Gender and Managerial Performance in Local Public Administration: A Comparative Study of Female and Male Managers in the Nampula City Council

This article analyses the relationship between gender and managerial performance in local public administration, using the Nampula City Council, Mozambique, as its empirical setting. Drawing on debates about the underrepresentation of women in leadership and supervisory positions in the African public sector, the study compares managerial performance patterns between female and male managers. It identifies the structural and organisational barriers that shape how women exercise leadership. An explanatory sequential mixed-methods design was adopted, combining a questionnaire survey of 96 managers (directors, heads of department and heads of section) with semi-structured interviews with 14 key informants. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics and comparison-of-means tests, while qualitative data were subjected to thematic content analysis. The results, which are illustrative in nature, suggest broadly equivalent performance across genders in planning, human-resource management and results orientation, with a relative advantage for female managers in participatory communication and conflict management, and a relative advantage for male managers in access to informal decision-making networks. Barriers linked to the double burden, the glass ceiling and gender stereotypes in the allocation of technical responsibilities persist. The study concludes that gender-equity policies, mentoring mechanisms and gender-sensitive performance-appraisal systems are needed in municipal administration.