INTRODUCTION

Female genital mutilation (FGM)

frequently asked questions
1286

10.5K

178

July 2020

Author: UNFPA

Women and girls, aged 15-49, who have undergone some form of
FGM
Legend

 0 - 24.9%
 25% - 49.9%
 50% - 74.9%
 75% and above
 Table
 Download
View dashboard >

The above dashboard shows FGM prevalence in the 17 countries where the UNFPA-UNICEF Joint Programme on
Female Genital Mutilation operates. It is not an exhaustive illustration of FGM prevalence globally. FGM is practiced in
communities around the world, but data have not been systematically collected in many of these communities. 

What is female genital mutilation (FGM)?

How many women and girls are affected?
How does FGM affect the health of women and girls?
What are the consequences for childbirth?
Is there a link between FGM and the risk of HIV infection?
What are the psychological effects of FGM?
What are the different types of FGM?
Which types are most common?
Why are there different terms to describe FGM, such as female genital cutting and female
circumcision?
What terminology does UNFPA use?
Where does the practice come from?
At what age is FGM performed?
Where is FGM practiced?
Who performs FGM?
What instruments are used to perform FGM?
Why is FGM performed?
Is FGM required by certain religions?
Since FGM is part of a cultural tradition, can it still be condemned?
Does anyone have the right to interfere in age-old cultural traditions such as FGM?
What is the link between FGM and ethnicity?
What does the term “medicalization of FGM” mean?
Isn’t it safer for FGM to be performed by a skilled health worker rather than by somebody without a
medical background?
What is UNFPA's approach to FGM?
In which countries is FGM banned by law?
What does the ICPD Programme of Action say about FGM?
Which international and regional instruments can be referenced for the elimination of FGM?
What is female genital mutilation (FGM)?

FGM refers to all procedures involving partial or total removal of the external female genitalia or other
injury to the female genital organs for cultural or other non-medical reasons.

How many women and girls are affected?

An estimated 200 million girls and women alive today are believed to have been subjected to
FGM; but rates of FGM are increasing, a reflection of global population growth. Girls and women who
have undergone FGM live predominately in sub-Saharan Africa and the Arab States, but FGM is also
practiced in select countries in Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America. It is also practiced among
migrant populations throughout Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand. (See more.)
If FGM practices continue at recent levels, 68 million girls will be cut between 2015 and 2030 in 25
countries where FGM is routinely practiced and more recent data are available.
A key challenge is not only protecting girls who are currently at risk but also ensuring that those to be
born in the future will be free from the dangers of the practice. This is especially important considering
that FGM-concentrated countries are generally experiencing high population growth and have large
youth populations. In 2019, an estimated 4.1 million girls will be cut. This number of girls cut each
year is projected to rise to 4.6 million girls in the year 2030.  

How does FGM affect the health of women and girls?

FGM has serious implications for the sexual and reproductive health of girls and women.
The effects of FGM depend on a number of factors, including the type performed, the expertise of the
practitioner, the hygiene conditions under which it is performed, the amount of resistance and the
general health condition of the girl/woman undergoing the procedure. Complications may occur in all
types of FGM, but are most frequent with infibulation.
Immediate complications include severe pain, shock, haemorrhage, tetanus or infection, urine
retention, ulceration of the genital region and injury to adjacent tissue, wound infection, urinary
infection, fever, and septicemia. Haemorrhage and infection can be severe enough to cause death.

Long-term consequences include complications during childbirth,  anaemia, the formation of cysts

and abscesses, keloid scar formation, damage to the urethra resulting in urinary incontinence,
dyspareunia (painful sexual intercourse), sexual dysfunction, hypersensitivity of the genital area
and increased risk of HIV transmission, as well as psychological effects.
Infibulation, or type III FGM, may cause complete vaginal obstruction resulting in the accumulation of
menstrual flow in the vagina and uterus. Infibulation creates a physical barrier to sexual intercourse
and childbirth. An infibulated woman therefore has to undergo gradual dilation of the vaginal opening
before sexual intercourse can take place. Often, infibulated women are cut open on the first night of
marriage (by the husband or a circumciser) to enable the husband to be intimate with his wife. At
childbirth, many women also have to be cut again because the vaginal opening is too small to allow
for the passage of a baby. Infibulation is also linked to menstrual and urination disorders, recurrent
bladder and urinary tract infections, fistulae and infertility. 
What are the consequences for childbirth?

A recent study found that, compared with women who had not been subjected to FGM, those who
had undergone FGM faced a significantly greater risk of requiring a Caesarean section, an
episiotomy and an extended hospital stay, and also of suffering post-partum haemorrhage.

Women who have undergone infibulation are more likely to suffer from prolonged and obstructed
labour, sometimes resulting in foetal death and obstetric fistula. The infants of mothers who have
undergone more extensive forms of FGM are at an increased risk of dying at birth.
Very recent estimates by WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, The World Bank and the United Nations
Population Division reveal that most of the high-FGM-prevalence countries also have high maternal
mortality ratios and high numbers of maternal death. Two high-FGM-prevalence countries are among
the four countries with the highest numbers of maternal death globally. Five of the high-prevalence
countries have maternal mortality ratios of 550 per 100,000 live births and above.

Is there a link between FGM and the risk of HIV infection?

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.    

Additionally, due to damage to the female sexual organs, sexual intercourse can result in the
laceration of tissue, which greatly increases risk of HIV transmission. The same is true for the blood
loss that accompanies childbirth.

What are the psychological effects of FGM?

FGM may have lasting effects on women and girls who undergo FGM. The psychological stress of
the procedure may trigger behavioural disturbances in children, closely linked to loss of trust and
confidence in caregivers. In the longer term, women may suffer feelings of anxiety and depression.
Sexual dysfunction may also contribute to marital conflicts or divorce.

What are the different types of FGM?

The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified four types of FGM:

Type I, also called clitoridectomy: Partial or total removal of the clitoris and/or the prepuce.
Type II, also called excision: Partial or total removal of the clitoris and the labia minora, with or
without excision of the labia majora. The amount of tissue that is removed varies widely from
community to community.
Type III, also called infibulation: Narrowing of the vaginal orifice with a covering seal. The seal is
formed by cutting and re-positioning the labia minora and/or the labia majora. This can take place
with or without removal of the clitoris.
Type IV: All other harmful procedures to the female genitalia for non-medical purposes, for
example: pricking, piercing, incising, scraping or cauterization.
Other terms related to FGM include incision, deinfibulation and reinfibulation:

Incision refers to making cuts in the clitoris or cutting free the clitoral prepuce, but it also relates to
incisions made in the vaginal wall and to incision of the perineum and the symphysis.
Deinfibulation refers to the practice of cutting open a woman who has been infibulated to allow
intercourse or to facilitate childbirth.
Reinfibulation is the practice of sewing the external labia back together after deinfibulation.
Which types are most common?

Types I and II are the most common, but there is variation among countries. Type III – infibulation – is
experienced by about 10 per cent of all affected women and is most likely to occur in Somalia,
northern Sudan and Djibouti.

Why are there different terms to describe FGM, such as female genital cutting and female
circumcision?

The terminology used for this procedure has gone through various changes.

When the practice first came to international attention, it was generally referred to as “female
circumcision.” (In Eastern and Northern Africa, this term is often used to describe FGM type I.)
However, the term “female circumcision” has been criticized for drawing a parallel with male
circumcision and creating confusion between the two distinct practices. Adding to the confusion is the
fact that health experts in many Eastern and Southern African countries encourage male
circumcision to reduce HIV transmission; FGM, on the other hand, can increase the risk of HIV
transmission.
It is also sometimes argued that the term obscures the serious physical and psychological effects of
genital cutting on women. UNFPA does not encourage use of the term “female circumcision”
because the health implications of male and female circumcision are very different.

The term “female genital mutilation” is used by a wide range of women's health and human rights
organizations. It establishes a clear distinction from male circumcision. Use of the word “mutilation”
also emphasizes the gravity of the act and reinforces that the practice is a violation of women's and
girls’ basic human rights. This expression gained support in the late 1970s, and since 1994, it has
been used in several United Nations conference documents and has served as a policy and
advocacy tool. In Resolution 65/170, Member States clearly stated that female genital mutilation
should be used to refer to this harmful practice.   
In the late 1990s the term “female genital cutting” was introduced, partly in response to dissatisfaction
with the term “female genital mutilation.” There is concern that communities could find the term
“mutilation” demeaning, or that it could imply that parents or practitioners perform this procedure
maliciously. Some fear the term “female genital mutilation” could alienate practicing communities, or
even cause a backlash, possibly increasing the number of girls subjected to the practice.
Some organizations embrace both terms, referring to “female genital mutilation/cutting” or FGM/C.

What terminology does UNFPA use?

UNFPA embraces a human rights perspective on the issue, and the term “female genital mutilation”
more accurately describes the practice from a human rights viewpoint.

Today, a greater number of countries have outlawed the practice, and an increasing number of
communities have committed to abandon it, indicating that the social and cultural perceptions of the
practice are being challenged by communities themselves, along with national, regional and
international decision-makers. Therefore, it is time to accelerate the momentum towards full
abandonment of the practice by emphasizing the human-rights aspect of the issue.

Additionally, the term “female genital mutilation (FGM)” is used in a number of UN and
intergovernmental documents. One recent document is the 2016 UN Secretary General's Report
(A/71/209) on Intensifying global efforts for the elimination of female genital mutilations. Other
documents using the term “female genital mutilation” include: Report of the Secretary-General on
Ending Female Genital Mutilation, Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament
and the Council: Towards the elimination of female genital mutilation, Protocol to the African Charter
on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa; Beijing Declaration and Platform
for Action; and Eliminating female genital mutilation: An interagency statement. And each year on 6
February, the United Nations observes the “International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital
Mutilation.” 
Where does the practice come from?

The origins of the practice are unclear. It predates the rise of Christianity and Islam. It is said some
Egyptian mummies display characteristics of FGM. Historians such as Herodotus claim that, in the
fifth century BC, the Phoenicians, the Hittites and the Ethiopians practiced circumcision. It is also
reported that circumcision rites were practiced in tropical zones of Africa, in the Philippines, by certain
tribes in the Upper Amazon, by women of the Arunta tribe in Australia, and by certain early Romans
and Arabs. As recent as the 1950s, clitoridectomy was practiced in Western Europe and the United
States to treat perceived ailments including hysteria, epilepsy, mental disorders, masturbation,
nymphomania and melancholia. In other words, the practice of FGM has been followed by many
different peoples and societies across the ages and continents.
At what age is FGM performed?

