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AbstractInterreligious relations remain an important dimension of human coexistence and we currently observe an increase in religiously motivated violence and discrimination. Hence, we need to better understand determinants of interreligious peace. Building on a new concept of interreligious peace which includes but exceeds the absence of interreligious physical violence, we provide a systematic review of 83 quantitative empirical studies examining religious determinants of interreligious physical violence, hostile attitudes, threat perceptions, trust, and cooperation. We find that religious ideas foster or hinder interreligious peace depending on their content. Religious identities have negative effects but must be considered in context. Evidence regarding the role of religious practice is mixed and the role of religious actors and institutions remains understudied. Our results show the need for (1) more conceptual clarity, (2) replications in different contexts, (3) research on dimensions of religion beyond identities, and (4) a better integration of different strands of literature.

In some precolonial regimes in sub-Saharan Africa, queen mothers ruled alongside kings. Yet, women were dislodged from leadership positions over time. Today, many countries are discussing how to boost the number of women in politics and business. Some sub-Saharan African countries are already among the top 25 in terms of proportion of women in parliament, and boast above-average percentages of women on corporate boards. How did women become leaders in these sectors?
Men usually dominate in leadership positions; however, some countries have achieved impressive numbers of women in political and economic leadership by introducing affirmative policies in favour of fast-tracking women's participation. Although there are still miles to go before gender parity is finally achieved, certain countries in sub-Saharan Africa show that changing the rules of the game by implementing a mixture of affirmative policies increases the number of women in leadership positions.
Women's movements are behind the big jumps in female representation that countries in sub-Saharan Africa have made. Especially in post-war societies, women's movements have used the opportunity to push for more women in leadership. For example, the Women's National Coalition in South Africa lobbied for a gender advisory body to the Constitutional Assembly, which contributed to the Constitution now including a strong equality clause. Even though we have witnessed many women being sent back to private spaces after wars, the immediate post-war context can drastically change the social standing of women for the better.
Alongside structural factors that increase women's participation in leadership, there are also individual factors that certain women bring to the table. Wealthy and educated women often climb up the career ladder. Additionally, women who benefit from training for management and mentoring are empowered to participate in politics and business.
While it is easy to look at the global gender equity gap and shrug it off as a problem too big to solve, certain countries in sub-Saharan Africa show that rapid changes are possible when a mixture of affirmative policies is implemented, when women's movements are supported, and when women have access to education and money. International donors should promote feminist policies to increase the number of women in power.

Religion continues to play an important role in shaping cultures all over the world. In some societies religious diversity and coexistence are celebrated, while others grapple with (violent) religious extremism. What determines whether interreligious relations are peaceful or contentious? What can we learn from positive examples, and what role does religious extremism play in interreligious peace? Sub-Saharan Africa offers useful cases from which we can learn. Levels of interreligious peace have been declining worldwide since 1990. Yet, this varies greatly across countries. Sub-Saharan Africa stands out as a region characterised by both very high and very low levels of interreligious peace from country to country. Tolerant religious ideas, weak religious identification, favourable institutions governing religion, and a conducive socio-economic environment work in favour of interreligious peace. In Sierra Leone and Togo, high levels of interreligious peace are maintained through cultures of peace engrained in close social bonds and lived religious tolerance. Challenges to interreligious peace are countered through peace advocacy efforts and supported by institutions designed to peacefully resolve conflicts and guarantee individuals' freedom of religion or belief. Violent religious extremism carries the risk of negatively affecting interreligious relations, as its divisiveness engenders the escalation of conflict, and it can lead to stigmatisation of members of certain religious or ethnic groups by association, the politicisation of religion, and forced displacement.

The published data and documents provide information to replicate the analyses of the paper "Interreligious contact and attitudes in Togo and Sierra Leone: The role of ingroup norms and individual preferences" by Julia Köbrich, Borja Martinović and Tobias Stark that will be published in Peace and Conflict: Journal of Peace Psychology. Data were collected as part of the project 'Religion for Peace: Identifying Conditions and Mechanisms of Interfaith Peace' conducted at the German Institute for Global and Area Studies funded by the German Research Foundation.
The data include information for two independent samples on descriptive and injunctive norms, individual preferences for similar others, close contact, positive and negative casual contact, interreligious attitudes as well as demographic information. The R-syntax replicates analyses for Study 1 and Study 2 reported in the paper and its online supplement.

Data for Study 1 were collected via self-administered questionnaires by a non-probability sample between 13.09.2022 and 05.10.2022. Enumerators used their social (media) networks to spread participation links. Individuals who gave informed consent and indicated that they were residents of Togo or Sierra Leone were eligible to participate in the study. The published data include information on Muslim and Christian participants and removed potential duplicate respondents as well as those with missing values on all reported variables (N=678, 27 variables). Respondents had the choice to complete the questionnaire in English or Krio in Sierra Leone and in French or Ewe in Togo. All Sierra Leonean respondents completed the questionnaire in English and all Togolese respondents in French.

Data for Study 2 were collected as part of a household survey conducted in 50 neighborhoods in Lomé and Freetown (capitals of Togo and Sierra Leone) via computer assisted personal interviewing (Data collection in Lomé: 24.10.2022 to 08.11.2022; in Freetown: 26.11.2022 to 13.12.2022). Nine religiously mixed, eight predominantly Christian and eight predominantly Muslim neighborhoods per city were randomly drawn. Within neighborhoods, households were selected using a random-walk procedure. Participants were randomly chosen from a list of eligible household members. Adult residents of Lomé and Freetown who were able to communicate with the enumerators and gave informed consent were eligible for participation. The published data include information on Muslim and Christian participants (N=1831, 41 variables). Respondents had the choice to be interviewed in English or Krio in Sierra Leone and in French or Ewe in Togo. In Sierra Leone 6% chose English and 94% Krio and in Togo 46% chose French and 54% Ewe.