“Whatever the underlying factors of ongoing religious conflict in the country may be, the regional passing of new Islamic laws undermined women’s rights— an essential engine for Nigeria’s development, governance and democracy.” Dr. Olufemi Vaughan and Suraiya Zubair Banu discuss the inter-relatedness of historical, social, political, and religious issues in Nigeria and how they underpin the development and implementation of policies in the northern region of Nigeria concerning gender and Islam. You can access the full publication below in pdf form.  Dr. Vaughan was a Public Policy Scholar at the Wilson Center from January to April, 2013.  He is currently the Geoffrey Canada Professor for Africana Studies and History at Bowdoin College in Maine.  After graduating from the University of Oxford in 2012, Ms. Banu spent six months as a research assistant at the Wilson Center, where she focused on the politics, history, and sociology of sub-Saharan Africa.  She currently serves as a Washington, DC-based strategy consultant on Africa and the Middle East.