FGM: Over 200m Women, Girls Mutilated Globally, Says HACEY

Yinka Kolawole in Osogbo

A non-governmental organi-sation(NGO), HACEY, has hinted that over 200 million women and girls are being mutilated globally, while Nigeria accounts for 10 percent of the number.

Speaking  at HACEY’s Community Gatekeepers Training Workshop in Osogbo, Osun State, on empowering communities to end Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), the Programme Manager of the organisation, Oluwatomi Olunuga, noted that the programme was put together by Hacey in collaboration with Access Corporation.

The workshop with over 50 participants was tagged: ‘Reporting female genital mutilation afforded the community gatekeepers the opportunity to deliberate on how to end female genital mutilation through adequate reporting of the heinous act’.

She noted that findings also revealed that the  highest prevalence of FGM with 32 percent is in the Southeast followed by the Southwest with 30 percent.

Olunuga emphasised that the national prevalence of FGM among women aged 15 to 49 dropped from 25 percent to 20 percent in 2018, but the prevalence among girls aged 0 to 14 increased from 16.9 percent to 19.2 percent.

She recalled that nearly 3 million women have undergone FGM in state such as Ebonyi, Ekiti, Imo, Osun as well as Oyo.

Speaking further Olunuga, described female genital mutilation as a harmful act against womanhood which should be discouraged.

According to her, the workshop on reporting female genital mutilation is being held in three African countries, including Gambia, Kenya and Nigeria.

Speaking in the same vein, the programme  Officer, Tomilola Akinpelu, explained that apart from the workshop, stakeholders and community leaders have been involved in the move to eradicating female genital mutilation.

Akinpelu stressed that the workshop is a vital step in strengthening the capacity of community leaders and gatekeepers to protect women and girls from Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) through awareness, reporting, and community support.

She noted that the workshop training  focuses on educating community gatekeepers on the dangers and legal implications of FGM, promoting effective reporting structures for FGM cases, strengthening skills to protect women and girls at risk and building a network of advocates equipped to support FGM survivors.

At the workshop, the community gatekeepers suggested the provision of underground informant, protection of the  informants identity, and continuous campaign against female genital mutilation, as some of the ways to end the menace.

Others are education, spreading of information through religious leadership, opinion leaders, advocacy visit, encouragement and incentive.