Women are like trophies. Every home wants a woman in it. Apart from the warmth and comfort they bring to the home front, they are also a beauty to behold. They are like technocrats that bring their capabilities to everywhere they find them selves. To her husband, she is the perfect helpmate and confidant. In the life of her children, she is the first educationist, influencer and character moulder. Due to her large heart, she extends this succour not to just her kids and husband but often reaches out to extended family members and friends.

Africa has breath-taking display of culture and traditions that has been handed down from generation to generation. Lets give you a sneak peek on some of them that have been practised in the quest of protecting the honour of women;

The Gio Tribe of Cote d’ ivoire

The Mande speaking people of the Gio tribe in Cote d’ivoire (Ivory Coast) have a uncommon culture to provide every woman with a house in which she lives in with her children till they are old enough to leave home. The children never get to live with their fathers.

Beating the suitor

The Fulani tribe live in many countries in West Africa and follow a tradition called Sharo. This happens when two young men want to marry the same woman. To compete for her hand, they beat one another up. The men must suppress signs of pain and the one who takes the beating without showing signs of pain can take the wife. This is an evidence that he is man enough to take care of the the woman. Fulani women are pretty precious and needed, isn’t it?

Mikiri- A democratic movement 

Have you ever heard of the word “Mikiri.” It was an old word coined from the English language’s  “Meeting.” Prior to the colonial era, Igbo women in South-Eastern Nigeria played an active role in politics. They took part in village meetings with men. They had their own markets and business networks, their own community meetings to discuss issues affecting women.

Women’s meetings were called mikiri and it was during these  meetings that women shared their experiences as businesswomen, mothers, and wives. Mikiri was not only a support system, but also a forum to maintain women’s markets and enforce market rules (which also applied to men). If a man was found guilty of breaking market rules or abusing his wife, the women would gather around his property. They would dance, sing, bang on his doors, and throw mud at his house to express their objection. They could even beat him up a little. This was Igbo women’s most effective form of protest and it was called “sitting on a man”.