Global Consultation on Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting Technical Report p ai g e Global Consultation on Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting Technical Report Prepared by Gender, Human Rights and Culture Branch Technical Division Contents List of Abbreviations and Acronyms . viii Acknowledgements . x Foreword . xii Executive Summary . 1 Introduction . 2 I. Opening Statements ...................................................................... 4 A . Welcoming Remarks by Mr . Benson Morah, Director, UNFPA Country Technical Services Team, Addis Ababa . 5 B . Keynote Address by Ms . Fama Hane Ba, Director, Africa Division, UNFPA . 6 Summary of Presentations and Discussions . 9 II. Prevalence of FGM/C . 10 A . Global Trend and Prevalence of FGM/C: Development of Data Analysis Tools for Measuring Changes in FGM/C Practice . 11 (Ms. Maria Gabriella De Vita, Child Protection Specialist, Gender Equality and Social Change, Child Protection Section, Programme Division, UNICEF) B . Linkages of Maternal and Newborn Mortality with FGM/C . 13 (Dr. Guyo Jaldesa, Consultant, Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, Principal Investigator, WHO) C . Promulgation of Laws . 14 (Ms. Faiza Jama Mohamed, Regional Director Africa, Equality Now) III. FGM/C Changing Patterns and Practices . 18 A . Latest Developments in Social Sciences; FGM/C as a Self-Enforcing Social Convention: Basic Principles . 19 (Ms. Francesca Moneti, Senior Child Rights Officer, UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre) B . The Medicalization of FGM/C: Trends and Global View . 21 (Dr. Elise B. Johansen, Technical Officer, WHO) C . The Medicalization of FGM/C: Case Study in Egypt . 22 (Dr. Mohamed Farid, Project Officer, Reproductive Health Services, Ministry of Health and Population, Egypt) D . Emerging Community Strategies to Maintain FGM/C Practice: Changing Patterns and Practices – The Kenyan Perspective . 24 (Dr. Kemal Mustafa, UNFPA Representative, Kenya) E . Emerging Community Strategies to Maintain FGM/C Practice in Uganda . 25 (Dr. Hassan Mohtashami, UNFPA Representative, a.i., Uganda) IV. FGM/C: A Threat to Human Rights and to the Achievement of Millennium Development Goals . 26 (Ms. Seynabou Tall, Gender Adviser, UNFPA Country Technical Services Team, Addis Ababa) V. Cost Implications of FGM/C Practice ........................................................ 30 A . FGM/C in Relation to Women’s and Girls’ Rights: Experiences of No Peace without Justice . 31 (Ms. Alvilda Jablonko, FGM/C Programme, No Peace without Justice) B . Denial of Women’s Rights and Insights on New Approaches to Gender Equity: “CARE’s Strategic Impact Inquiry on Women’s Empowerment and FGM/C Abandonment in Awash” . 32 (Ms. Haregewien Admassu, Gender Adviser, CARE Ethiopia) C . Psychological and Sociocultural Implications . 32 (Ms. Faiza Benhadid, Gender Adviser, Country Technical Services Team, Amman) D . Economic and Health Costs . 33 (Dr. Tshiya Subayi-Cuppen, Dr. Khama Rogo and Dr. Gebreselassie Okubagzhi, the World Bank Group) VI. Experiences/Lessons Learned and Best Practices in the Abandonment of FGM/C . 34 A . The Politics of FGM/C, Partnership-building and Community Accountability Mechanism: Case Study, Kapchorwa District, Uganda . 35 (Ms. Margaret Thuo, Adviser, Behaviour Change Communication and Advocacy, UNFPA Country Technical Services Team, Addis Ababa) B . Working with Maasai Communities . 36 (Ms. Judith Kunyiha Karogo, Programme Officer, UNFPA Kenya) C . The Inter-Africa Committee on Traditional Practices (IAC): Programme Strategy . 37 (Mr. Isatou Touray, Secretary General, IAC) D . Sociocultural Contribution to the Abandonment of FGM/C . 38 (Mr. Ali Hashim Sarag, Sociocultural/Religious Expert, Sudan) E . Lessons Learned from Operations Research . 39 (Ms. Maryam Sheikh Abdi, Programme Officer, the Population Council, Nairobi) VII. Strategies that Work: Scaling up and Lobbying for a Global Effort / 42 A . Community-led Developments Using Social Convention Theory, Diffusion Models and Social Networking . 43 (Mr. Malick Diagne, Deputy Director, Tostan) B . Community Conversation Model . 44 (Dr. Bogaletch Gebre, Founder, Kembatta Mentti Gezzima Tope, Ethiopia) C . Coordinated Strategy for the Abandonment of FGM/C: Main Elements, Goals and Objectives . 46 (Ms. Maria Gabriella De Vita, Child Protection Specialist, Gender Equality and Social Change, Child Protection Section, Programme Division, UNICEF) D . Experiences in FGM/C Interventions with Norwegian Support . 48 (Dr. Berit Audstveg, Senior Adviser, NORAD) E . FGM/C Abandonment: Mali Experience . 50 (Mme. Keita Josephine Traore, Director, National Programme for the Abandonment of FGM/C, Mali) F . Monitoring and Evaluation, Including Development Indicators . 