World Female Genital Mutilation Day: Stakeholders Call For Abolition, Say Practice Harmful To Health Of Girl Child

By Magnus Emuji

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) has been described as harmful practice with several health implications for the girl child and should be abolished in every society.

The Delta State Coordinator, Girls Power Initiative, Ehita Ikoghode Akpatanyi stated this at Zappa primary School, Asaba during a sensitisation workshop organised for teachers and female students as part of activities to commemorate the 2022 World Female Genital Mutilation day .

She said that the Girls Power Initiative was an organisation geared towards ensuring that all young girl child grew up to become a healthy adult that would take responsibility and leadership role as well as be able to function independently.

Akpatanyi stated that the organisation designed to ensure that the dominance of men especially in Nigerians society was broken to give women the opportunity to be participants in the leadership positions in the society.

She said that female genital my was harmful practice that prevented girls from being healthy, stressing that when a girl was mutilated she could bleed to death as well as contact infections even as she noted that there were policies against the practice.

While saying that that they were marking the world female genital mutilation day towards zero tolerance to the practice , Girl Power Initiative Executive Chair said that the organisation believed that every girl child had the right to live healthy and be encouraged not to suffer any form of violence.

The Girls Power Initiative Executive Chair said that the organisation decided to educate the stakeholders especially teachers as a result of the pivotal role teachers play in enlightening wider society.

Speaking in an interview with newsmen,the Delta State Commissioner for Humanitarian Affairs, Barr. Bridget Anyafulu said that it was an international day set aside to remind the whole world that it was important that every individual fought against female gender mutilation, adding that it was barbaric.

She stated that any circumcision done to female child could lead to the death of the child, noting that abolishing the practice was designed to protect the child from death .

Anyafulu said that they it had become imperative that every stakeholder should speak to their people on the the need to avoid the practice