The dangers of female genital mutilation in Nigeria

By Alao Abiodun

Despite female genital mutilation (FGM) being outlawed in May 2015, the advocacy to end female genital cutting in Nigeria appears not to be gaining much attention, ALAO ABIODUN writes

Teniola Jacobs (not real name) was just 10 when she was mutilated. During this sad phase, she was cut, she bled profusely and experienced pain and till today, she’s still experiencing this severe pain. This sad tale recounted by Teni shows that Female genital mutilation (FGM) is still a menace ravaging some states in Nigeria.

In the south-west region of Nigeria, despite the high level of education and awareness rate, the mutilation prevalence is on the high rise in this region. Teniola is not alone. At least 200 million girls and women across the Africa and the world at large today have had their genitals mutilated – suffering one of the most inhumane acts of gender-based violence in the world.

After a girl is mutilated or cut, the family marries her off at a tender age, often between the ages of 10-16 years old. At this age, she drops out of school to spend more time with trying to nurture a family and their dreams of achieving great feat as a successful career woman fades away right before their eyes.

When girls are cut in unsanitary conditions, with unsterilised equipment, immediate problems that could arise from the mutilation process include excessive bleeding, severe pain, shock, infections, difficulty in passing urine, injury to surrounding genital tissue, fever, septicemia and death due to excess bleeding and infection.

Read Also: Over three million girls at risk of genital mutilation, says WHO

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Female genital mutilation (FGM) is defined as all procedures which involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia and/or injury to the female genital organs, whether for cultural or any other nontherapeutic reasons.

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is widespread in Nigeria. Some socio-cultural determinants have been identified as supporting this avoidable practice. Ending FGM practice is more complex than just passing a law to criminalize the act. It has to do with proper implementation of the law and prosecution of the offenders, coupled with mental re-orientation of the public with aggressive community mobilization and advocacy.

According to UNICEF, Nigeria is said to have the highest absolute number of cases of FGM in the world, accounting for about one-quarter of the estimated 115–130 million circumcised women worldwide.

The subjection of girls and women to obscure traditional practices is quite frightening. It is such an unhealthy traditional practice inflicted on girls and women worldwide. It is widely recognized as a violation of human rights, which is deeply rooted in cultural beliefs and perceptions over decades and generations with no easy task for change.

The origin and significance of FGM is quite shrouded in secrecy, uncertainty, and confusion. The origin of FGM is fraught with controversy either as an initiation ceremony of young girls into womanhood or to ensure virginity and curb promiscuity, or to protect female modesty and chastity.

In May 2015 Nigeria’s outgoing president Goodluck Jonathan banned Female genital mutilation (FGM), but there remains an inconsistency between the passing and enforcement of laws across the country. The corrective measures aimed at curbing the practice openly is yet yield landslide significance.

Here are five harms of Female genital mutilation (FGM);

1. It can lead to excessive bleeding and death of mother during child birth
2. It can cause damage to the woman’s private part making her lack sexual sensation during sex
3. High risk of contracting infections
4. It causes menstrual pain as the normal passage for blood flow could have been narrowed
5. Cervical evaluation during labour may be impeded and labour prolonged or obstructed.

FGM has serious implications for the sexual and reproductive health of girls and women, when one tool is used to cut several girls, as is often the case in communities where large groups of girls are cut on the same day during a socio-cultural rite, there is a risk of HIV transmission. This act can apparently create a pathway for infectious diseases to thrive into the female genitalia as well as other parts of the body, thereby resulting into a serious health complication.