Women police in the Nigerian security sector

This article details the history and philosophy behind major changes in police tradition and organisation in Nigeria in 1955. Women in the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), influenced by their background as enforcers of societal norms, developed a type of social-work-oriented policing. Using primary and secondary sources of historical information, this article discusses the origin of women in the NPF, the specialised role of women in police work, and the changes that have been effected in the roles and functions of women in policing in Nigeria. Situated within the conceptual frameworks of patriarchy and gender, this article argues that gender biases impeded the incorporation of women into the police and, when eventually introduced, gender limitations constrained their roles, operations and activities.