are working to bring the issues of child trafficking to the forefront of human rights discussion, little is known about the realities of the problem as well as the subsequent impact it has on the victims. Not to be ignored as well is the trafficking of women. Much of the research on trafficking of children discusses the issue...

Much has been written about female victimizations in Africa, particularly those that are rooted in custom, such as forced marriages, bride price, levirate responsibilities, and female circumcision (Bentheim 2010; Bunch 1990; Chigbu et al. 2010; Kaye et al. 2005; Kiragu 1996; Park 2006; Welch and Sachs 1987; Welstead 2009). It is worth noting that many of these practices are coming under severe...

Part III

When this researcher posed the question of what could be done to improve women’s economic situation to the research participants in Cameroon discussed in chapter two, not surprising, responses to this question were diverse. A former head of the Agency for Community Development, a woman in her 60s, explained that the Division of Social Affairs through outreach programs makes women know their...

How Africa can get out of the slump has been quite an engaging conversation. While some of Africa’s problems have been blamed on colonization, some think that the continent is trapped in poor governance. Africa first must want to change. The aphorism that no one wishes better for you than you wish for yourself is true to Africa. In discussing Africa’s problems Ayodele (2003) advises...

Abe, Claude,7.242 ,

ACON Chief Economist,4.16 , D02.4 ,

She has geared her research endeavors to capture her various interests in comparative justice systems, human rights, nation building, crimes of culture, and contemporary legal issues. She has published extensively and some of her works can be found in the Journal of Criminal Justice, International Journal of Comparative and Applied Criminal Justice, Women and Criminal Justice,...