50 (Ms. Laura Raney, Programme Associate, FRONTIERS, The Population Council, Washington, D.C.) VIII. Identification of Gaps in Policies and Laws on FGM/C: Panel Discussion . 54 A . Support for International Instruments and Harmonization of Traditional/Religious and Statutory Laws . 55 (Advocate Ibrahim Lethome Asmani, Kenya High Court) B . Enforcement of Existing Laws and Policies pertaining to the Abandonment of FGM/C . 56 (His Worship Simon Peter Odoo, Senior Magistrate, Kapchorwa, Uganda) C . Ensuring Public Understanding of the Relevant Legal Provisions (Legal Literacy) . 58 (Ms. Mariam Lamizana, Honorary President, IAC) D . Advocating for Political and Community Accountability in the Abandonment of FGM/C . 58 (Imam Afiz Ambekema, Benin) IX. Culturally Sensitive Approaches for Sustainable Abandonment of FGM/C: Panel Discussion........ 60 A . Culturally Sensitive Communication Approaches to Support Shifts in FGM/C related Social Norms . 61 (Ms. Tabeyin Gedlu, Programme Communication Officer, UNICEF Ethiopia) B . Five Dimensional Approaches in Community Mobilization: Ethiopia’s Experience . 62 (Mr. Abebe Kebede, Executive Director, Ethiopia Committee on Traditional Practices) C . Regional Experiences . 63 (Ms. Faiza Mohamed, Regional Director, Equality Now) D . UNFPA Perspectives on Culturally Sensitive Approaches . 66 (Ms. Miriam Jato, Senior Gender Adviser, Africa Division, UNFPA) E . The Face of FGM/C in Southern and Central Africa . 67 (Ms. Safiatu Singhateh, Gender, Population and Development Adviser, UNFPA Country Technical Services Team, Harare) X. Panel Discussion: Building the Capacity of Managers and Implementers for Planning, Implementing, Evaluating and Scaling up FGM/C Innovative Interventions . 70 Contributors: Dr. Magdi Hemy, Director, Health Programmes, CARITAS, Egypt Ms. Beatrice Chelangat, Coordinator, REACH Uganda Ms. Safia Elmi Djinril, Director of Mother and Child Health, Djibouti Ms. Fatma Abdel Fattal, Executive Director, Sudanese Network on FGM/C XI. Panel Discussion: Resource Mobilization for Scaling up FGM/C Abandonment Efforts Globally . 72 A . Guiding Principles for Resource Mobilization . 73 (Ms. Fama Hane Ba, Director, Africa Division, UNFPA) B . Belgium’s Contribution to the Abandonment of Harmful Practices, including FGM/C . 73 (Ms. Cecile Charot, Deputy Adviser, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Development Cooperation, Belgium) C . The Case for Investing in the Abandonment of FGM/C . 74 (Ms. Layla Shaaban, Programme Analyst, Office of Population and Reproductive Health, USAID) D . Norway’s Interventions Concerning FGM/C . 76 (Dr. Berit Audstveg, Senior Adviser, NORAD) XII. Global Partnership-building for the Abandonment of FGM/C ................................... 78 A . Fostering Joint Programming to Accelerate Change: Example of the UNFPA-UNICEF Joint Programme and Trust Fund . 79 (Ms. Aminata Toure, Chief, Gender, Human Rights and Culture Branch, UNFPA) B . Inter-Agency Group on FGM/C . 81 (Ms. Bintou Sanogoh, Director, UNFPA Country Technical Services Team Dakar, and Dr. Morissanda Kouyate, Director of Operations, IAC, Addis Ababa) C . Donors’ Working Group on the Elaboration of a Common Framework for the Abandonment of FGM/C . 82 (Ms. Francesca Moneti, Senior Child Rights Officer, UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre) D . Global Collaboration in Monitoring and Evaluation of FGM/C . 83 (Ms. Ann P. McCauley, Ph.D., Senior Reproductive Health Technical Adviser/Programme Officer, USAID/East Africa Mission E . Research on Emerging Issues: Towards a Global Research Strategy for the Abandonment of FGM/C 84 (Dr. Mary Anne Burke, Health Analyst/Statistician, Global Forum for Health Research) XIII. Final Conclusions and Recommendations . 86 A . The Way Forward . 87 B . Final Declaration of Participants . 87 C . Closing Remarks . 89 Annexes .................................................................................... 90 1 . List of Participants . 91 2 . Summary of WHO Study Group on Female Genital Mutilation and Obstetric Outcome . 95 List of Abbreviations and Acronyms AIDOS Italian Association for Women in Development (Associazione Italiana Donne per lo Sviluppo) AJM Malian Women Lawyers’ Association (l’Association des Juristes Maliennes) AMSOPT Malian Association for Overseeing Directions in Traditional Practices (Association Malienne pour le Suivi et l’Orientation des Pratiques Traditionnelles) APDF Association for the Protection and Advancement of the Rights of Malian Women (Association pour Le Progres and La Defense des Droits des Femmes Maliennes) ARP Alternative Rite of Passage CARE Humanitarian organization fighting global poverty CBO Community-based organization CCE-CC Community Capacity Enhancement through Community Conversation CDF Community Dialogue Facilitator CEP Community Empowerment Programme CEWLA Centre for Egyptian Women Legal Assistance CI-AF