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Faculty
Faculty

J. Jarpa Dawuni, Ph.D. ( önu/ita/moom/ô)

Full Professor

josephine.dawuni@Howard.edu
(240) 801-6688
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Department/Office

  • Political Science

School/College

  • College of Arts & Sciences

Additional Positions

  • Affiliate Faculty, Faculty Convenor- Minor in Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies
    Interdisciplinary Studies

Biography

J. Jarpa Dawuni is a Full Professor of Political Science at Howard University, Washington D.C. She is a qualified Barrister-at-Law before the Ghana Superior Courts. She holds a Doctorate in Political Science from Georgia State University. Her primary areas of research and advocacy include law and development, judicial politics, women in the legal professions, gender and the law, international human rights, democratization and women’s civil society organizing. Her books include: The Oxford Research Handbook on Women in International Law. Oxford: Oxford University Press 2025 (co-edited with N. Grossman, J. Ramji-Nogales and H. Fabri Ruiz); African Women Judges, Storytelling as Judicial Freedom (Palgrave Macmillan 2025); Intersectionality and Women’s Access to Justice in Africa (Rowman and Littlefield, 2022), Gender, Judging and the Courts in Africa: Selected Cases (Routledge, 2021), International Courts and the African Woman Judge: Unveiled Narratives (Routledge, 2018) co-edited with Judge Akua Kuenyehia and Gender and the Judiciary in Africa: From Obscurity to Parity? (Routledge, 2016), co-edited with Gretchen Bauer. 

She is the Founder and Executive Director of the non-profit organization, the Institute for African Women in Law. She is also the founding Director of the Howard University Center for Women, Gender, and Global Leadership, established through a $1,000,000 gift in 2020. She is a multiple-award winner. In 2023, she received the Robert L. Perry Award for Mentoring from the Association for Ethnic Studies. In 2022, she earned two WOZA Women in Law Awards—Global Transformation Leadership and Best in Thought Leadership, Innovation, and Academia. In 2020, she received the Women in Law-Austria Justitia Awards in the International Academic category for her scholar-activism in advancing women’s rights and women’s issues in law. In 2021, she was named among the top 100 women law firm owners by Courtroom Mail-Nigeria for her efforts in promoting global awareness of African Women in Law through research, mentoring, and advocacy. In 2016, she received President Obama’s Volunteer and Service Award for her work on the Board of the African Research Academies for Women. In 2018, she was honored with the Outstanding Assistant Professor Award at Howard University. 

Prof. Dawuni has held several prestigious global fellowships. She is a Fellow and holds the Chair for Interdisciplinary Sustainable Development at the Institute for Advanced Studies, Aix-Marseille. She is a Fellow of the Salzburg Global Seminar, a Fulbright Scholar, a Carnegie African Diaspora Fellow, and a Fellow of the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Studies (STIAS) in South Africa. Her other fellowships include the Gender and Power Fellow at the Center for Democratic Development in Ghana, and a Global Fellow under the Global Women’s Leadership Program at The Wilson Center in Washington, DC. In 2022, she was a Fulbright Scholar at the Center for Democratic Development, where she developed a gender strategy for the think tank and led seminars and training on gender sensitivity. In 2018, she served as a Fulbright Specialist Scholar in Ghana, where she designed a Center for Research in African Union Law at the Faculty of Law at the University of Science and Technology. In 2016, she received the Carnegie African Diaspora Fellowship to undertake a project on graduate student mentoring and research at the Faculty of Law, University of Ghana.  

She has been a Visiting Professor in the UNESCO Peace Masters Program at the University of Jaume 1 in Castellon, Spain, and an Adjunct Associate Professor of Law at the Washington College of Law at American University in Washington, DC. In 2017 she was a Visiting Scholar at Queen’s University Faculty of Law in Kingston, ON, Canada, and in 2015 she was a Visiting Scholar at the University of Copenhagen Faculty of Law iCourts Center of Excellence for International Courts. 

Prof. Dawuni is the founder and Executive Director of the non-profit Institute for African Women in Law (IAWL) which focuses on enhancing the capacity of women in the legal professions in Africa and the Diaspora. She sits on board of the West Africa Research Association (WARA) and the African Research Academies for Women (ARA-W). Prof. Dawuni sits on several boards, including the African Studies Association, and the Law and Society Association. She belongs to several professional bodies and is the past Co-Convener of the Gender and Judging Collaborative Research Network of the Law and Society Association, Co-Convener of the Women’s Caucus of the African Studies Association. She sits on the editorial board of the Journal of Politics, Journal of International Politics and Development (JIPAD) and the Peter Lange Book Series on Studies in Law and Politics. Her research has appeared in journals such as Studies in Gender and Development in Africa, Journal of African Law, University of Baltimore Law Journal and Africa Today. Dr. Dawuni has presented her research internationally at professional conferences and has been invited to speak at several universities, conferences and expert group meetings.

Education & Expertise

Education

Comparative Politics and International Relations

Ph.D.
Georgia State University

Masters in International Development

M.A
Ohio University

Law

Barrister -at- Law
Ghana School of Law

Law

Bachelor of Law (LLB)
University of Ghana

Expertise

Comparative African politics

Gender and judging, Women and the legal professions

Women and the Law

Judicial politics and rule of law in Africa

International human rights-- violence against women and girls, human trafficking

Democratization and women's civil society organizing

International law-- international courts and tribunals, women in international diplomacy

Academics

Academics

Gender, law and politics (undergraduate)

African Nationalism (undergraduate)

Introduction to political science (undergraduate)

Africa in World Politics (graduate)

International Law (graduate)

Political Leadership in Africa (graduate)

Women and Politics: Comparative Perspectives (graduate)

Research

Research

Specialty

Women in the legal profession: African feminism: Law and development: Access to justice

Funding

National Science Foundation: Demographic Variation of Women Judges ($700,000). (PI)

Accomplishments

Accomplishments

Visiting Professor: Kings College Global Institute for Women’s Leadership, UK (2024-

Fellow: University of Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Studies (2022)

Fellow/Chair: Institute for Advanced Studies, Aix-Marseille, France (2023)

Fellow: Salzburg Global Fellows (2022)

100 Women Law Firm/Organization Founders (Court Room Mail, Nigeria, 2021)

Winner: Women in Academia - Women in Law Initiative- Vienna, Austria, 2020

Outstanding Assistant Professor (COAS) 2018

The White House: President Obama’s Volunteer and Service Award (2016)

Outstanding Registered Student Organization Advisor. Georgia Gwinnett College (2013)

Outstanding Student Engagement Award. Georgia Gwinnett College (2012)

Fulbright Specialist Scholar

Global Fellow: Wilson Center Women in Public Leadership Program. Washington, DC.

Visiting Scholar: Queens University. Faculty of Law, Kingston, ON, Canada.

Fellow: Carnegie African Diaspora Fellowship

Visiting Scholar: University of Copenhagen. Faculty of Law iCourts The Danish National Research Foundation’s Center for Excellence in International Courts.

Publications and Presentations

Publications and Presentations

ARTICLE

Dawuni, J. (2021): The legal profession in Ghana: from indigenization to globalization, International Journal of the Legal Profession, 29:1, 75-101, DOI: 10.1080/09695958.2021.1992283

 

ARTICLE

Dawuni, J., & Trower, C. (2021). "Representation and Inclusion in Diplomacy- A Closer Look at Black Women US Ambassadors. SAIS Review of International Affairs, Vol. 41 Iss. 1, p. 73 – 84. Available at: http://works.bepress.com/josephine-dawuni/24/

ARTICLE

Dawuni, J. (2019). Vive la Diversité or Aluta Continua? Achieving Gender Equity on the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights. Connecticut Journal of International Law, 34 (3), 380-402.

