Many women continue to suffer marginalization and discrimination, particularly in the areas of education, employment, political participation, and social justice. Issues of unequal opportunities for women and girls continue to be exacerbated by factors such as early marriage for girls and the lack of free access, control, inheritance, and ownership of land.
Gender-based violence perpetrated against women and girls continues to be one of the most prevalent and pervasive problems in post-conflict Sierra Leone. Most women face discrimination in the political sphere, as men feel that women should not be permitted to hold important leadership roles. This leads to the exclusion of women from decision-making and female under-representation in parliament.
A low level of literacy and lack of quality education are also limiting factors against the active participation of women in politics. Furthermore, violence against women is used as a destructive tool targeted at women participating in politics and during the election period so as to discourage them from participating as candidates.