It varies. In some areas, FGM is carried out during infancy – as early as a couple of days after birth.
In others, it takes place during childhood, at the time of marriage, during a woman's first pregnancy or
after the birth of her first child. Recent reports suggest that the age has been dropping in some areas,
with most FGM carried out on girls between the ages of 0 and 15 years.

Where is FGM practiced?

The practice can be found in communities around the world.

In Africa, FGM is known to be practiced among certain communities in 29 countries: Benin, Burkina
Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Cote d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo,
Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Mali,
Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda and
Zambia.

Certain ethnic groups in Asian countries practice FGM, including in communities in India, Indonesia,
Malaysia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

In the Middle East, the practice occurs in Oman, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen, as well as in
Iraq, Iran and the State of Palestine.

In Eastern Europe, recent info shows that certain communities are practicing FGM in Georgia and the
Russian Federation. 

In South America, certain communities are known to practice FGM in Columbia, Ecuador, Panama
and Peru.

And in many western countries, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United States, the
United Kingdom and various European countries, FGM is practiced among diaspora populations from
areas where the practice is common.

Who performs FGM?

FGM is usually carried out by elderly people in the community (usually, but not exclusively, women)
designated to perform this task or by traditional birth attendants. Among certain populations, FGM
may be carried out by traditional health practitioners, (male) barbers, members of secret societies,
herbalists or sometimes a female relative.
In some cases, medical professionals perform FGM. This is referred to as the “medicalization” of
FGM. According to recent UNFPA’s estimates, around one in five girls subjected to FGM were cut by
a trained health-care provider. In some countries, this can reach as high as three in four girls.
According to estimates from demographic and health surveys and multiple indicator cluster surveys,
countries where the majority of FGM cases are performed by health workers are Egypt (38%), Sudan
(67%), Kenya (15%), Nigeria (13%) and Guinea (15%).
What instruments are used to perform FGM?

FGM is carried out with special knives, scissors, scalpels, pieces of glass or razor blades.
Anaesthetic and antiseptics are generally not used unless the procedure is carried out by medical
practitioners. In communities where infibulations is practiced, girls' legs are often bound together to
immobilize them for 10-14 days, allowing the formation of scar tissue.

Why is FGM performed?

In every society in which it is practiced, female genital mutilation is a manifestation of deeply

entrenched gender inequality. Where it is widely practiced, FGM is supported by both men and
women, usually without question, and anyone  that does not follow the norm may face condemnation,
harassment and ostracism. It may be difficult for families to abandon the practice without support
from the wider community. In fact, it is often practiced even when it is known to inflict harm upon girls
because the perceived social benefits of the practice are deemed higher than its disadvantages.

The reasons given for practicing FGM fall generally into five categories:

Psychosexual reasons: FGM is carried out as a way to control women’s sexuality, which is

sometimes said to be insatiable if parts of the genitalia, especially the clitoris, are not removed. It is
thought to ensure virginity before marriage and fidelity afterward, and to increase male sexual
pleasure.
Sociological and cultural reasons: FGM is seen as part of a girl’s initiation into womanhood and
as an intrinsic part of a community’s cultural heritage. Sometimes myths about female genitalia (e.g.,
that an uncut clitoris will grow to the size of a penis, or that FGM will enhance fertility or promote child
survival) perpetuate the practice.
Hygiene and aesthetic reasons: In some communities, the external female genitalia are considered
dirty and ugly and are removed, ostensibly to promote hygiene and aesthetic appeal.
Religious reasons: Although FGM is not endorsed by either Islam or by Christianity, supposed
religious doctrine is often used to justify the practice.
Socio-economic factors: In many communities, FGM is a prerequisite for marriage. Where women
are largely dependent on men, economic necessity can be a major driver of the procedure. FGM
sometimes is a prerequisite for the right to inherit. It may also be a major income source for
practitioners.
Is FGM required by certain religions?

No religion promotes or condones FGM. Still, more than half of girls and women in four out of 14
countries where data is available saw FGM as a religious requirement. And although FGM is often
perceived as being connected to Islam, perhaps because it is practiced among many Muslim groups,
not all Islamic groups practice FGM, and many non-Islamic groups do, including some Christians,
Ethiopian Jews, and followers of certain traditional African religions.

FGM is thus a cultural rather than a religious practice. In fact, many religious leaders have
denounced it.

Since FGM is part of a cultural tradition, can it still be condemned?

Yes. Culture and tradition provide a framework for human well-being, and cultural arguments cannot
be used to condone violence against people, male or female. Moreover, culture is not static, but
constantly changing and adapting. Nevertheless, activities for the elimination of FGM should be
developed and implemented in a way that is sensitive to the cultural and social background of the
communities that practice it. Behaviour can change when people understand the hazards of certain
practices and when they realize that it is possible to give up harmful practices without giving up
meaningful aspects of their culture.

Does anyone have the right to interfere in age-old cultural traditions such as FGM?

Every child has the right to be protected from harm, in all settings and at all times. The

movement to end FGM – often local in origin – is intended to protect girls from profound,

permanent and completely unnecessary harm. The evidence shows that most people in

Female genital
affected countries want to stop cutting girls, and

mutilation (FGM) freque Female

genital mutilation (FGM) frequently
asked questions
1286
 10.5K

178

July 2020

Author: UNFPA

Women and girls, aged 15-49, who have undergone some form of
FGM
Legend

 0 - 24.9%
 25% - 49.9%
 50% - 74.9%
 75% and above
 Table
 Download
View dashboard >

The above dashboard shows FGM prevalence in the 17 countries where the UNFPA-UNICEF Joint Programme on
Female Genital Mutilation operates. It is not an exhaustive illustration of FGM prevalence globally. FGM is practiced in
communities around the world, but data have not been systematically collected in many of these communities. 

What is female genital mutilation (FGM)?

How many women and girls are affected?
How does FGM affect the health of women and girls?
What are the consequences for childbirth?
Is there a link between FGM and the risk of HIV infection?
What are the psychological effects of FGM?
What are the different types of FGM?
Which types are most common?
Why are there different terms to describe FGM, such as female genital cutting and female
circumcision?
What terminology does UNFPA use?
Where does the practice come from?
At what age is FGM performed?
Where is FGM practiced?
Who performs FGM?
What instruments are used to perform FGM?
Why is FGM performed?
Is FGM required by certain religions?
Since FGM is part of a cultural tradition, can it still be condemned?
Does anyone have the right to interfere in age-old cultural traditions such as FGM?
What is the link between FGM and ethnicity?
What does the term “medicalization of FGM” mean?
Isn’t it safer for FGM to be performed by a skilled health worker rather than by somebody without a
medical background?
What is UNFPA's approach to FGM?
In which countries is FGM banned by law?
What does the ICPD Programme of Action say about FGM?
Which international and regional instruments can be referenced for the elimination of FGM?
What is female genital mutilation (FGM)?

FGM refers to all procedures involving partial or total removal of the external female genitalia or other
injury to the female genital organs for cultural or other non-medical reasons.

How many women and girls are affected?

An estimated 200 million girls and women alive today are believed to have been subjected to
FGM; but rates of FGM are increasing, a reflection of global population growth. Girls and women who
have undergone FGM live predominately in sub-Saharan Africa and the Arab States, but FGM is also
practiced in select countries in Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America. It is also practiced among
migrant populations throughout Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand. (See more.)
If FGM practices continue at recent levels, 68 million girls will be cut between 2015 and 2030 in 25
countries where FGM is routinely practiced and more recent data are available.
A key challenge is not only protecting girls who are currently at risk but also ensuring that those to be
born in the future will be free from the dangers of the practice. This is especially important considering
that FGM-concentrated countries are generally experiencing high population growth and have large
youth populations. In 2019, an estimated 4.1 million girls will be cut. This number of girls cut each
year is projected to rise to 4.6 million girls in the year 2030.  

How does FGM affect the health of women and girls?

FGM has serious implications for the sexual and reproductive health of girls and women.
The effects of FGM depend on a number of factors, including the type performed, the expertise of the
practitioner, the hygiene conditions under which it is performed, the amount of resistance and the
general health condition of the girl/woman undergoing the procedure. Complications may occur in all
types of FGM, but are most frequent with infibulation.
Immediate complications include severe pain, shock, haemorrhage, tetanus or infection, urine
retention, ulceration of the genital region and injury to adjacent tissue, wound infection, urinary
infection, fever, and septicemia. Haemorrhage and infection can be severe enough to cause death.

Long-term consequences include complications during childbirth,  anaemia, the formation of cysts

and abscesses, keloid scar formation, damage to the urethra resulting in urinary incontinence,
dyspareunia (painful sexual intercourse), sexual dysfunction, hypersensitivity of the genital area
and increased risk of HIV transmission, as well as psychological effects.
Infibulation, or type III FGM, may cause complete vaginal obstruction resulting in the accumulation of
menstrual flow in the vagina and uterus. Infibulation creates a physical barrier to sexual intercourse
and childbirth. An infibulated woman therefore has to undergo gradual dilation of the vaginal opening
before sexual intercourse can take place. Often, infibulated women are cut open on the first night of
marriage (by the husband or a circumciser) to enable the husband to be intimate with his wife. At
childbirth, many women also have to be cut again because the vaginal opening is too small to allow
for the passage of a baby. Infibulation is also linked to menstrual and urination disorders, recurrent
bladder and urinary tract infections, fistulae and infertility. 
What are the consequences for childbirth?

A recent study found that, compared with women who had not been subjected to FGM, those who
had undergone FGM faced a significantly greater risk of requiring a Caesarean section, an
episiotomy and an extended hospital stay, and also of suffering post-partum haemorrhage.

Women who have undergone infibulation are more likely to suffer from prolonged and obstructed
labour, sometimes resulting in foetal death and obstetric fistula. The infants of mothers who have
undergone more extensive forms of FGM are at an increased risk of dying at birth.
Very recent estimates by WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, The World Bank and the United Nations
Population Division reveal that most of the high-FGM-prevalence countries also have high maternal
mortality ratios and high numbers of maternal death. Two high-FGM-prevalence countries are among
the four countries with the highest numbers of maternal death globally. Five of the high-prevalence
countries have maternal mortality ratios of 550 per 100,000 live births and above.

Is there a link between FGM and the risk of HIV infection?

