‘FGM not only a violation of human rights, but a serious public health concern’

Female genital mutilation (FGM), one of the most persistent violations of the rights and dignity of girls and women, continues to affect millions across East and Southern Africa. Despite decades of advocacy, the practice remains deeply entrenched in harmful social norms, cultural expectations, and silence. This, according to Regional Gender and Human Rights Adviser Tapiwa Nyasulu, underscores why the region must “urgently accelerate coordinated action” if the next generation of girls is to be fully protected from this life-altering harm. Her comments came as UNFPA released new data exposing both the magnitude of the challenge and the momentum growing across countries to eliminate FGM once and for all.

FGM is reported in several countries across East and Southern Africa, including Comoros, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Although prevalence varies sharply—ranging from countries where the practice is nearly universal to others where only certain communities engage in it—the underlying drivers remain consistent: deeply rooted gender norms, expectations around purity and marriageability, and social pressure to conform. In some border areas, families go to extraordinary lengths to evade enforcement, even moving girls across national boundaries to undergo the procedure where laws are weaker or monitoring less stringent. Nyasulu described this as “one of the most pressing and complex dimensions of the regional response,” noting that cross-border circumvention demands stronger regional coordination and intelligence-sharing.

New data from the UNFPA-UNICEF Joint Programme on the Elimination of FGM shows both the progress achieved and the long road ahead. In 2024 alone, more than 304,820 girls aged 0 to 14 were protected from undergoing FGM. Nearly 1.4 million women and girls participated in community dialogues, helping shift conversations and dismantle age-old myths about the practice. Through mass-media campaigns, over 250 million people were reached with messages challenging FGM, while almost 7 million girls and women accessed prevention or care services. Nyasulu said these numbers demonstrate “the strongest evidence yet that FGM can be eliminated within a generation—if the current momentum is scaled and sustained.”

The Joint Programme has intensified support across the region, with the Novo Nordisk Foundation playing a critical role in expanding interventions in Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda and Tanzania. These investments have strengthened social mobilisation, digital advocacy, community surveillance and norm-change efforts. Communities have adopted more creative communication strategies, including youth-led digital campaigns, storytelling initiatives, and village dialogues that encourage honest conversations about gender, harm, and health. “Across East and Southern Africa, communities are driving powerful change,” Nyasulu noted. “Girls are speaking out, men and boys are becoming allies, traditional and religious leaders are shifting long-standing positions, and governments are reinforcing legal and policy frameworks. With the right partnerships and sustained investments, we can bring the prevalence of FGM down to zero.”

Nyasulu emphasised that the issue extends beyond cultural practices or rights violations: FGM is a serious public health concern with short- and long-term consequences. Girls subjected to the procedure often experience severe pain, shock, bleeding, infections, and complications that can threaten their lives. Later in adulthood, many face obstructed labour, fistula, menstrual complications, infertility, sexual dysfunction, and long-lasting psychological trauma. “Ending FGM is integral to reducing maternal deaths, strengthening sexual and reproductive health systems, and advancing gender equality across every country in our region,” she said. For health systems already struggling with limited resources, eliminating FGM could significantly reduce preventable complications and improve women’s long-term well-being.

However, despite notable progress, challenges persist. UNFPA warns that gains are unevenly distributed and may be fragile. Emerging pressures—including displacement, economic shocks, weakening family structures, and social fragmentation—threaten to expose more girls to FGM, especially in hard-to-reach communities where enforcement is weak. In humanitarian settings or conflict zones, families often turn to harmful traditions as a coping mechanism, aiming to secure marriage prospects or preserve cultural identity. “Progress can be reversed if we do not stay vigilant,” UNFPA cautioned.

Sustained advocacy, reliable funding, and robust community-level engagement remain the most critical shields against reversals. Nyasulu called on governments, regional bodies, civil society organisations, youth networks, and development partners to deepen collaboration—particularly on cross-border coordination, survivor-centred services, and interventions that directly address harmful gender norms. She stressed that eliminating FGM “is not the responsibility of a single country or institution—it is a regional commitment.” Coordinated action across borders is essential to prevent perpetrators from exploiting legal loopholes or geographic gaps.

Another majorfocus is ensuring survivor-centred care. Many survivors of FGM live with unaddressed trauma—both physical and psychological. Strengthening health systems to provide reconstructive surgery, counselling, safe spaces, and empowerment programmes is key to restoring dignity and breaking cycles of silence. Equally important is engaging men and boys, who often hold social power in decision-making around FGM. Encouraging them to speak out, challenge perpetrators, and support girls’ rights has proven to be a powerful catalyst for change.

UNFPA reaffirmed its commitment to supporting countries with data, programming expertise, policy guidance, and strong partnerships. The agency acknowledged the crucial role of donors, particularly the Novo Nordisk Foundation, in sustaining long-term, community-rooted interventions. The organisation also highlighted the importance of strengthening traditional leadership structures and investing in grassroots women’s networks, which are often the first responders in protecting at-risk girls.

Looking ahead, Nyasulu said the path to ending FGM requires scaling what works: community dialogues that shift norms, legal enforcement that protects girls, survivor care that heals, and youth activism that drives change into the future. She stressed that the global pledge to eliminate FGM by 2030 remains achievable—but only if momentum is not lost. “FGM can end in our lifetime,” she said. “But only if we sustain the momentum, scale what works, and keep girls’ rights at the centre of everything we do.”

For millions of girls across East and Southern Africa, the fight to end FGM is not an abstract policy debate—it is a fight for bodily autonomy, safety, health, and future opportunity. Every girl protected represents a victory not only for her family and community but for the entire region. As Nyasulu noted, the true measure of progress will be a generation of girls who grow up free from fear, stigma, or coercion. The choice before the region is clear: deepen commitment now, or risk allowing harmful traditions to undo hard-won gains. The future of millions of African girls depends on collective, sustained, and courageous action.