FGM and attitudes to gender are part of the same paradigm. There would be no FGM without gender inequality. While marked shifts in the Gobal North have long been normalised, especially in sport, too many girls worldwide are still at risk, and falling behind because of their gender. FGM and a lack of bodily autonomy is a testament to this problem.
It is well-documented that each year, millions of girls are still subjected to Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), a practice that deprives girls of bodily autonomy and endangers their health. Despite global initiatives, 4.4 million girls are at risk each year. This equates to 12,000 girls every day.
Girls in Sport raises awareness about FGM by advocating for gender equity through sports. A community-led, non interventionist approach can help foster a powerful shift in attitudes towards gender and allow girls to question outdated practices that perpetuate FGM. Sport is a rapidly emerging space for gender equity and can offer a safe platform for dialogue, enabling local people to explore gender equality in an empowering and secure manner. By promoting inclusion and opportunity, our initiatives help to support the larger global mission to eradicate FGM.
In 2012, the UN General Assembly designated February 6th as the International Day of Zero Tolerance for FGM, with the aim to amplify and direct the efforts on the elimination of this practice. The theme behind this year’s 2025 campaign: Step up the Pace.
“Girls have a right to bodily autonomy, and it’s not up to anyone to decide what is being cut or what is not being cut".
Jaha Dukureh, Regional UN Women Goodwill Ambassador for Africa.
Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) refers to any procedure that involves modifying or harming female genitalia for non-medical purposes. It is widely acknowledged as a violation of human rights, endangering the health, dignity, and well-being of girls and women not just in Sub-Saharan Africa but globally. FGM involves the partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, often focusing on the clitoris. FGM can also involve the narrowing of the vaginal opening by cutting and sealing the labia minora and/or labia majora, sometimes leaving only a small opening for urine and menstrual flow.
Girls subjected to female genital mutilation endure immediate risks such as intense pain, shock, excessive bleeding, infections, and difficulty urinating. In the long term, they may suffer lasting consequences affecting their sexual and reproductive health, experience complications while giving birth, and endure a dramatic effect on mental well-being.
While FGM is a global issue, certain countries continue to have alarmingly high rates. Sierra Leone is one of them. According to the 2019 Demographic and Health Survey, 83% of women aged 15-49 have undergone FGM, down from 90% in 2013. The practice is most often carried out between the ages of 10 and 14, with 71% of affected women undergoing the procedure before turning 15. Despite numbers decreasing there is still a need for urgent investment to reach the target set in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals of eliminating FGM by 2030.
Rugiatu Turay, a long-time campaigner against the practice who founded and runs the Amazonian Initiative Movement, an organisation focused on ending FGM spoke to the BBC in 2023 following a death potentially related to the practice. She said she was lucky to survive after she was cut when she was just 11 years old.
"Plenty people have died. We know, we all know. We should be honest,' she said.
"I almost died. If I wanted to pee. It took me a week to be able to urinate. One week. Even after initiation ended, my vagina swelled."
The secrecy surrounding FGM makes it impossible to track the true number of fatalities. Adamsay Sesay (12), Salamatu Jalloh (13), and Kadiatu Bangura (17) all died last year after undergoing FGM on the first day of the Bondo initiation, a secretive ritual where adolescent girls and young women are inducted into the influential women-only Bondo Society.
The number of girls and young women who die in Sierra Leone because of FGM remains unknown, CNN reported from Kambia District, as Bondo is...
"shrouded in secrecy, and silence is maintained through superstition and fear."
Many women and girls in Sierra Leone view the Bondo Society negatively, not just because of FGM but also due to the pressure to join and the limits it places on education and opportunity because of attitudes towards the role of women in communities. Addressing this issue requires increasing awareness through initiatives that strive for more normalisation of gender equality and bodily autonomy, creating safe spaces for discussion, and empowering girls to speak out.
The Sierra Leone Government Agenda for Prosperity calls for legislation banning the the practice of Bondo initiation of girls under 18 years, however this has not yet come into force.
Despite this, the country has recently taken steps in the right direction in support for women, passing a bill to ban child marriage. This is detailed in our article on 11th August below.
Decisive action is still needed to tackle the social, economic and political norms that perpetuate discrimination against women and girls, limit their participation and leadership, and restrict their access to education and employment.
Legislation alone is not enough. Governments must invest in community-led education, survivor support services, and economic empowerment programs to provide alternative rites of passage.
With only five years left until the UN’s 2030 goal to eliminate FGM, the time for decisive action is now.
