As the holidays approach and we all start winding down for the year, one organisation is ramping up efforts to protect some of the world’s most vulnerable girls and women. Plan International is leading the fight against Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), and the charity is asking for your help to continue its lifesaving work.
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“A Bad Memory That Doesn’t Fade Away”
FGM is one of the most harmful forms of gender-based violence, mostly carried out on girls between infancy and age 15, and sometimes on adult women. There are about 230 million living survivors in 96 countries who have undergone the procedure, with over four million girls at risk each year. FGM is the cutting and removal of a girls’ external genitalia. Sometimes fatal, it has devastating, lifelong impacts on survivors.
“It impacts every part of a girl’s life,” says Sadia Allin, an FGM survivor herself, and Plan International’s Country Director for Somalia, where 98 per cent of girls have undergone FGM “Her physical wellbeing, her mental wellbeing, her leadership, and her education.”
The practice has no health benefits but in communities that continue the practice, it is a rite of passage, linked to cultural and misinformed beliefs about women’s bodies. Those who undergo the procedure earn their place in the community, while those who don’t may be shunned, considered unclean, and even unfit for marriage.
In Somalia, Hani*, 17, underwent FGM when she was eight-years-old. “There were other older girls that had to undergo FGM the same day as me. When I heard them screaming and crying, I was terrified and ran away. My mother was there. I was so terrified and ran away again. I escaped three times and was caught, and in the end, I was cut.”
Immediate health risks associated with FGM include extreme and excruciating pain, excessive bleeding, shock, infection and even death, while long-term consequences may include trouble urinating, childbirth complications, infertility, and increased risk of infant mortality. The psychological toll is equally damaging, with many survivors experiencing trauma, depression, anxiety and other mental health conditions.
“I felt so much pain and couldn’t sit up,” says Hani. “I had to lie down for ten days. I want to let go of the memory, but I can’t forget about it. It’s a bad memory that doesn’t fade away,” she says. But Hani is part of a growing movement of girls and young women who are leading local campaigns and advocacy efforts to criminalise and end FGM, and to educate communities on its harmful effects. Hani tells us that she will never allow her daughters to be cut.
Who Is Affected By FGM?
FGM is practiced in several regions of the world, with over 144 million living survivors in Africa, 80 million across Asia, and six million in the Middle East.
Plan International has seen genuine progress in some parts of the world when it comes to eradicating the practice. Widespread in Kenya half a century ago, it has now almost ceased entirely, thanks to decades of grassroots advocacy alongside humanitarian and gender organisations such as Plan International fighting for change. In other countries however, rates of women and girls affected by FGM remain near universal.
Experts say that if anything, the threat is now escalating. In some countries, hard-won gains towards ending FGM have stalled or even been reversed due to instability and conflict – for instance, more radical ideologies being adopted.
“Today alone, around 12,000 girls will be at risk of harm from FGM,” says Susanne Legena, CEO, Plan International Australia. “And the unprecedented amount of conflict and crisis the world is experiencing right now means that number is only rising.”
Research has shown that when vulnerable communities face hardship and financial difficulties, girls are impacted more profoundly than boys, with families often forced to turn to harmful practices such as child and early forced marriage, or pulling girls out of school to lift financial pressures.
In communities at risk of FGM, girls that are married early are often also cut ahead of the forced marriage. And when girls are pulled out of school early, they lose the added protection and support that education brings.
Alarmingly, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) estimates that 68 million girls are at risk of FGM/C between 2015 and 2030, a figure which has risen by an additional two million due to the rising rates of crises unfolding around the globe such as armed conflict, the economic fall-out of COVID-19 and devastating climate disasters.
Plan International Is On A Mission To End FGM
Plan International is a global leader in the fight for girls’ rights, safety, and equality. For over 80 years, the organisation has worked tirelessly with communities, local leaders, and policymakers to transform attitudes, advocate for legal reform, and challenge misbeliefs and social norms that perpetuate the abuse of girls and women.
Plan International takes a rights-based approach towards ending FGM in close collaboration with communities, centred on bodily autonomy and consent, and including girls’ rights to sexuality.
“I have witnessed firsthand the inspiring and brave women fighting back against tradition and their own families to end FGM,” says Legena. “Together, we can empower more women in the fight against FGM and help protect more girls from harm.”
By offering education, fostering dialogue, and building support systems, Plan International helps put a stop to FGM and empowers girls and women while providing medical care, counselling, and other vital services for survivors. The charity also works with local stakeholders to push for stricter laws and stronger enforcement in countries where FGM is still legal or poorly regulated.
A Future Without FGM
“We know that FGM can be ended,” says Legena. “Our work to educate communities about the harms of FGM led to 12 villages in Mali abandoning the practice just last year. “
FGM denies girls and women their basic human rights to physical integrity, health, and a life free from violence. But change is possible. Through education, advocacy, and support, Plan International is leading the charge to create a safer, fairer world for every woman and girl. And you can help them do it.
A donation to Plan International Australia’s Fight FGM Christmas appeal could help fund:
- Education and awareness campaigns about the dangers of FGM for girls, parents and community leaders – even in displacement camps and areas affected by conflict
- Medical care for survivors for infections, fistulas, and menstrual health problems caused by FGM
- Training for healthcare workers and maternal health nurses to help new mothers resist societal pressure to have their daughters cut
- Leadership programs and youth clubs where girls can learn about their sexual and reproductive health and rights, and gain the confidence to demand a choice for what happens with their bodies
- Advocacy to outlaw FGM
- Counselling support for FGM survivors
“FGM is a bad thing for girls,” says Marwa*. “It has happened to me, and it should be stopped. When I grow up and get married, if I have daughters, I will never do FGM to them.”
Every girl and woman should have the knowledge and power to make decisions about her own body and live free from violence and harm. Join the fight against FGM today.
*Names have been changed.
Plan International Australia is a leading non-profit supporting girls in over 55,000 communities and over 85 countries. We raise vital funds to ensure every child, no matter where they are from, has the right to safety and equality. We tackle the root causes of poverty, support communities through crisis, campaign for gender equality, and help governments do what’s right for children and particularly for girls. We won’t stop until we are all equal.
