This special issue examines female leadership in public bureaucracies, addressing persistent structural barriers limiting women's access to senior positions and the transformative potential of gender-diverse leadership. It seeks to understand how gender shapes governance and policy outcomes across diverse national contexts, particularly in Global South settings where gender inequalities intersect with institutional fragility.
While formal mechanisms like gender quotas and merit-based recruitment have expanded pathways for women, informal norms and implicit biases continue to perpetuate gendered hierarchies. The issue explores how institutional arrangements and organizational cultures shape women's trajectories and how female leadership influences accountability and sector performance.
The collection welcomes empirical contributions examining drivers and obstacles to women's leadership, factors shaping their careers, and policy impacts. Comparative perspectives, intersectional approaches, and research on Global South experiences are particularly encouraged.