Residents of Agbinpa village in Ede South local government area, Osun state, have openly declared abandonment of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).
They took an oath at the public declaration ceremony of FGM abandonment organised by a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), Action Health Incorporated (AHI), with support from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and promised to cooperative with the government and stakeholders to end FGM in the community.
A community leader, Adeleke Wasiu, attributed practitioners’ reluctance to pursue alternative livelihoods to the persistence of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in local areas.
Wasiu emphasised the importance of community support in moving away from FGM practices, saying, “As a community leader, this program is beneficial to us. We don’t fully understand the dangers of female genital mutilation, which is why we have been practicing it.”
Wasiu revealed that the community had encouraged FGM practitioners to take up farming instead, resulting in some progress towards abandoning the act.
He appealed to the government for financial support to assist practitioners in transitioning to new employment.
“For the meantime, we have advised the practitioners to go into farming, and they have started. They promised to stop it finally,” he added.
He also highlighted a recent incident where they successfully intervened to prevent an FGM attempt at a local maternity facility after educating the woman involved.
The Programme Director of one of the community-based organisations employed by AHI, Association of Icon Builders and Life-Changing Empowerment, Ezeakolam Amarachi, lamented the high rates of FGM in local communities, despite ongoing sensitization efforts.
Amarachi who expressed concern that Osun State ranks among those with the highest prevalence of FGM, especially in rural areas, praised the abandonment of FGM by the community.
“We are here to sensitize the community on the dangers of female genital mutilation,” Amarachi stressed. She noted that research indicates these communities continue to practice FGM, which the World Health Organization has identified as contributing to childbirth complications and infections affecting women.
“It is essential for them to recognize that this practice is not only harmful but also a form of violence against female children,” Amarachi warned.
She pointed out that there are specific areas within Osun where FGM is still commonly practiced, often involving even some health practitioners.
She said the dialogue surrounding FGM in Osun State reflects a broader challenge in fostering understanding and promoting the abandonment of harmful practices.
According to her, as community leaders and organizations work together, the hope is to create a more informed and supportive environment to eliminate FGM and protect the rights and health of women and girls in the region.