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.    
Additionally, due to damage to the female sexual organs, sexual intercourse can result in the
laceration of tissue, which greatly increases risk of HIV transmission. The same is true for the blood
loss that accompanies childbirth.

What are the psychological effects of FGM?

FGM may have lasting effects on women and girls who undergo FGM. The psychological stress of
the procedure may trigger behavioural disturbances in children, closely linked to loss of trust and
confidence in caregivers. In the longer term, women may suffer feelings of anxiety and depression.
Sexual dysfunction may also contribute to marital conflicts or divorce.

What are the different types of FGM?

The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified four types of FGM:

Type I, also called clitoridectomy: Partial or total removal of the clitoris and/or the prepuce.
Type II, also called excision: Partial or total removal of the clitoris and the labia minora, with or
without excision of the labia majora. The amount of tissue that is removed varies widely from
community to community.
Type III, also called infibulation: Narrowing of the vaginal orifice with a covering seal. The seal is
formed by cutting and re-positioning the labia minora and/or the labia majora. This can take place
with or without removal of the clitoris.
Type IV: All other harmful procedures to the female genitalia for non-medical purposes, for
example: pricking, piercing, incising, scraping or cauterization.
Other terms related to FGM include incision, deinfibulation and reinfibulation:

Incision refers to making cuts in the clitoris or cutting free the clitoral prepuce, but it also relates to
incisions made in the vaginal wall and to incision of the perineum and the symphysis.
Deinfibulation refers to the practice of cutting open a woman who has been infibulated to allow
intercourse or to facilitate childbirth.
Reinfibulation is the practice of sewing the external labia back together after deinfibulation.
Which types are most common?

Types I and II are the most common, but there is variation among countries. Type III – infibulation – is
experienced by about 10 per cent of all affected women and is most likely to occur in Somalia,
northern Sudan and Djibouti.

Why are there different terms to describe FGM, such as female genital cutting and female
circumcision?

The terminology used for this procedure has gone through various changes.
When the practice first came to international attention, it was generally referred to as “female
circumcision.” (In Eastern and Northern Africa, this term is often used to describe FGM type I.)
However, the term “female circumcision” has been criticized for drawing a parallel with male
circumcision and creating confusion between the two distinct practices. Adding to the confusion is the
fact that health experts in many Eastern and Southern African countries encourage male
circumcision to reduce HIV transmission; FGM, on the other hand, can increase the risk of HIV
transmission.
It is also sometimes argued that the term obscures the serious physical and psychological effects of
genital cutting on women. UNFPA does not encourage use of the term “female circumcision”
because the health implications of male and female circumcision are very different.

The term “female genital mutilation” is used by a wide range of women's health and human rights
organizations. It establishes a clear distinction from male circumcision. Use of the word “mutilation”
also emphasizes the gravity of the act and reinforces that the practice is a violation of women's and
girls’ basic human rights. This expression gained support in the late 1970s, and since 1994, it has
been used in several United Nations conference documents and has served as a policy and
advocacy tool. In Resolution 65/170, Member States clearly stated that female genital mutilation
should be used to refer to this harmful practice.   
In the late 1990s the term “female genital cutting” was introduced, partly in response to dissatisfaction
with the term “female genital mutilation.” There is concern that communities could find the term
“mutilation” demeaning, or that it could imply that parents or practitioners perform this procedure
maliciously. Some fear the term “female genital mutilation” could alienate practicing communities, or
even cause a backlash, possibly increasing the number of girls subjected to the practice.

Some organizations embrace both terms, referring to “female genital mutilation/cutting” or FGM/C.

What terminology does UNFPA use?

UNFPA embraces a human rights perspective on the issue, and the term “female genital mutilation”
more accurately describes the practice from a human rights viewpoint.

Today, a greater number of countries have outlawed the practice, and an increasing number of
communities have committed to abandon it, indicating that the social and cultural perceptions of the
practice are being challenged by communities themselves, along with national, regional and
international decision-makers. Therefore, it is time to accelerate the momentum towards full
abandonment of the practice by emphasizing the human-rights aspect of the issue.
Additionally, the term “female genital mutilation (FGM)” is used in a number of UN and
intergovernmental documents. One recent document is the 2016 UN Secretary General's Report
(A/71/209) on Intensifying global efforts for the elimination of female genital mutilations. Other
documents using the term “female genital mutilation” include: Report of the Secretary-General on
Ending Female Genital Mutilation, Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament
and the Council: Towards the elimination of female genital mutilation, Protocol to the African Charter
on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa; Beijing Declaration and Platform
for Action; and Eliminating female genital mutilation: An interagency statement. And each year on 6
February, the United Nations observes the “International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital
Mutilation.” 
Where does the practice come from?

The origins of the practice are unclear. It predates the rise of Christianity and Islam. It is said some
Egyptian mummies display characteristics of FGM. Historians such as Herodotus claim that, in the
fifth century BC, the Phoenicians, the Hittites and the Ethiopians practiced circumcision. It is also
reported that circumcision rites were practiced in tropical zones of Africa, in the Philippines, by certain
tribes in the Upper Amazon, by women of the Arunta tribe in Australia, and by certain early Romans
and Arabs. As recent as the 1950s, clitoridectomy was practiced in Western Europe and the United
States to treat perceived ailments including hysteria, epilepsy, mental disorders, masturbation,
nymphomania and melancholia. In other words, the practice of FGM has been followed by many
different peoples and societies across the ages and continents.

At what age is FGM performed?

It varies. In some areas, FGM is carried out during infancy – as early as a couple of days after birth.
In others, it takes place during childhood, at the time of marriage, during a woman's first pregnancy or
after the birth of her first child. Recent reports suggest that the age has been dropping in some areas,
with most FGM carried out on girls between the ages of 0 and 15 years.

Where is FGM practiced?

The practice can be found in communities around the world.

In Africa, FGM is known to be practiced among certain communities in 29 countries: Benin, Burkina
Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Cote d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo,
Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Mali,
Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda and
Zambia.
Certain ethnic groups in Asian countries practice FGM, including in communities in India, Indonesia,
Malaysia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

In the Middle East, the practice occurs in Oman, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen, as well as in
Iraq, Iran and the State of Palestine.

In Eastern Europe, recent info shows that certain communities are practicing FGM in Georgia and the
Russian Federation. 

In South America, certain communities are known to practice FGM in Columbia, Ecuador, Panama
and Peru.

And in many western countries, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United States, the
United Kingdom and various European countries, FGM is practiced among diaspora populations from
areas where the practice is common.

Who performs FGM?

FGM is usually carried out by elderly people in the community (usually, but not exclusively, women)
designated to perform this task or by traditional birth attendants. Among certain populations, FGM
may be carried out by traditional health practitioners, (male) barbers, members of secret societies,
herbalists or sometimes a female relative.

In some cases, medical professionals perform FGM. This is referred to as the “medicalization” of

FGM. According to recent UNFPA’s estimates, around one in five girls subjected to FGM were cut by
a trained health-care provider. In some countries, this can reach as high as three in four girls.
According to estimates from demographic and health surveys and multiple indicator cluster surveys,
countries where the majority of FGM cases are performed by health workers are Egypt (38%), Sudan
(67%), Kenya (15%), Nigeria (13%) and Guinea (15%).
What instruments are used to perform FGM?

FGM is carried out with special knives, scissors, scalpels, pieces of glass or razor blades.
Anaesthetic and antiseptics are generally not used unless the procedure is carried out by medical
practitioners. In communities where infibulations is practiced, girls' legs are often bound together to
immobilize them for 10-14 days, allowing the formation of scar tissue.
Why is FGM performed?

In every society in which it is practiced, female genital mutilation is a manifestation of deeply

entrenched gender inequality. Where it is widely practiced, FGM is supported by both men and
women, usually without question, and anyone  that does not follow the norm may face condemnation,
harassment and ostracism. It may be difficult for families to abandon the practice without support
from the wider community. In fact, it is often practiced even when it is known to inflict harm upon girls
because the perceived social benefits of the practice are deemed higher than its disadvantages.

The reasons given for practicing FGM fall generally into five categories:

Psychosexual reasons: FGM is carried out as a way to control women’s sexuality, which is

sometimes said to be insatiable if parts of the genitalia, especially the clitoris, are not removed. It is
thought to ensure virginity before marriage and fidelity afterward, and to increase male sexual
pleasure.
Sociological and cultural reasons: FGM is seen as part of a girl’s initiation into womanhood and
as an intrinsic part of a community’s cultural heritage. Sometimes myths about female genitalia (e.g.,
that an uncut clitoris will grow to the size of a penis, or that FGM will enhance fertility or promote child
survival) perpetuate the practice.
Hygiene and aesthetic reasons: In some communities, the external female genitalia are considered
dirty and ugly and are removed, ostensibly to promote hygiene and aesthetic appeal.
Religious reasons: Although FGM is not endorsed by either Islam or by Christianity, supposed
religious doctrine is often used to justify the practice.
Socio-economic factors: In many communities, FGM is a prerequisite for marriage. Where women
are largely dependent on men, economic necessity can be a major driver of the procedure. FGM
sometimes is a prerequisite for the right to inherit. It may also be a major income source for
practitioners.
Is FGM required by certain religions?

No religion promotes or condones FGM. Still, more than half of girls and women in four out of 14
countries where data is available saw FGM as a religious requirement. And although FGM is often
perceived as being connected to Islam, perhaps because it is practiced among many Muslim groups,
not all Islamic groups practice FGM, and many non-Islamic groups do, including some Christians,
Ethiopian Jews, and followers of certain traditional African religions.

FGM is thus a cultural rather than a religious practice. In fact, many religious leaders have
denounced it.
Since FGM is part of a cultural tradition, can it still be condemned?

Yes. Culture and tradition provide a framework for human well-being, and cultural arguments cannot
be used to condone violence against people, male or female. Moreover, culture is not static, but
constantly changing and adapting. Nevertheless, activities for the elimination of FGM should be
developed and implemented in a way that is sensitive to the cultural and social background of the
communities that practice it. Behaviour can change when people understand the hazards of certain
practices and when they realize that it is possible to give up harmful practices without giving up
meaningful aspects of their culture.

Does anyone have the right to interfere in age-old cultural traditions such as FGM?

Every child has the right to be protected from harm, in all settings and at all times. The movement to
end FGM – often local in origin – is intended to protect girls from profound, permanent and
completely unnecessary harm. The evidence shows that most people in affected countries want to
stop cutting girls, and that overall support for FGM is declining even in countries where the practice is
almost universal (such as Egypt and Sudan). Ending FGM will take intensive and sustained
collaboration from all parts of society, including families and communities, religious and other leaders,
the media, governments and the international community.

