Eliminate Female Genital Mutilation by 2030, say UNFPA and UNICEF
Statement by UNFPA Executive Director Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin and UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake on the 2016 International Day of Zero Tolerance for FGM
NEW YORK (February 5, 2016) – “FGM is a violent practice, scarring girls for life -- endangering their health, depriving them of their rights, and denying them the chance to reach their full potential.
“FGM is widespread. It is a global problem that goes well beyond Africa and the Middle East, where the practice has been most prevalent -- affecting communities in Asia, Australia, Europe, North and South America. And the number of girls and women at risk will only get larger if current population trends continue, wiping out hard-won gains.
“FGM is discrimination. It both reflects and reinforces the discrimination against women and girls, perpetuating a vicious cycle that is detrimental to development and to our progress as a human family.
“FGM must end. In September at the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit, 193 nations unanimously agreed to a new global target of eliminating FGM by 2030. This recognition that FGM is a global concern is a critical milestone.
“But the recognition, while important, is not enough. To protect the wellbeing and dignity of every girl, we need to take responsibility as a global community for ending FGM.
“That means we need to learn more -- improving our data collection to measure the full extent of the practice -- and do more. We need to encourage more communities and families to abandon FGM. We need to work with larger numbers of medical communities -- including traditional and medical professionals -- persuading them to refuse to perform or support FGM. We need to support more women and girls who have undergone the harmful practice and provide them with services and help to overcome the trauma they have suffered. And we need to support and empower girls around the world to make their voices heard and call out to put an end to FGM.
“All of us must join in this call. There simply is no place for FGM in the future we are striving to create – a future where every girl will grow up able to experience her inherent dignity, human rights and equality by 2030.”
About UNFPA
UNFPA works to deliver a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every young person’s potential is fulfilled.
About UNICEF
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) works in more than 190 countries and territories to put children first. UNICEF has helped save more children’s lives than any other humanitarian organization, by providing health care and immunizations, clean water and sanitation, nutrition, education, emergency relief and more. The U.S. Fund for UNICEF supports UNICEF's work through fundraising, advocacy and education in the United States. Together, we are working toward the day when no children die from preventable causes and every child has a safe and healthy childhood. For more information, visit www.unicefusa.org.
For more information, contact:
Sophie Aziakou, U.S. Fund for UNICEF, 917.720.1397, saziakou@unicefusa.org