A Tapestry of Human Sexuality in Africa is a colourful and intricate examination of human sexuality on the continent. All too often, sexuality in Africa is examined through the lenses of epidemic and disease. In this volume, individual strands of the vast tapestry that make up human experiences of sexuality in its various forms are examined in their own right.

This collection of papers intends not to be the last word on the subject. Rather, it takes cognisance of the fact that this is an ever-changing and multifaceted area of enquiry, whose margins and colours shift and change along with the African people and their continent. These authors imagine a more accepting, understanding world, that embraces the many filaments of human sexuality.

The voices are fresh and individual, and speak about often understudied aspects of human sexuality. Examinations of such microcosms as the coverage of gender-based violence in Kenyan print media, the experience of sexual violence by Nigerian students, and the way the Internet can be a valuable tool for communicating important messages about sexuality to Muslim people, provide lessons that can be translated into a greater understanding of sexuality on the continent at large.

About the editor

Dr. Oka Obono is Senior Lecturer at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, and is a habitué of the international lecture circuit. An activitist, scholar and methodologist, he has been Principal Research of a multi-year year project aimed at increasing male responsibility for safeguarding reproductive health at individual, household and community levels. He chaired the multilingual Dakar-based network of African researchers monitoring governance trends in West Africa, coordinates the National Working Group on Accountability, investigating popular forms of accountability in Nigeria. His writings and advocacy stress the need for a plurality of voices in the discourse of everyday sexual and reproductive life. In this project, Dr. Obono provided training and mentorship for the Sexuality Leadership Fellows from conceptualization of individual projects to the reporting stages. He is at present conducting research into the long term factors responsible for HIV transmission in African societies.