What is the link between FGM and ethnicity?

Ethnicity is the most significant factor in FGM prevalence, cutting across socio-economic class and
level of education. Members of certain ethnic groups often adhere to the same social norms,
including whether or not to practice FGM, regardless of where they live. The FGM prevalence among
ethnic Somalis living in Kenya, for example, at 94 per cent, is similar to the prevalence in Somalia,
and far higher than the Kenyan national average of 21 per cent, according to the
most recent information available.
But there are exceptions. In Senegal, for example, there are major variations in FGM prevalence
among Mandingue women, depending on where they live – 55 per cent in urban areas versus 84 per
cent in rural areas. Similarly, FGM prevalence among the Poular ranges from 41 per cent in urban
areas to 56 per cent in rural areas.
What do women and girls who have experienced FGM say about it themselves?

Women around the world are speaking out about their experiences and advocating change.

ntly asked questions

1286

10.5K
 178

July 2020

Author: UNFPA

Women and girls, aged 15-49, who have undergone some form of
FGM
Legend

 0 - 24.9%
 25% - 49.9%
 50% - 74.9%
 75% and above
 Table
 Download
View dashboard >

The above dashboard shows FGM prevalence in the 17 countries where the UNFPA-UNICEF Joint Programme on
Female Genital Mutilation operates. It is not an exhaustive illustration of FGM prevalence globally. FGM is practiced in
communities around the world, but data have not been systematically collected in many of these communities. 

What is female genital mutilation (FGM)?

How many women and girls are affected?
How does FGM affect the health of women and girls?
What are the consequences for childbirth?
Is there a link between FGM and the risk of HIV infection?
What are the psychological effects of FGM?
What are the different types of FGM?
Which types are most common?
Why are there different terms to describe FGM, such as female genital cutting and female
circumcision?
What terminology does UNFPA use?
Where does the practice come from?
At what age is FGM performed?
Where is FGM practiced?
Who performs FGM?
What instruments are used to perform FGM?
Why is FGM performed?
Is FGM required by certain religions?
Since FGM is part of a cultural tradition, can it still be condemned?
Does anyone have the right to interfere in age-old cultural traditions such as FGM?
What is the link between FGM and ethnicity?
What does the term “medicalization of FGM” mean?
Isn’t it safer for FGM to be performed by a skilled health worker rather than by somebody without a
medical background?
What is UNFPA's approach to FGM?
In which countries is FGM banned by law?
What does the ICPD Programme of Action say about FGM?
Which international and regional instruments can be referenced for the elimination of FGM?
What is female genital mutilation (FGM)?

FGM refers to all procedures involving partial or total removal of the external female genitalia or other
injury to the female genital organs for cultural or other non-medical reasons.

How many women and girls are affected?

An estimated 200 million girls and women alive today are believed to have been subjected to
FGM; but rates of FGM are increasing, a reflection of global population growth. Girls and women who
have undergone FGM live predominately in sub-Saharan Africa and the Arab States, but FGM is also
practiced in select countries in Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America. It is also practiced among
migrant populations throughout Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand. (See more.)
If FGM practices continue at recent levels, 68 million girls will be cut between 2015 and 2030 in 25
countries where FGM is routinely practiced and more recent data are available.
A key challenge is not only protecting girls who are currently at risk but also ensuring that those to be
born in the future will be free from the dangers of the practice. This is especially important considering
that FGM-concentrated countries are generally experiencing high population growth and have large
youth populations. In 2019, an estimated 4.1 million girls will be cut. This number of girls cut each
year is projected to rise to 4.6 million girls in the year 2030.  

How does FGM affect the health of women and girls?

FGM has serious implications for the sexual and reproductive health of girls and women.
The effects of FGM depend on a number of factors, including the type performed, the expertise of the
practitioner, the hygiene conditions under which it is performed, the amount of resistance and the
general health condition of the girl/woman undergoing the procedure. Complications may occur in all
types of FGM, but are most frequent with infibulation.
Immediate complications include severe pain, shock, haemorrhage, tetanus or infection, urine
retention, ulceration of the genital region and injury to adjacent tissue, wound infection, urinary
infection, fever, and septicemia. Haemorrhage and infection can be severe enough to cause death.

Long-term consequences include complications during childbirth,  anaemia, the formation of cysts

and abscesses, keloid scar formation, damage to the urethra resulting in urinary incontinence,
dyspareunia (painful sexual intercourse), sexual dysfunction, hypersensitivity of the genital area
and increased risk of HIV transmission, as well as psychological effects.
Infibulation, or type III FGM, may cause complete vaginal obstruction resulting in the accumulation of
menstrual flow in the vagina and uterus. Infibulation creates a physical barrier to sexual intercourse
and childbirth. An infibulated woman therefore has to undergo gradual dilation of the vaginal opening
before sexual intercourse can take place. Often, infibulated women are cut open on the first night of
marriage (by the husband or a circumciser) to enable the husband to be intimate with his wife. At
childbirth, many women also have to be cut again because the vaginal opening is too small to allow
for the passage of a baby. Infibulation is also linked to menstrual and urination disorders, recurrent
bladder and urinary tract infections, fistulae and infertility. 
What are the consequences for childbirth?

A recent study found that, compared with women who had not been subjected to FGM, those who
had undergone FGM faced a significantly greater risk of requiring a Caesarean section, an
episiotomy and an extended hospital stay, and also of suffering post-partum haemorrhage.

Women who have undergone infibulation are more likely to suffer from prolonged and obstructed
labour, sometimes resulting in foetal death and obstetric fistula. The infants of mothers who have
undergone more extensive forms of FGM are at an increased risk of dying at birth.
Very recent estimates by WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, The World Bank and the United Nations
Population Division reveal that most of the high-FGM-prevalence countries also have high maternal
mortality ratios and high numbers of maternal death. Two high-FGM-prevalence countries are among
the four countries with the highest numbers of maternal death globally. Five of the high-prevalence
countries have maternal mortality ratios of 550 per 100,000 live births and above.

Is there a link between FGM and the risk of HIV infection?

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.    
Additionally, due to damage to the female sexual organs, sexual intercourse can result in the
laceration of tissue, which greatly increases risk of HIV transmission. The same is true for the blood
loss that accompanies childbirth.

What are the psychological effects of FGM?

FGM may have lasting effects on women and girls who undergo FGM. The psychological stress of
the procedure may trigger behavioural disturbances in children, closely linked to loss of trust and
confidence in caregivers. In the longer term, women may suffer feelings of anxiety and depression.
Sexual dysfunction may also contribute to marital conflicts or divorce.

What are the different types of FGM?

The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified four types of FGM:

Type I, also called clitoridectomy: Partial or total removal of the clitoris and/or the prepuce.
Type II, also called excision: Partial or total removal of the clitoris and the labia minora, with or
without excision of the labia majora. The amount of tissue that is removed varies widely from
community to community.
Type III, also called infibulation: Narrowing of the vaginal orifice with a covering seal. The seal is
formed by cutting and re-positioning the labia minora and/or the labia majora. This can take place
with or without removal of the clitoris.
Type IV: All other harmful procedures to the female genitalia for non-medical purposes, for
example: pricking, piercing, incising, scraping or cauterization.
Other terms related to FGM include incision, deinfibulation and reinfibulation:

Incision refers to making cuts in the clitoris or cutting free the clitoral prepuce, but it also relates to
incisions made in the vaginal wall and to incision of the perineum and the symphysis.
Deinfibulation refers to the practice of cutting open a woman who has been infibulated to allow
intercourse or to facilitate childbirth.
Reinfibulation is the practice of sewing the external labia back together after deinfibulation.
Which types are most common?

Types I and II are the most common, but there is variation among countries. Type III – infibulation – is
experienced by about 10 per cent of all affected women and is most likely to occur in Somalia,
northern Sudan and Djibouti.

Why are there different terms to describe FGM, such as female genital cutting and female
circumcision?

The terminology used for this procedure has gone through various changes.
When the practice first came to international attention, it was generally referred to as “female
circumcision.” (In Eastern and Northern Africa, this term is often used to describe FGM type I.)
However, the term “female circumcision” has been criticized for drawing a parallel with male
circumcision and creating confusion between the two distinct practices. Adding to the confusion is the
fact that health experts in many Eastern and Southern African countries encourage male
circumcision to reduce HIV transmission; FGM, on the other hand, can increase the risk of HIV
transmission.
It is also sometimes argued that the term obscures the serious physical and psychological effects of
genital cutting on women. UNFPA does not encourage use of the term “female circumcision”
because the health implications of male and female circumcision are very different.

The term “female genital mutilation” is used by a wide range of women's health and human rights
organizations. It establishes a clear distinction from male circumcision. Use of the word “mutilation”
also emphasizes the gravity of the act and reinforces that the practice is a violation of women's and
girls’ basic human rights. This expression gained support in the late 1970s, and since 1994, it has
been used in several United Nations conference documents and has served as a policy and
advocacy tool. In Resolution 65/170, Member States clearly stated that female genital mutilation
should be used to refer to this harmful practice.   
In the late 1990s the term “female genital cutting” was introduced, partly in response to dissatisfaction
with the term “female genital mutilation.” There is concern that communities could find the term
“mutilation” demeaning, or that it could imply that parents or practitioners perform this procedure
maliciously. Some fear the term “female genital mutilation” could alienate practicing communities, or
even cause a backlash, possibly increasing the number of girls subjected to the practice.

Some organizations embrace both terms, referring to “female genital mutilation/cutting” or FGM/C.

What terminology does UNFPA use?

UNFPA embraces a human rights perspective on the issue, and the term “female genital mutilation”
more accurately describes the practice from a human rights viewpoint.

Today, a greater number of countries have outlawed the practice, and an increasing number of
communities have committed to abandon it, indicating that the social and cultural perceptions of the
practice are being challenged by communities themselves, along with national, regional and
international decision-makers. Therefore, it is time to accelerate the momentum towards full
abandonment of the practice by emphasizing the human-rights aspect of the issue.
Additionally, the term “female genital mutilation (FGM)” is used in a number of UN and
intergovernmental documents. One recent document is the 2016 UN Secretary General's Report
(A/71/209) on Intensifying global efforts for the elimination of female genital mutilations. Other
documents using the term “female genital mutilation” include: Report of the Secretary-General on
Ending Female Genital Mutilation, Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament
and the Council: Towards the elimination of female genital mutilation, Protocol to the African Charter
on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa; Beijing Declaration and Platform
for Action; and Eliminating female genital mutilation: An interagency statement. And each year on 6
February, the United Nations observes the “International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital
Mutilation.” 
Where does the practice come from?

