The World Health Organization (WHO) defines female genital mutilation/cutting FGM/C as any injury to female genital organs for cultural, religious or other non-therapeutic reasons.
WHO has stated that consequences can include lifelong debilitating psychological and physical trauma – such as extreme pain during childbirth, sexual relations and urination. For details about what FGM/C entails, see Classification of Female Genital Mutilation.
Some three million girls, the majority under 15 years old, are cut every year. Amnesty International estimates that over 130 million women worldwide have been affected by some form of FGM/C. FGM/C is mainly practiced in African countries.
In the African country of Burkino Faso, babies instead of young girls are undergoing female genital mutilation (FGM) as families and communities seek to evade laws prohibiting the practice. Despite the fact that FGM has been illegal there since 1996 and is punishable by lengthy prison terms and fines, the number of FGM victims under five years old is on the increase. At least 70 newborns nationwide were admitted for hospital emergency care after botched cuttings in the first three months of 2008, according to the government.
In the video below, UNICEF correspondent Kun Li reports on a group of Ethiopian girls who have just undergone genital mutilation, and UNICEF’s work to help end the harmful practice.