ARTICLE

Dawuni,  J. (2018).  African Women Judges on International Courts: Symbolic or Substantive Gains? University of Baltimore Law Review Vol. 47, 2 (3). Available at https://scholarworks.law.ubalt.edu/ublr/vol47/iss2/3/

ARTICLE

Dawuni, J., and Kang, A. (2015). Her Ladyship Chief Justice: The rise of female leaders in the judiciary in Africa. Africa Today, 62 (2), pp 45-69. Available:http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1072&context=poliscifacpub

ARTICLE

Dawuni, Josephine. (2008). “The Gendered Face of HIV/AIDS: The Move Towards Policy Implementation in Ghana”. Studies in Gender and Development in Africa (SIGADA). Vol. 2, September. Pp.78-94.

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni, J.J (2025). Who will sing their songs?  Women judges and the power of judicial storytelling.  In Dawuni, J.J. (Ed.). African Women Judges: Storytelling as Judicial Freedom. Palgrave.

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni, J. (2022). Layered intersectionality and framing feminist legal discourse on access to justice for women. In Dawuni, J. (Ed.), (2022). Intersectionality and Women’s Access to Justice. Lexington Publishers. 

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni, J. Jarpa. (2021). Gender and judging across Africa: A case of old wine in new skins or new wine in old skins? In, Dawuni, J. (ed.). (2021). Gender, Judging and the Courts in Africa: Selected  Studies. A World Bank Project. New York

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni, J and Badejogbin, R. (2021). Transplantation and Domestication of American Models of Legal Education in Nigeria. In, Bartie, S and  Sandomierski, D (eds.), American Legal Education Abroad: Critical Histories. New York, New York University Press.

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni J. Jarpa (2021). Breaking the veil of masculinity? Women in the legal academy in Ghana. In Schultz, U., Shaw, G., Thornton, M., Auchmuty, R., (eds.). Gender and Careers in the Legal Academy. Hart Publishers. 151-172.

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni J. Jarpa. (2020). Keeping Gender on the Agenda for International Benches: A case study of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights. Freya Baetens (ed.), Identity and Diversity on the International Bench: Who is the Judge? London: Oxford University Press.

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni J. Jarpa. (2020). Women in Judiciaries Across Africa. In: Yacob-Haliso O., Falola T. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of African Women's Studies. Palgrave Macmillan, 353-373. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-77030-7_75-1.

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni, Josephine and Masengu, Tabeth. (2019). Judicial service commissions and the appointment of women to higher courts in Nigeria and Zambia. In, Sterret, Susan and Lee, Walker (eds.), Law and Courts. Edward Elgar Research Handbook, 213-230.

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni, Josephine. (2019). Teaching Through the Lens of a Mother. In, Harushimana, Immaculee, Davies, Deborah and Alfred Mary (eds.), Paradise to Regain: Post-Obama Insights from Women Educators of the Black Diaspora. Myers Education Press.

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni, Josephine. (2019). Matri-legal Feminism: An African Feminist Response to International Law. In Ogg, Kate and Rimmer, Sue Harris (eds.). Feminist Approaches to International Law. Edward Elgar Publishing, pp 445-462.

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni, Josephine. (2018). Judge Akua Kuenyehia: Journey of a Women’s Rights Activist. In Dawuni, J., Kuenyehia, A, (eds.). International Courts and the African Woman Judge: Unveiled Narratives. New York: Routledge.

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni, Josephine. (2018). Challenging Gender Universalism and Unveiling the Silenced Narrative of the African Woman Judge. In Dawuni, J., Kuenyehia, A, (eds.). International Courts and the African Woman Judge: Unveiled Narratives. New York: Routledge.

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni, Josephine and Kuenyehia, Akua. (2018). International Courts and the African Woman Judge: Unlocking Doors, Leaving a Legacy. In Dawuni, J., Kuenyehia, A, (eds.). International Courts and the African Woman Judge: Unveiled Narratives. New York: Routledge.

