On March 8th, 2024, UNICEF released Female Genital Mutilation: A Global Concern, a new report with updated data on the global prevalence of female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C). Compared to data released eight years ago, this reveals a 15% increase in the practice; survivors now number at 230 million. Data in the report also indicates slow progress to ending FGM/C, with a lag behind the population overall, and stagnation in some countries. One such country, The Gambia, recently voted to repeal its ban on FGM/C. The report asserts that, “though the pace of progress is picking up, the rate of decline would need to be 27 times faster to meet the target of eliminating female genital mutilation by 2030.”
While this report advances our understanding of FGM/C as a global practice and provides more relevant data for our work to end FGM/C, it is worth noting that Asian countries like India and Indonesia, and Middle Eastern countries like Pakistan and Iran are missing entirely. With the absence of this crucial data, we have no way of knowing the full scope of this harmful practice. This can be attributed to a lack of governmental support, as well as inadequate funding.
Sahiyo recently participated in an event that draws attention to the lack of adequate funding in the FGM/C sphere, of which the real obstacles in our effects to enact change can be seen in this report. “From Rhetoric to Reality: Closing the Funding Gap to End FGM/C”, a parallel event at the 68th U.N. Commission on the Status of Women meetings, was hosted by The Global Platform for Action to End FGM/C in partnership with the United States Mission to the United Nations on March 15th.
The Global Platform For Action to End FGM/C led the charge at the 2023 Women Deliver Conference to acknowledge the harms of insufficient funds in the work to end FGM/C. According to a Joint Letter by the Global Platform:
“By investing $2.4 billion by 2030 we could end FGM/C altogether in 31 priority countries. There is also a need to expand funding beyond the 31 countries which have national prevalence data on the practice; and provide funding for anti-FGM work in countries which have not traditionally been prioritized, including in Asia and the Middle East. Yet only $275 million in development assistance is available leaving a funding gap of >$2.1 billion; and these funds are not available proportionately across all countries where FGM/C is known to take place.”
This statement certainly manifests in the data of the UNICEF report.
In collaboration with hundreds of activists, grassroots organizations, international NGOs and academics who gathered at the Women Deliver 2023 Conference in Kigali, Rwanda, the Global Platform has created the Kigali Declaration to call for an increase and shift of funding to grassroots organizations, and a convening of a Global Summit for increased commitments and investments. You can sign onto the Declaration here, and join the growing number calling to #closethefundinggap.