Women today

In recent decades Hausa women have become more visible in education, the professions, business, media and politics, though in many areas girls’ school enrolment remains lower than boys’ (see the chapter on the Modern era). Women write novels about love, marriage and forced marriage, a literature that has been adapted for film, and women act in and produce Kannywood films, where they also face strict rules about dress and behaviour (see the chapter on Arts). Women’s organisations, religious teachers and lawyers debate in Hausa the meaning of Islamic law for women, including after the reintroduction of Sharia penal codes in 2000.

These debates take place among women with different opinions. Some argue for more access to school and the professions, using Islamic texts; others defend the existing arrangements; and many combine both views. Outsiders should avoid assuming that one voice speaks for all Hausa women. Women also lead in religious life outside orthodox Islam, in the Bori cult, where a woman, the Magajiya, is traditionally the leader (see the chapter on Beliefs).