Women make up a small percentage of Africa’s prison population — but inside pre-trial detention, their invisibility carries the highest cost.
In this WanaData video investigation, we examine the growing contrast between Togo’s visible gender-sensitive detention reforms and Cameroon’s continued silence on women in pre-trial detention. While Togo trains monitors to recognize pregnancy, menstruation, and motherhood behind bars, Cameroon still releases no gender-disaggregated data on detained women.
Through verified data, regional comparisons, and human-centered storytelling, this documentary reveals how the failure to count women becomes a failure to protect them, and why justice cannot begin without visibility.
Author’s Note
This WanaData story was supported by Code for Africa and the Digital Democracy Initiative as part of the Digitalise Youth Project, funded by the European Partnership for Democracy (EPD).