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni, Josephine. (2018). The Socio-Economic Implications of Violence Against Women in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In Dibie, Robert (ed.). Women Empowerment for Sustainability in Africa. Cambridge Press Publishers.

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni, Josephine. (2017). Beyond the accent: navigating the multiple intersections in a foreign trained instructor classroom. In Budryte, Dovile and Boykin, Scott, (eds.) Toward a Transformative Classroom: Creating Reflective Identities in Multicultural Settings. Rowman and Littlefield.

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni, Josephine. (2016). Gender and the Judiciary: An Introduction. In Bauer, Gretchen and Dawuni, Josephine (eds.). In Gender and the Judiciary in Africa: From Obscurity to Parity? New York: Routledge.

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni, Josephine. (2016). Ghana: The Paradox of Judicial Stagnation. In Bauer, Gretchen and  Dawuni, Josephine (eds.) In Gender and the Judiciary in Africa: From Obscurity to Parity? New York: Routledge.

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni, Josephine. (2012). Justice Annie Ruth Jiagge. In Dictionary of African Biography. Acheampong, E and Gates, Henry L Jr. (Eds.). London: Oxford University Press.

BOOK CHAPTER

Dawuni, Josephine. (2007). “Globalizing Voices: Ghanaian Women Respond to Globalization”, in Ayandiji D. Aina (ed), Corruption and the Challenge of Human Development, Ilishan-Remo: Babcock University Press pp.475-489.

RESEARCH REPORTS

  1. Dawuni, J.J (2024). Women in Law Across Africa: Is the Glass Half Full?
    1. A continent-wide study based on 590 survey responses examining the challenges and opportunities women in law face across Africa.

 

  1. Dawuni, J.J (2023) (Lead Consultant). Women in Law and Leadership: Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa.
    1. A four-nation study resulting in 10 standalone reports on women judges, lawyers and legal academics in four countries. A scoping study to inform the Gates Foundation on how to invest in women in law and leadership in Africa.

 

  1. Dawuni, J.J (2023) (Lead Series Editor). Women at Howard University (Working Paper Series): Center for Women, Gender and Global Leadership.
    1. A comprehensive review of women’s representation in departments and colleges at Howard University, with 19 standalone reports written by graduate students. I designed and oversaw the entire project with support from Dr. Anita Plummer (Associate Director of Research—Center for Women, Gender and Global Leadership).

 

  1. Dawuni, J.J (Lead Consultant). Women in African Judiciaries: A study of 14 countries. UNDP Report.

A 14-nation study of women judges in Africa to understand their challenges and opportunities for leadership. 

CREATIVE WORKS- VIDEO PRODUCTION

 

  1. Dawuni, J.J (2023). Women in Leadership at Howard University

    1. I designed and produced a story-telling project documenting the leadership trajectory of 14 women deans, chairs and leaders at Howard University. A product of the Center for Women, Gender and Global Leadership

       

  2. Dawuni, J.J (2022). African Women in Law Legacy Project

    1. An oral history project documenting the professional trajectory of the top women judges across Africa, including Chief Justices and judges of international courts and tribunals.

       

  3. Dawuni, J.J (2023). African Women in Law: Becoming a Partner
    1. An oral history project documenting how women get into leadership positions in law firms as partners and managing partners.

 

CREATIVE WORKS-PUBLIC SCHOLARSHIP

 

 

BOOK REVIEWS

  • Dawuni, Josephine. (2018). Women’s Activism in Africa. Balghis, Badri and Aili Mari Tripp. Journal of Women, Politics and Policy, 39(4).

 

  • Dawuni, Josephine. (2010). Gender Politics and Democracy in Post-Socialist Europe (review). by Yvonne Galligan, Sara Clavero and Marina Calloni: VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations: Volume 21, Issue 4: 633.

MEDIA APPEARANCE