Amidst tough competition, a team of Norwegian gender researchers received NOK 32 million ($4.7 million) from the European Union. They will research how the modern women's movement has contributed, challenged and altered how women and men participate in society.

To comply with international human rights standards, many African governments are gradually replacing their gender-specific and family-based customary and religious laws with new legislation molded on an individualistic, equal-status ideal. Judicial reforms and legal outreach programs that set out to make the new law accessible to local communities have been launched.