The origins of the practice are unclear. It predates the rise of Christianity and Islam. It is said some
Egyptian mummies display characteristics of FGM. Historians such as Herodotus claim that, in the
fifth century BC, the Phoenicians, the Hittites and the Ethiopians practiced circumcision. It is also
reported that circumcision rites were practiced in tropical zones of Africa, in the Philippines, by certain
tribes in the Upper Amazon, by women of the Arunta tribe in Australia, and by certain early Romans
and Arabs. As recent as the 1950s, clitoridectomy was practiced in Western Europe and the United
States to treat perceived ailments including hysteria, epilepsy, mental disorders, masturbation,
nymphomania and melancholia. In other words, the practice of FGM has been followed by many
different peoples and societies across the ages and continents.

At what age is FGM performed?

It varies. In some areas, FGM is carried out during infancy – as early as a couple of days after birth.
In others, it takes place during childhood, at the time of marriage, during a woman's first pregnancy or
after the birth of her first child. Recent reports suggest that the age has been dropping in some areas,
with most FGM carried out on girls between the ages of 0 and 15 years.

Where is FGM practiced?

The practice can be found in communities around the world.

In Africa, FGM is known to be practiced among certain communities in 29 countries: Benin, Burkina
Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Cote d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo,
Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Mali,
Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda and
Zambia.
Certain ethnic groups in Asian countries practice FGM, including in communities in India, Indonesia,
Malaysia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

In the Middle East, the practice occurs in Oman, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen, as well as in
Iraq, Iran and the State of Palestine.

In Eastern Europe, recent info shows that certain communities are practicing FGM in Georgia and the
Russian Federation. 

In South America, certain communities are known to practice FGM in Columbia, Ecuador, Panama
and Peru.

And in many western countries, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United States, the
United Kingdom and various European countries, FGM is practiced among diaspora populations from
areas where the practice is common.

Who performs FGM?

FGM is usually carried out by elderly people in the community (usually, but not exclusively, women)
designated to perform this task or by traditional birth attendants. Among certain populations, FGM
may be carried out by traditional health practitioners, (male) barbers, members of secret societies,
herbalists or sometimes a female relative.

In some cases, medical professionals perform FGM. This is referred to as the “medicalization” of

FGM. According to recent UNFPA’s estimates, around one in five girls subjected to FGM were cut by
a trained health-care provider. In some countries, this can reach as high as three in four girls.
According to estimates from demographic and health surveys and multiple indicator cluster surveys,
countries where the majority of FGM cases are performed by health workers are Egypt (38%), Sudan
(67%), Kenya (15%), Nigeria (13%) and Guinea (15%).
What instruments are used to perform FGM?

FGM is carried out with special knives, scissors, scalpels, pieces of glass or razor blades.
Anaesthetic and antiseptics are generally not used unless the procedure is carried out by medical
practitioners. In communities where infibulations is practiced, girls' legs are often bound together to
immobilize them for 10-14 days, allowing the formation of scar tissue.
Why is FGM performed?

In every society in which it is practiced, female genital mutilation is a manifestation of deeply

entrenched gender inequality. Where it is widely practiced, FGM is supported by both men and
women, usually without question, and anyone  that does not follow the norm may face condemnation,
harassment and ostracism. It may be difficult for families to abandon the practice without support
from the wider community. In fact, it is often practiced even when it is known to inflict harm upon girls
because the perceived social benefits of the practice are deemed higher than its disadvantages.

The reasons given for practicing FGM fall generally into five categories:

Psychosexual reasons: FGM is carried out as a way to control women’s sexuality, which is

sometimes said to be insatiable if parts of the genitalia, especially the clitoris, are not removed. It is
thought to ensure virginity before marriage and fidelity afterward, and to increase male sexual
pleasure.
Sociological and cultural reasons: FGM is seen as part of a girl’s initiation into womanhood and
as an intrinsic part of a community’s cultural heritage. Sometimes myths about female genitalia (e.g.,
that an uncut clitoris will grow to the size of a penis, or that FGM will enhance fertility or promote child
survival) perpetuate the practice.
Hygiene and aesthetic reasons: In some communities, the external female genitalia are considered
dirty and ugly and are removed, ostensibly to promote hygiene and aesthetic appeal.
Religious reasons: Although FGM is not endorsed by either Islam or by Christianity, supposed
religious doctrine is often used to justify the practice.
Socio-economic factors: In many communities, FGM is a prerequisite for marriage. Where women
are largely dependent on men, economic necessity can be a major driver of the procedure. FGM
sometimes is a prerequisite for the right to inherit. It may also be a major income source for
practitioners.
Is FGM required by certain religions?

No religion promotes or condones FGM. Still, more than half of girls and women in four out of 14
countries where data is available saw FGM as a religious requirement. And although FGM is often
perceived as being connected to Islam, perhaps because it is practiced among many Muslim groups,
not all Islamic groups practice FGM, and many non-Islamic groups do, including some Christians,
Ethiopian Jews, and followers of certain traditional African religions.

FGM is thus a cultural rather than a religious practice. In fact, many religious leaders have
denounced it.
Since FGM is part of a cultural tradition, can it still be condemned?

Yes. Culture and tradition provide a framework for human well-being, and cultural arguments cannot
be used to condone violence against people, male or female. Moreover, culture is not static, but
constantly changing and adapting. Nevertheless, activities for the elimination of FGM should be
developed and implemented in a way that is sensitive to the cultural and social background of the
communities that practice it. Behaviour can change when people understand the hazards of certain
practices and when they realize that it is possible to give up harmful practices without giving up
meaningful aspects of their culture.

Does anyone have the right to interfere in age-old cultural traditions such as FGM?

Every child has the right to be protected from harm, in all settings and at all times. The movement to
end FGM – often local in origin – is intended to protect girls from profound, permanent and
completely unnecessary harm. The evidence shows that most people in affected countries want to
stop cutting girls, and that overall support for FGM is declining even in countries where the practice is
almost universal (such as Egypt and Sudan). Ending FGM will take intensive and sustained
collaboration from all parts of society, including families and communities, religious and other leaders,
the media, governments and the international community.

What is the link between FGM and ethnicity?

Ethnicity is the most significant factor in FGM prevalence, cutting across socio-economic class and
level of education. Members of certain ethnic groups often adhere to the same social norms,
including whether or not to practice FGM, regardless of where they live. The FGM prevalence among
ethnic Somalis living in Kenya, for example, at 94 per cent, is similar to the prevalence in Somalia,
and far higher than the Kenyan national average of 21 per cent, according to the
most recent information available.
But there are exceptions. In Senegal, for example, there are major variations in FGM prevalence
among Mandingue women, depending on where they live – 55 per cent in urban areas versus 84 per
cent in rural areas. Similarly, FGM prevalence among the Poular ranges from 41 per cent in urban
areas to 56 per cent in rural areas.
What do women and girls who have experienced FGM say about it themselves?

Women around the world are speaking out about their experiences and advocating change.

that overall support for FGM is declining even in countries where the practice is almost

universal (such as Egypt and Sudan). Ending FGM will take intensive and sustained

collaboration from all parts of society, inclu Female genital

 mutilation (FGM) frequently asked
questions
1286

10.5K

178

July 2020

Author: UNFPA

Women and girls, aged 15-49, who have undergone some form of
FGM
Legend

 0 - 24.9%
 25% - 49.9%
 50% - 74.9%
 75% and above
 Table
 Download
View dashboard >

The above dashboard shows FGM prevalence in the 17 countries where the UNFPA-UNICEF Joint Programme on
Female Genital Mutilation operates. It is not an exhaustive illustration of FGM prevalence globally. FGM is practiced in
communities around the world, but data have not been systematically collected in many of these communities. 

What is female genital mutilation (FGM)?

How many women and girls are affected?
How does FGM affect the health of women and girls?
What are the consequences for childbirth?
Is there a link between FGM and the risk of HIV infection?
What are the psychological effects of FGM?
What are the different types of FGM?
Which types are most common?
Why are there different terms to describe FGM, such as female genital cutting and female
circumcision?
What terminology does UNFPA use?
Where does the practice come from?
At what age is FGM performed?
Where is FGM practiced?
Who performs FGM?
What instruments are used to perform FGM?
Why is FGM performed?
Is FGM required by certain religions?
Since FGM is part of a cultural tradition, can it still be condemned?
Does anyone have the right to interfere in age-old cultural traditions such as FGM?
What is the link between FGM and ethnicity?
What does the term “medicalization of FGM” mean?
Isn’t it safer for FGM to be performed by a skilled health worker rather than by somebody without a
medical background?
What is UNFPA's approach to FGM?
In which countries is FGM banned by law?
What does the ICPD Programme of Action say about FGM?
Which international and regional instruments can be referenced for the elimination of FGM?
What is female genital mutilation (FGM)?

FGM refers to all procedures involving partial or total removal of the external female genitalia or other
injury to the female genital organs for cultural or other non-medical reasons.

How many women and girls are affected?

An estimated 200 million girls and women alive today are believed to have been subjected to
FGM; but rates of FGM are increasing, a reflection of global population growth. Girls and women who
have undergone FGM live predominately in sub-Saharan Africa and the Arab States, but FGM is also
practiced in select countries in Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America. It is also practiced among
migrant populations throughout Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand. (See more.)
If FGM practices continue at recent levels, 68 million girls will be cut between 2015 and 2030 in 25
countries where FGM is routinely practiced and more recent data are available.
A key challenge is not only protecting girls who are currently at risk but also ensuring that those to be
born in the future will be free from the dangers of the practice. This is especially important considering
that FGM-concentrated countries are generally experiencing high population growth and have large
youth populations. In 2019, an estimated 4.1 million girls will be cut. This number of girls cut each
year is projected to rise to 4.6 million girls in the year 2030.  

How does FGM affect the health of women and girls?

