Deborah Ocheni 
The Minister of Women Affairs, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim has called for urgent, collective and sustained action against Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), describing the practice as not merely a cultural practice but a fundamental breach of human dignity, a direct assault on the total well-being of women and girls, and a significant impediment to sustainable development.
The Minister made this call while speaking on the theme, “Stepping Up the Pace: Strengthening Alliance and Building Movements to End Female Genital Mutilation on the International Day of Zero Tolerance For Female Genital Mutilation held in Abuja.
Sulaiman-Ibrahim said the call reinforces the commitment of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda to strengthen laws, scale up community interventions, and drive behavioural and cultural change.
“Today, we will share our template, outline our multi-sectoral strategy, and the collective action needed to accelerate efforts on ending Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) once and for all”.
The FGM practice, which has remained a critical issue in Nigeria with the highest burden of 19.9 million women and girls affected, behoves Nigeria to chart the course in eliminating this harmful practice.
Worried about the survey by the National Demographic & Health Survey(NDHS)2018, which places a prevalent rate at 20% among women aged 15-49, Sulaiman-Ibrahim stressed that the statistics underscore the urgent need for intensified action, noting that the physical, psychological and socioeconomic consequences of FGM are profound and far-reaching, impeding Nigeria’s progress towards Key sustainable Goals.
The Minister revealed that
part of this year’s commemoration is key activities such as an advocacy walk to the National Assembly to engage Lawmakers on strengthening legal frameworks to criminalize and eliminate FGM, engaging Community leaders, religious and policymakers on the urgency of abandoning FGM”, amongst others.
She stressed that the fight against FGM is not the responsibility of one Ministry but a collective responsibility.
Earlier in her welcome remarks, the Permanent Secretary, Dr Maryam Ismaila Keshinro defined FGM as a partial or total removal of the external Genital organ for non-medical reasons.
Keshinro who is also a Consultant Medical Doctor, reiterated that FGM is a public health problem often undertaken as a traditional rite to supposedly protect chastity by limiting sexual enjoyment.
She said that the practice is proven to have no health benefits for women and girls rather, has several adverse health impacts and life-threatening complications which include severe bleeding, infection, childbirth complications as well as long-term psychological trauma.
“Beyond its physical harm, FGM is a tool of discrimination that deprives women and girls of an essential part of their bodies in an attempt to control their sexuality.”
In their goodwill messages, the representatives of the Federal Ministry of Health, UNFPA, UNICEF, UN WOMEN, and WAVE Foundation NCWS, pledged their support in the fight against this ugly, barbaric practice, which must be eliminated.
