Can More Women in Government Reduce Corruption? Harsh Lessons from Rwanda.

This post is adapted from an academic paper written in 2024.

Introduction 

Gender and corruption share a complex spotlight in Rwanda. The country has been run by a authoritarian leader for 30 years, by many accounts it is a corrupt and ruthless regime (US DoS, Amnesty International, 2022). Yet, the country has the highest global percentage of women representatives in parliament, standing at 61% in 2023. While the statistic is to be applauded and is seen as an example for others to follow, both as a target and in terms of a successful quota system, the reality is less a cause for ovation.  

There is a disjunct in this accession, the often seen and mandatory fight for the right to access and services for women was not present in Rwanda, as a result there is an extant inequality and lack of freedoms that one would usually correlate with such perceived gender equality figures. One that wouldn’t be expected in a liberal, democratic polity like Finland for instance, which had 46% women in parliament 2023, offering a very different dynamic in relation to opportunity, equality, advancement and human rights.  

This paper will explore the impact of corruption on gender in the context of Rwanda’s high percentage of women in government within a patriarchal authoritarian regime.  

Rwanda in Africa - credit: Wikimedia 

Quantity over Quality 

Post the genocide in 1994, women made up as much as 60-70% of the population (Warner, 2016), taking over family responsibilities and businesses. In 2000 Paul Kagame, a former commander of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), credited with ending the genocide, took office as the president. The 2003 Constitution in Rwanda established a quota of 30% for women's representation in all decision-making bodies, including 24 out of the 80 seats in the Lower House of Parliament. This paved the way for increased engagement of women in politics. In many African countries, access at grassroots is hindered by various barriers such as discrimination, their roles as primary caregivers, and local clientelist practices – hence this move was seen as very progressive. 

This inclusion may have been perceived as pro-women's rights and a necessity per the gender demographics, but there is also a strategic vector in the approach, one of appearances and one that might be seen as the abuse of power for private gain. Just as the female traffic police were put into place in Lima, Peru (SIDA, 2015) and the founding of the Womens affairs ministry in Cameroon (Foreign Policy, 2022), there is a duplicity in play that favours one party more than the other. 

It is plausible that Kagame’s decision to promote and openly champion women in politics, sought to give the impression of a progressive and democratic polity. Such tactics undermine authentic women's organisations and progression by enhancing the regime's capabilities while impeding the advancement of women and civil society.  

A map of Rwanda - credit: Wikimedia 

The Quality of Equality 

Cvetanoska (2021) has noted that corruption has a detrimental effect on women's ability to participate in and advance in politics. This is framed in the context of male-dominated patronage networks that hinder women's involvement in political life. The dynamic in Rwanda is different but the type and source of hinderance remains.  

The network could be described as the Official Mogul ‘Syndrome of Corruption’ per Johnston (2005), an undemocratic system with little liberalisation or openness, there is extensive inequality and poverty, both state capacity and economic institutions are weak. In 2005 Johnston placed Rwanda in this category, other than the quantity of women in government, little has changed. In the ‘Freedom in the World 2024’ index conducted by Freedom House (2024) sees Rwanda as ‘not free,’ with metrics including electoral process, political pluralism, functioning of government and freedom of expression. 

TYPE OF CORRUPTION	EXAMPLES
Bribery and Graft	Extortion and kickbacks
Kleptocracy	Stealing and privatising public funds
Misappropriation	Forgery, embezzlement, misuse of public funds
Non-Performance of Duties	Cronyism
Influence Peddling	favour brokering and conflict of interest
Acceptance of Improper Gifts	Speed money, facilitation payments
Protecting Maladministration	Cover-ups and perjury
Abuse of Power	Intimidation and torture
Manipulation of Regulations	Bias and favouritism
Electoral Malpractice	Vote-buying and election-rigging
Rent-Seeking	Public officials illegally charging for services after creating artificial shortage
Clientelism and Patronage	Politicians giving material favours in exchange for citizen support

Johnson and Sharma, 2004. 

All the above table of offences, a priori, have been committed by the Rwandan government/Kagame, showing the full extent of this is outside the scope of this study though, they are mentioned in news stories and papers (included in this article) covering the dictators 30 year reign. This activity is covered by Human Rights Watch (2023), Amnesty International (2022), Freedom House (2024) and Foreign Policy (2022).   

Quality over Quantity 

The number of women in parliament has remained high, this is a positive sign despite the challenges. The dynamic is clear, women are welcomed in politics and hold prominent positions but have no real power, they cannot effect change or promote the true/further empowerment of women (Bjarnegård & Zetterberg, 2022). The true power lies with the authoritarian leadership as does the power of the narrative.    

The negative impact corruption has on gender is present regardless of the high numbers of women in government, while barriers to access are lessened due to the quota, there is a query as to the professional and social conditions the women in politics must navigate and how corruption influences them. The negative impact of corruption on Rwandan women is apparent at grassroots level, access to services is hindered by petty corruption and land rights issues (Freedom House, 2024).  