FGM has serious implications for the sexual and reproductive health of girls and women.
The effects of FGM depend on a number of factors, including the type performed, the expertise of the
practitioner, the hygiene conditions under which it is performed, the amount of resistance and the
general health condition of the girl/woman undergoing the procedure. Complications may occur in all
types of FGM, but are most frequent with infibulation.
Immediate complications include severe pain, shock, haemorrhage, tetanus or infection, urine
retention, ulceration of the genital region and injury to adjacent tissue, wound infection, urinary
infection, fever, and septicemia. Haemorrhage and infection can be severe enough to cause death.

Long-term consequences include complications during childbirth,  anaemia, the formation of cysts

and abscesses, keloid scar formation, damage to the urethra resulting in urinary incontinence,
dyspareunia (painful sexual intercourse), sexual dysfunction, hypersensitivity of the genital area
and increased risk of HIV transmission, as well as psychological effects.
Infibulation, or type III FGM, may cause complete vaginal obstruction resulting in the accumulation of
menstrual flow in the vagina and uterus. Infibulation creates a physical barrier to sexual intercourse
and childbirth. An infibulated woman therefore has to undergo gradual dilation of the vaginal opening
before sexual intercourse can take place. Often, infibulated women are cut open on the first night of
marriage (by the husband or a circumciser) to enable the husband to be intimate with his wife. At
childbirth, many women also have to be cut again because the vaginal opening is too small to allow
for the passage of a baby. Infibulation is also linked to menstrual and urination disorders, recurrent
bladder and urinary tract infections, fistulae and infertility. 
What are the consequences for childbirth?

A recent study found that, compared with women who had not been subjected to FGM, those who
had undergone FGM faced a significantly greater risk of requiring a Caesarean section, an
episiotomy and an extended hospital stay, and also of suffering post-partum haemorrhage.

Women who have undergone infibulation are more likely to suffer from prolonged and obstructed
labour, sometimes resulting in foetal death and obstetric fistula. The infants of mothers who have
undergone more extensive forms of FGM are at an increased risk of dying at birth.
Very recent estimates by WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, The World Bank and the United Nations
Population Division reveal that most of the high-FGM-prevalence countries also have high maternal
mortality ratios and high numbers of maternal death. Two high-FGM-prevalence countries are among
the four countries with the highest numbers of maternal death globally. Five of the high-prevalence
countries have maternal mortality ratios of 550 per 100,000 live births and above.
Is there a link between FGM and the risk of HIV infection?

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.    

Additionally, due to damage to the female sexual organs, sexual intercourse can result in the
laceration of tissue, which greatly increases risk of HIV transmission. The same is true for the blood
loss that accompanies childbirth.

What are the psychological effects of FGM?

FGM may have lasting effects on women and girls who undergo FGM. The psychological stress of
the procedure may trigger behavioural disturbances in children, closely linked to loss of trust and
confidence in caregivers. In the longer term, women may suffer feelings of anxiety and depression.
Sexual dysfunction may also contribute to marital conflicts or divorce.

What are the different types of FGM?

The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified four types of FGM:

Type I, also called clitoridectomy: Partial or total removal of the clitoris and/or the prepuce.
Type II, also called excision: Partial or total removal of the clitoris and the labia minora, with or
without excision of the labia majora. The amount of tissue that is removed varies widely from
community to community.
Type III, also called infibulation: Narrowing of the vaginal orifice with a covering seal. The seal is
formed by cutting and re-positioning the labia minora and/or the labia majora. This can take place
with or without removal of the clitoris.
Type IV: All other harmful procedures to the female genitalia for non-medical purposes, for
example: pricking, piercing, incising, scraping or cauterization.
Other terms related to FGM include incision, deinfibulation and reinfibulation:

Incision refers to making cuts in the clitoris or cutting free the clitoral prepuce, but it also relates to
incisions made in the vaginal wall and to incision of the perineum and the symphysis.
Deinfibulation refers to the practice of cutting open a woman who has been infibulated to allow
intercourse or to facilitate childbirth.
Reinfibulation is the practice of sewing the external labia back together after deinfibulation.
Which types are most common?

Types I and II are the most common, but there is variation among countries. Type III – infibulation – is
experienced by about 10 per cent of all affected women and is most likely to occur in Somalia,
northern Sudan and Djibouti.
Why are there different terms to describe FGM, such as female genital cutting and female
circumcision?

The terminology used for this procedure has gone through various changes.

When the practice first came to international attention, it was generally referred to as “female
circumcision.” (In Eastern and Northern Africa, this term is often used to describe FGM type I.)
However, the term “female circumcision” has been criticized for drawing a parallel with male
circumcision and creating confusion between the two distinct practices. Adding to the confusion is the
fact that health experts in many Eastern and Southern African countries encourage male
circumcision to reduce HIV transmission; FGM, on the other hand, can increase the risk of HIV
transmission.
It is also sometimes argued that the term obscures the serious physical and psychological effects of
genital cutting on women. UNFPA does not encourage use of the term “female circumcision”
because the health implications of male and female circumcision are very different.

The term “female genital mutilation” is used by a wide range of women's health and human rights
organizations. It establishes a clear distinction from male circumcision. Use of the word “mutilation”
also emphasizes the gravity of the act and reinforces that the practice is a violation of women's and
girls’ basic human rights. This expression gained support in the late 1970s, and since 1994, it has
been used in several United Nations conference documents and has served as a policy and
advocacy tool. In Resolution 65/170, Member States clearly stated that female genital mutilation
should be used to refer to this harmful practice.   
In the late 1990s the term “female genital cutting” was introduced, partly in response to dissatisfaction
with the term “female genital mutilation.” There is concern that communities could find the term
“mutilation” demeaning, or that it could imply that parents or practitioners perform this procedure
maliciously. Some fear the term “female genital mutilation” could alienate practicing communities, or
even cause a backlash, possibly increasing the number of girls subjected to the practice.

Some organizations embrace both terms, referring to “female genital mutilation/cutting” or FGM/C.

What terminology does UNFPA use?

UNFPA embraces a human rights perspective on the issue, and the term “female genital mutilation”
more accurately describes the practice from a human rights viewpoint.
Today, a greater number of countries have outlawed the practice, and an increasing number of
communities have committed to abandon it, indicating that the social and cultural perceptions of the
practice are being challenged by communities themselves, along with national, regional and
international decision-makers. Therefore, it is time to accelerate the momentum towards full
abandonment of the practice by emphasizing the human-rights aspect of the issue.

Additionally, the term “female genital mutilation (FGM)” is used in a number of UN and
intergovernmental documents. One recent document is the 2016 UN Secretary General's Report
(A/71/209) on Intensifying global efforts for the elimination of female genital mutilations. Other
documents using the term “female genital mutilation” include: Report of the Secretary-General on
Ending Female Genital Mutilation, Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament
and the Council: Towards the elimination of female genital mutilation, Protocol to the African Charter
on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa; Beijing Declaration and Platform
for Action; and Eliminating female genital mutilation: An interagency statement. And each year on 6
February, the United Nations observes the “International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital
Mutilation.” 
Where does the practice come from?

The origins of the practice are unclear. It predates the rise of Christianity and Islam. It is said some
Egyptian mummies display characteristics of FGM. Historians such as Herodotus claim that, in the
fifth century BC, the Phoenicians, the Hittites and the Ethiopians practiced circumcision. It is also
reported that circumcision rites were practiced in tropical zones of Africa, in the Philippines, by certain
tribes in the Upper Amazon, by women of the Arunta tribe in Australia, and by certain early Romans
and Arabs. As recent as the 1950s, clitoridectomy was practiced in Western Europe and the United
States to treat perceived ailments including hysteria, epilepsy, mental disorders, masturbation,
nymphomania and melancholia. In other words, the practice of FGM has been followed by many
different peoples and societies across the ages and continents.

At what age is FGM performed?

It varies. In some areas, FGM is carried out during infancy – as early as a couple of days after birth.
In others, it takes place during childhood, at the time of marriage, during a woman's first pregnancy or
after the birth of her first child. Recent reports suggest that the age has been dropping in some areas,
with most FGM carried out on girls between the ages of 0 and 15 years.

Where is FGM practiced?

The practice can be found in communities around the world.

In Africa, FGM is known to be practiced among certain communities in 29 countries: Benin, Burkina
Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Cote d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo,
Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Mali,
Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda and
Zambia.

Certain ethnic groups in Asian countries practice FGM, including in communities in India, Indonesia,
Malaysia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

In the Middle East, the practice occurs in Oman, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen, as well as in
Iraq, Iran and the State of Palestine.

In Eastern Europe, recent info shows that certain communities are practicing FGM in Georgia and the
Russian Federation. 

In South America, certain communities are known to practice FGM in Columbia, Ecuador, Panama
and Peru.

And in many western countries, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United States, the
United Kingdom and various European countries, FGM is practiced among diaspora populations from
areas where the practice is common.

Who performs FGM?

FGM is usually carried out by elderly people in the community (usually, but not exclusively, women)
designated to perform this task or by traditional birth attendants. Among certain populations, FGM
may be carried out by traditional health practitioners, (male) barbers, members of secret societies,
herbalists or sometimes a female relative.

In some cases, medical professionals perform FGM. This is referred to as the “medicalization” of

FGM. According to recent UNFPA’s estimates, around one in five girls subjected to FGM were cut by
a trained health-care provider. In some countries, this can reach as high as three in four girls.
According to estimates from demographic and health surveys and multiple indicator cluster surveys,
countries where the majority of FGM cases are performed by health workers are Egypt (38%), Sudan
(67%), Kenya (15%), Nigeria (13%) and Guinea (15%).
What instruments are used to perform FGM?

FGM is carried out with special knives, scissors, scalpels, pieces of glass or razor blades.
Anaesthetic and antiseptics are generally not used unless the procedure is carried out by medical
practitioners. In communities where infibulations is practiced, girls' legs are often bound together to
immobilize them for 10-14 days, allowing the formation of scar tissue.

Why is FGM performed?

In every society in which it is practiced, female genital mutilation is a manifestation of deeply

entrenched gender inequality. Where it is widely practiced, FGM is supported by both men and
women, usually without question, and anyone  that does not follow the norm may face condemnation,
harassment and ostracism. It may be difficult for families to abandon the practice without support
from the wider community. In fact, it is often practiced even when it is known to inflict harm upon girls
because the perceived social benefits of the practice are deemed higher than its disadvantages.

