FGM laws need education to be effective   By Catherine M. Kizza   Every year in Africa, more than three million girls are at risk of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM), a practice many cultures perceive as a way to promote chastity of women by curtailing premarital sex and preserving virginity. It is also practiced as a rite of passage to womanhood. Worldwide, it is estimated that between 100 and 140 million girls and women have undergone FGM and live with its consequences. According to World Health Organisation, FGM has been linked to increased complications in childbirth of mothers or their babies. FGM poses serious physical and mental health risks and is recognised as an abuse of women’s human rights. The UN Sub-Commission on Human Rights adopted February 6, as FGM zero tolerance day after Stella Obasanjo, the then First Lady of Nigeria, made an official declaration against FGM in Africa during a conference on traditional practices that affect the health of women in 2003. The first day was held on February 06, 2004.   Prevalence of FGM in Africa According to the Population Reference Bureau Fact Sheet on FGM of 2008, Somalia, Egypt and Gambia have a prevalence of 98%, 96%, 78% respectively and there is no indication of the practice going down in these countries.   Prevalence among the girls aged 15-19 is similar to that among women 35-39 years. Demographic Health Survey figures in Ethiopia, Cote d’Ivoire, and Kenya show a significant reduction of FGM among girls 15-19 compared to women 35-39. In Ethiopia, prevalence among girls is 62% while among women above 35 is 81%. In Kenya, a country showing positive change, FGM is down to 20% among the girls and 40% among women. This change has been a result of efforts to end the practice. Research published by Population Council indicates that ending FGM requires a multi-faceted approach. Burkina Faso is one of the countries where social change is taking place. In 1990, the country established a National Committee Against Excision.   The committee under the Ministry for Social Action, runs the government’s strategy to end FGM Burkina Faso’s strategy used not only legislation but involved the police to identify excisors and to monitor their activities.   The police also sensitise people about the harmful effects of FGM and about the law. Burkina Faso also has an SOS Hotline where those who would like to denounce the practice can call.   Do laws work? Last year, Uganda’s parliament passed the law against FGM. According to PRB, by 2008, 16 African countries had laws that specifically prohibited the practice. A Population Council project in Burkina Faso found that to speed up abandonment of FGM, communities need not only the law and democracy but also constant education using different channels, involvement of leaders and maintain a surveillance system. Amnesty International in a document released on the first FGM zero tolerance day in 2004, stated that legislation was an important tool in creating a protective environment for girls and women affected by FGM.   They urged African governments to accompany legislative efforts with measures that will promote the status of women with regards to their internationally protected human rights, especially, the right to life and physical integrity and the right to health. The law is here but it will need to be supported with girl education and women empowerment. Progress made in Kapchorwa has shown that FGM can and will end.