Human rights are oft discussed and fought for by politicians, generally the violations are not applied to their circumstances as there is an implicit power tied to being a politician. In line with this, the alleged democracy or competitive-authoritarian government in Rwanda has its fair share of human rights issues including silencing and killing of opposition;  

The ‘2022 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Rwanda’ (USDS, 2022) has several listed offences with multiple examples, including; 

*Arbitrary deprivation of life and other unlawful or politically motivated killings 

*Disappearance 

* Torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment, and other related abuses 

*Arbitrary arrest or detention 

*Denial of fair public trial 

The common human rights privileges such as, right to life, dignity, property and protection from bodily harm, are seemingly missing. In line with this, Rwandan women in government cannot have a positive impact on policy or the grassroots level if they are to struggle with their own human rights issues in their private lives. What should be a boon for women's rights is a bust. 

While, a priori, we might split the idea of private and public life for politicians, one might reasonably expect the power held in public life to translate to an equitable and respectful social and private life. This may be the perceived and actual norm in ‘western’, liberal, democratic states, but in Rwanda the status-quo, cultural and social norms do not exclude women in politics. There are ideas such ‘empowerment ending at the front door’ with politician women’s home life being far from the model of gender equality ‘seen’ in public, including expected fulfilment of homemaker duties and risk of domestic violence (Bjarnegård & Zetterberg, 2022). 

The role as a politician has been framed (by a serving Rwandan politician) as a ‘duty to the country’ more than an empowering role in society. Hence, feminism is frowned upon and not seen as acceptably patriotic (Warner, 2016). In line with Schwindt-Bayer and Mishler (2005), quotas and descriptive representation, should be augmented with supplementary measures to guarantee proper representation and ensure that the representatives, their abilities and actions, align with the interests of those they represent. Evidence suggests this is not happening in Rwanda. 

‘Gender’ per Philips (2005), relates to roles and expectations, in this case to women in Rwandan society, that change over time, place and life in general. The genocide changed these roles for women and then the government quota system changed these roles again. In exceeding the quota system numbers, they created a perception of success, for equality and democracy. The intersectionality issues for women in Rwandan politics involve a less known aspect of gender in politics, alongside both social and political identities and privilege. Are women in Rwanda privileged to have access, or would they better off without it? This is a complex question and an unfortunate nonsense that is out of the scope of this study but demands further attention.

The idea that more women in politics will improve gender equality and reduce corruption is proved false in Rwanda, but this is outside the ‘Western’ framework supporting the conclusions of Sung (2003). The system is one in which women have come to wield traditionally respected and powerful positions, yet power remains firmly in the grasp of a ‘competitive’ authoritarian patriarchy.  

Rwanda Img credit: ©2009CIAT/NeilPalmer

Conclusion 

The impact of corruption on gender in the context of women in Rwandan government is evident in their limited capacity, daily reality of their roles and the human rights record in the country. The patriarchal authoritarian regime can be said to be placing women in government for appearances only, and not for the benefit or empowerment of women. 

Corruption is only possible when power is held. While many studies conclude, both within and outside the realms of corruption, that women are ‘the fairer sex’ when those supposedly in power are powerless, then the perceived fairness, even if true cannot be tested (Fischer et al, 2018., Dollar et al, 1998). It is a harsh example of the challenges women face in politics and in general - of course this isn't the case everywhere but it is another case of the dangers of taking things on face value.

Though one might argue that a large presence has some benefits and the visibility granted may serve to encourage youth and other governments. On the other side there is an exploited perception of progress, of one-up(wo)manship - in the form of quotas and numbers, forms of maladministration and corruption, designed to appeal to outside polities to justify trade or other deals (such as the UK refugee transfer - Human Rights Watch, 2023).  

There is scope for further study, to include examples of the politicians’ experiences of corruption or inequality away from the public eye; to assess the impact of more women in government on grassroots movements and local government mobility; and to look at where and how quotas have been implemented.   

Thanks for reading,

Alvin.

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APPENDIX 

1.1 

‘“Gender” refers to the roles and expectations attributed to men and women in a given society, roles which change over time, place and life stage.’ Philips, 2005. 

1.2 

“Official Moguls are government officials, or their protégé’s, who plunder an economy with impunity. Institutions and political competition are weakest of all in this category, and economic opportunities are often scarce and bitterly contested.” Johnston, 2005. 

1.3 

Rwanda was not included in the Transparency International 2019 African Corruption Barometer. 

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Bjarnegård, E. and Zetterberg, P. 2022. ‘How Autocrats Use Women’s Rights to Boost Themselves.’ Foreign Policy, 3 June. Available at: https://foreignpolicy.com/2022/06/03/autocrats-gender-equality-women-rights-rwanda/ (accessed 15 April 2024). 

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