The reasons given for practicing FGM fall generally into five categories:

Psychosexual reasons: FGM is carried out as a way to control women’s sexuality, which is

sometimes said to be insatiable if parts of the genitalia, especially the clitoris, are not removed. It is
thought to ensure virginity before marriage and fidelity afterward, and to increase male sexual
pleasure.
Sociological and cultural reasons: FGM is seen as part of a girl’s initiation into womanhood and
as an intrinsic part of a community’s cultural heritage. Sometimes myths about female genitalia (e.g.,
that an uncut clitoris will grow to the size of a penis, or that FGM will enhance fertility or promote child
survival) perpetuate the practice.
Hygiene and aesthetic reasons: In some communities, the external female genitalia are considered
dirty and ugly and are removed, ostensibly to promote hygiene and aesthetic appeal.
Religious reasons: Although FGM is not endorsed by either Islam or by Christianity, supposed
religious doctrine is often used to justify the practice.
Socio-economic factors: In many communities, FGM is a prerequisite for marriage. Where women
are largely dependent on men, economic necessity can be a major driver of the procedure. FGM
sometimes is a prerequisite for the right to inherit. It may also be a major income source for
practitioners.
Is FGM required by certain religions?

No religion promotes or condones FGM. Still, more than half of girls and women in four out of 14
countries where data is available saw FGM as a religious requirement. And although FGM is often
perceived as being connected to Islam, perhaps because it is practiced among many Muslim groups,
not all Islamic groups practice FGM, and many non-Islamic groups do, including some Christians,
Ethiopian Jews, and followers of certain traditional African religions.

FGM is thus a cultural rather than a religious practice. In fact, many religious leaders have
denounced it.

Since FGM is part of a cultural tradition, can it still be condemned?

Yes. Culture and tradition provide a framework for human well-being, and cultural arguments cannot
be used to condone violence against people, male or female. Moreover, culture is not static, but
constantly changing and adapting. Nevertheless, activities for the elimination of FGM should be
developed and implemented in a way that is sensitive to the cultural and social background of the
communities that practice it. Behaviour can change when people understand the hazards of certain
practices and when they realize that it is possible to give up harmful practices without giving up
meaningful aspects of their culture.

Does anyone have the right to interfere in age-old cultural traditions such as FGM?

Every child has the right to be protected from harm, in all settings and at all times. The movement to
end FGM – often local in origin – is intended to protect girls from profound, permanent and
completely unnecessary harm. The evidence shows that most people in affected countries want to
stop cutting girls, and that overall support for FGM is declining even in countries where the practice is
almost universal (such as Egypt and Sudan). Ending FGM will take intensive and sustained
collaboration from all parts of society, including families and communities, religious and other leaders,
the media, governments and the international community.

What is the link between FGM and ethnicity?

Ethnicity is the most significant factor in FGM prevalence, cutting across socio-economic class and
level of education. Members of certain ethnic groups often adhere to the same social norms,
including whether or not to practice FGM, regardless of where they live. The FGM prevalence among
ethnic Somalis living in Kenya, for example, at 94 per cent, is similar to the prevalence in Somalia,
and far higher than the Kenyan national average of 21 per cent, according to the
most recent information available.
But there are exceptions. In Senegal, for example, there are major variations in FGM prevalence
among Mandingue women, depending on where they live – 55 per cent in urban areas versus 84 per
 cent in rural areas. Similarly, FGM prevalence among the Poular ranges from 41 per cent in urban
areas to 56 per cent in rural areas.
What do women and girls who have experienced FGM say about it themselves?

Women around the world are speaking out about their experiences and advocating change.
ding families and communities, religious and other leaders, the media, governments and the
international community.

What is the link between FGM and ethnicity?

Ethnicity is the most significant factor in FGM prevalence, cutting across socio-economic

class and level of education. Members of certain ethnic groups often adhere to the same

social norms, including whether or not to practice FGM, regardless of where they live. The

FGM prevalence among ethnic Somalis living in Kenya, for example, at 94 per cent, is similar

Female genital
to the prevalence in Somalia, and far higher than the Ke

mutilation (FGM) frequently asked

questions
1286

10.5K

178

July 2020

Author: UNFPA

Women and girls, aged 15-49, who have undergone some form of
FGM
Legend

 0 - 24.9%
 25% - 49.9%
 50% - 74.9%
 75% and above
 Table
 Download
View dashboard >
The above dashboard shows FGM prevalence in the 17 countries where the UNFPA-UNICEF Joint Programme on
Female Genital Mutilation operates. It is not an exhaustive illustration of FGM prevalence globally. FGM is practiced in
communities around the world, but data have not been systematically collected in many of these communities. 

What is female genital mutilation (FGM)?

How many women and girls are affected?
How does FGM affect the health of women and girls?
What are the consequences for childbirth?
Is there a link between FGM and the risk of HIV infection?
What are the psychological effects of FGM?
What are the different types of FGM?
Which types are most common?
Why are there different terms to describe FGM, such as female genital cutting and female
circumcision?
What terminology does UNFPA use?
Where does the practice come from?
At what age is FGM performed?
Where is FGM practiced?
Who performs FGM?
What instruments are used to perform FGM?
Why is FGM performed?
Is FGM required by certain religions?
Since FGM is part of a cultural tradition, can it still be condemned?
Does anyone have the right to interfere in age-old cultural traditions such as FGM?
What is the link between FGM and ethnicity?
What does the term “medicalization of FGM” mean?
Isn’t it safer for FGM to be performed by a skilled health worker rather than by somebody without a
medical background?
What is UNFPA's approach to FGM?
In which countries is FGM banned by law?
What does the ICPD Programme of Action say about FGM?
Which international and regional instruments can be referenced for the elimination of FGM?
What is female genital mutilation (FGM)?

FGM refers to all procedures involving partial or total removal of the external female genitalia or other
injury to the female genital organs for cultural or other non-medical reasons.
How many women and girls are affected?

An estimated 200 million girls and women alive today are believed to have been subjected to
FGM; but rates of FGM are increasing, a reflection of global population growth. Girls and women who
have undergone FGM live predominately in sub-Saharan Africa and the Arab States, but FGM is also
practiced in select countries in Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America. It is also practiced among
migrant populations throughout Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand. (See more.)
If FGM practices continue at recent levels, 68 million girls will be cut between 2015 and 2030 in 25
countries where FGM is routinely practiced and more recent data are available.
A key challenge is not only protecting girls who are currently at risk but also ensuring that those to be
born in the future will be free from the dangers of the practice. This is especially important considering
that FGM-concentrated countries are generally experiencing high population growth and have large
youth populations. In 2019, an estimated 4.1 million girls will be cut. This number of girls cut each
year is projected to rise to 4.6 million girls in the year 2030.  

How does FGM affect the health of women and girls?

FGM has serious implications for the sexual and reproductive health of girls and women.
The effects of FGM depend on a number of factors, including the type performed, the expertise of the
practitioner, the hygiene conditions under which it is performed, the amount of resistance and the
general health condition of the girl/woman undergoing the procedure. Complications may occur in all
types of FGM, but are most frequent with infibulation.
Immediate complications include severe pain, shock, haemorrhage, tetanus or infection, urine
retention, ulceration of the genital region and injury to adjacent tissue, wound infection, urinary
infection, fever, and septicemia. Haemorrhage and infection can be severe enough to cause death.

Long-term consequences include complications during childbirth,  anaemia, the formation of cysts

and abscesses, keloid scar formation, damage to the urethra resulting in urinary incontinence,
dyspareunia (painful sexual intercourse), sexual dysfunction, hypersensitivity of the genital area
and increased risk of HIV transmission, as well as psychological effects.
Infibulation, or type III FGM, may cause complete vaginal obstruction resulting in the accumulation of
menstrual flow in the vagina and uterus. Infibulation creates a physical barrier to sexual intercourse
and childbirth. An infibulated woman therefore has to undergo gradual dilation of the vaginal opening
before sexual intercourse can take place. Often, infibulated women are cut open on the first night of
marriage (by the husband or a circumciser) to enable the husband to be intimate with his wife. At
childbirth, many women also have to be cut again because the vaginal opening is too small to allow
for the passage of a baby. Infibulation is also linked to menstrual and urination disorders, recurrent
bladder and urinary tract infections, fistulae and infertility. 
What are the consequences for childbirth?

A recent study found that, compared with women who had not been subjected to FGM, those who
had undergone FGM faced a significantly greater risk of requiring a Caesarean section, an
episiotomy and an extended hospital stay, and also of suffering post-partum haemorrhage.

Women who have undergone infibulation are more likely to suffer from prolonged and obstructed
labour, sometimes resulting in foetal death and obstetric fistula. The infants of mothers who have
undergone more extensive forms of FGM are at an increased risk of dying at birth.
Very recent estimates by WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, The World Bank and the United Nations
Population Division reveal that most of the high-FGM-prevalence countries also have high maternal
mortality ratios and high numbers of maternal death. Two high-FGM-prevalence countries are among
the four countries with the highest numbers of maternal death globally. Five of the high-prevalence
countries have maternal mortality ratios of 550 per 100,000 live births and above.

Is there a link between FGM and the risk of HIV infection?

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.    

Additionally, due to damage to the female sexual organs, sexual intercourse can result in the
laceration of tissue, which greatly increases risk of HIV transmission. The same is true for the blood
loss that accompanies childbirth.

What are the psychological effects of FGM?

FGM may have lasting effects on women and girls who undergo FGM. The psychological stress of
the procedure may trigger behavioural disturbances in children, closely linked to loss of trust and
confidence in caregivers. In the longer term, women may suffer feelings of anxiety and depression.
Sexual dysfunction may also contribute to marital conflicts or divorce.

What are the different types of FGM?

The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified four types of FGM:

Type I, also called clitoridectomy: Partial or total removal of the clitoris and/or the prepuce.
Type II, also called excision: Partial or total removal of the clitoris and the labia minora, with or
without excision of the labia majora. The amount of tissue that is removed varies widely from
community to community.
Type III, also called infibulation: Narrowing of the vaginal orifice with a covering seal. The seal is
formed by cutting and re-positioning the labia minora and/or the labia majora. This can take place
with or without removal of the clitoris.
Type IV: All other harmful procedures to the female genitalia for non-medical purposes, for
example: pricking, piercing, incising, scraping or cauterization.
Other terms related to FGM include incision, deinfibulation and reinfibulation:

Incision refers to making cuts in the clitoris or cutting free the clitoral prepuce, but it also relates to
incisions made in the vaginal wall and to incision of the perineum and the symphysis.
Deinfibulation refers to the practice of cutting open a woman who has been infibulated to allow
intercourse or to facilitate childbirth.
Reinfibulation is the practice of sewing the external labia back together after deinfibulation.
Which types are most common?

