Three Million Females Undergo Genital Mutilation In 5 Nigerian States—UNICEF

The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) has ranked Nigeria third on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).

FGM involves altering or injuring the female genitalia for non-medical reasons and is recognized internationally as a violation of the human rights, health and integrity of girls and women.

According to the international agency, nearly 3 million girls and women have undergone FGM in Ebonyi, Ekiti, Imo, Osun and Oyo States in the last five years.

While the national occurrence of FGM among women in Nigeria aged 15-49 dropped from 25 per cent in 2013 to 20 per cent in 2018, UNICEF said the prevalence among girls aged 0-14 increased from 16.9 per cent to 19.2 per cent in the same period.

With an estimated 19.9 million survivors of FGM in Nigeria, UNICEF country representative,Peter Hawkins, said “The practice of FGM not only has no health benefits, but deeply harmful to girls and women, both physically and psychologically.

” It is a practice that has no place in our society today and must be ended, as many Nigerian communities have already pledged to do.

“Millions of girls are being robbed of their childhood, health, education and aspirations every day by harmful practices such as FGM,”

UNICEF however initiatiated a community-led movement to eliminate FGM in the five Nigerian states where it is highly prevalent: