Outdated laws and customs stalling progress on women’s rights across Africa – study

Family law has not kept up with social shifts, with marital rape, child marriage and lack of property and custody rights persistent problems, research finds

Discriminatory laws and customs across Africa are stalling progress on women’s rights in the region, according to new research.

The human rights organisation Equality Now studied family law and practices in 20 African countries and found that despite some progress in recent decades, inequalities persisted in marriage, divorce, child custody and inheritance and property laws.