Types I and II are the most common, but there is variation among countries. Type III – infibulation – is
experienced by about 10 per cent of all affected women and is most likely to occur in Somalia,
northern Sudan and Djibouti.

Why are there different terms to describe FGM, such as female genital cutting and female
circumcision?

The terminology used for this procedure has gone through various changes.

When the practice first came to international attention, it was generally referred to as “female
circumcision.” (In Eastern and Northern Africa, this term is often used to describe FGM type I.)
However, the term “female circumcision” has been criticized for drawing a parallel with male
circumcision and creating confusion between the two distinct practices. Adding to the confusion is the
fact that health experts in many Eastern and Southern African countries encourage male
circumcision to reduce HIV transmission; FGM, on the other hand, can increase the risk of HIV
transmission.
It is also sometimes argued that the term obscures the serious physical and psychological effects of
genital cutting on women. UNFPA does not encourage use of the term “female circumcision”
because the health implications of male and female circumcision are very different.

The term “female genital mutilation” is used by a wide range of women's health and human rights
organizations. It establishes a clear distinction from male circumcision. Use of the word “mutilation”
also emphasizes the gravity of the act and reinforces that the practice is a violation of women's and
girls’ basic human rights. This expression gained support in the late 1970s, and since 1994, it has
been used in several United Nations conference documents and has served as a policy and
advocacy tool. In Resolution 65/170, Member States clearly stated that female genital mutilation
should be used to refer to this harmful practice.   
In the late 1990s the term “female genital cutting” was introduced, partly in response to dissatisfaction
with the term “female genital mutilation.” There is concern that communities could find the term
“mutilation” demeaning, or that it could imply that parents or practitioners perform this procedure
maliciously. Some fear the term “female genital mutilation” could alienate practicing communities, or
even cause a backlash, possibly increasing the number of girls subjected to the practice.

Some organizations embrace both terms, referring to “female genital mutilation/cutting” or FGM/C.

What terminology does UNFPA use?

UNFPA embraces a human rights perspective on the issue, and the term “female genital mutilation”
more accurately describes the practice from a human rights viewpoint.

Today, a greater number of countries have outlawed the practice, and an increasing number of
communities have committed to abandon it, indicating that the social and cultural perceptions of the
practice are being challenged by communities themselves, along with national, regional and
international decision-makers. Therefore, it is time to accelerate the momentum towards full
abandonment of the practice by emphasizing the human-rights aspect of the issue.

Additionally, the term “female genital mutilation (FGM)” is used in a number of UN and
intergovernmental documents. One recent document is the 2016 UN Secretary General's Report
(A/71/209) on Intensifying global efforts for the elimination of female genital mutilations. Other
documents using the term “female genital mutilation” include: Report of the Secretary-General on
Ending Female Genital Mutilation, Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament
and the Council: Towards the elimination of female genital mutilation, Protocol to the African Charter
on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa; Beijing Declaration and Platform
for Action; and Eliminating female genital mutilation: An interagency statement. And each year on 6
February, the United Nations observes the “International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital
Mutilation.” 
Where does the practice come from?

The origins of the practice are unclear. It predates the rise of Christianity and Islam. It is said some
Egyptian mummies display characteristics of FGM. Historians such as Herodotus claim that, in the
fifth century BC, the Phoenicians, the Hittites and the Ethiopians practiced circumcision. It is also
reported that circumcision rites were practiced in tropical zones of Africa, in the Philippines, by certain
tribes in the Upper Amazon, by women of the Arunta tribe in Australia, and by certain early Romans
and Arabs. As recent as the 1950s, clitoridectomy was practiced in Western Europe and the United
States to treat perceived ailments including hysteria, epilepsy, mental disorders, masturbation,
nymphomania and melancholia. In other words, the practice of FGM has been followed by many
different peoples and societies across the ages and continents.

At what age is FGM performed?

It varies. In some areas, FGM is carried out during infancy – as early as a couple of days after birth.
In others, it takes place during childhood, at the time of marriage, during a woman's first pregnancy or
after the birth of her first child. Recent reports suggest that the age has been dropping in some areas,
with most FGM carried out on girls between the ages of 0 and 15 years.

Where is FGM practiced?

The practice can be found in communities around the world.

In Africa, FGM is known to be practiced among certain communities in 29 countries: Benin, Burkina
Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Cote d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo,
Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Mali,
Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda and
Zambia.

Certain ethnic groups in Asian countries practice FGM, including in communities in India, Indonesia,
Malaysia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

In the Middle East, the practice occurs in Oman, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen, as well as in
Iraq, Iran and the State of Palestine.

In Eastern Europe, recent info shows that certain communities are practicing FGM in Georgia and the
Russian Federation. 

In South America, certain communities are known to practice FGM in Columbia, Ecuador, Panama
and Peru.
And in many western countries, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United States, the
United Kingdom and various European countries, FGM is practiced among diaspora populations from
areas where the practice is common.

Who performs FGM?

FGM is usually carried out by elderly people in the community (usually, but not exclusively, women)
designated to perform this task or by traditional birth attendants. Among certain populations, FGM
may be carried out by traditional health practitioners, (male) barbers, members of secret societies,
herbalists or sometimes a female relative.

In some cases, medical professionals perform FGM. This is referred to as the “medicalization” of

FGM. According to recent UNFPA’s estimates, around one in five girls subjected to FGM were cut by
a trained health-care provider. In some countries, this can reach as high as three in four girls.
According to estimates from demographic and health surveys and multiple indicator cluster surveys,
countries where the majority of FGM cases are performed by health workers are Egypt (38%), Sudan
(67%), Kenya (15%), Nigeria (13%) and Guinea (15%).
What instruments are used to perform FGM?

FGM is carried out with special knives, scissors, scalpels, pieces of glass or razor blades.
Anaesthetic and antiseptics are generally not used unless the procedure is carried out by medical
practitioners. In communities where infibulations is practiced, girls' legs are often bound together to
immobilize them for 10-14 days, allowing the formation of scar tissue.

Why is FGM performed?

In every society in which it is practiced, female genital mutilation is a manifestation of deeply

entrenched gender inequality. Where it is widely practiced, FGM is supported by both men and
women, usually without question, and anyone  that does not follow the norm may face condemnation,
harassment and ostracism. It may be difficult for families to abandon the practice without support
from the wider community. In fact, it is often practiced even when it is known to inflict harm upon girls
because the perceived social benefits of the practice are deemed higher than its disadvantages.

The reasons given for practicing FGM fall generally into five categories:

Psychosexual reasons: FGM is carried out as a way to control women’s sexuality, which is

sometimes said to be insatiable if parts of the genitalia, especially the clitoris, are not removed. It is
thought to ensure virginity before marriage and fidelity afterward, and to increase male sexual
pleasure.
Sociological and cultural reasons: FGM is seen as part of a girl’s initiation into womanhood and
as an intrinsic part of a community’s cultural heritage. Sometimes myths about female genitalia (e.g.,
that an uncut clitoris will grow to the size of a penis, or that FGM will enhance fertility or promote child
survival) perpetuate the practice.
Hygiene and aesthetic reasons: In some communities, the external female genitalia are considered
dirty and ugly and are removed, ostensibly to promote hygiene and aesthetic appeal.
Religious reasons: Although FGM is not endorsed by either Islam or by Christianity, supposed
religious doctrine is often used to justify the practice.
Socio-economic factors: In many communities, FGM is a prerequisite for marriage. Where women
are largely dependent on men, economic necessity can be a major driver of the procedure. FGM
sometimes is a prerequisite for the right to inherit. It may also be a major income source for
practitioners.
Is FGM required by certain religions?

No religion promotes or condones FGM. Still, more than half of girls and women in four out of 14
countries where data is available saw FGM as a religious requirement. And although FGM is often
perceived as being connected to Islam, perhaps because it is practiced among many Muslim groups,
not all Islamic groups practice FGM, and many non-Islamic groups do, including some Christians,
Ethiopian Jews, and followers of certain traditional African religions.

FGM is thus a cultural rather than a religious practice. In fact, many religious leaders have
denounced it.

Since FGM is part of a cultural tradition, can it still be condemned?

Yes. Culture and tradition provide a framework for human well-being, and cultural arguments cannot
be used to condone violence against people, male or female. Moreover, culture is not static, but
constantly changing and adapting. Nevertheless, activities for the elimination of FGM should be
developed and implemented in a way that is sensitive to the cultural and social background of the
communities that practice it. Behaviour can change when people understand the hazards of certain
practices and when they realize that it is possible to give up harmful practices without giving up
meaningful aspects of their culture.

Does anyone have the right to interfere in age-old cultural traditions such as FGM?

Every child has the right to be protected from harm, in all settings and at all times. The movement to
end FGM – often local in origin – is intended to protect girls from profound, permanent and
completely unnecessary harm. The evidence shows that most people in affected countries want to
stop cutting girls, and that overall support for FGM is declining even in countries where the practice is
almost universal (such as Egypt and Sudan). Ending FGM will take intensive and sustained
collaboration from all parts of society, including families and communities, religious and other leaders,
the media, governments and the international community.

What is the link between FGM and ethnicity?

Ethnicity is the most significant factor in FGM prevalence, cutting across socio-economic class and
level of education. Members of certain ethnic groups often adhere to the same social norms,
including whether or not to practice FGM, regardless of where they live. The FGM prevalence among
ethnic Somalis living in Kenya, for example, at 94 per cent, is similar to the prevalence in Somalia,
and far higher than the Kenyan national average of 21 per cent, according to the
most recent information available.
But there are exceptions. In Senegal, for example, there are major variations in FGM prevalence
among Mandingue women, depending on where they live – 55 per cent in urban areas versus 84 per
cent in rural areas. Similarly, FGM prevalence among the Poular ranges from 41 per cent in urban
areas to 56 per cent in rural areas.
What do women and girls who have experienced FGM say about it themselves?

Women around the world are speaking out about their experiences and advocating change.
nyan national average of 21 per cent, according to the most recent information available.
But there are exceptions. In Senegal, for example, there are major variations in FGM prevalence
among Mandingue women, depending on where they live – 55 per cent in urban areas versus 84 per
cent in rural areas. Similarly, FGM prevalence among the Poular ranges from 41 per cent in urban
areas to 56 per cent in rural areas.
What do women and girls who have experienced FGM say about it themselves?

Women around the world are speaking out about their experiences and advocating change.