African Communities End FGM With Faith Leaders and Laws

When Olivia Albert was 14, she endured female genital mutilation and hid her pain because everyone said it was normal. Five years later, she's leading the change that will spare other girls in Tanzania's Mara region from the same trauma.

More than 230 million women worldwide live with the physical and mental scars of FGM. Nearly 4.5 million girls face the procedure in 2026 alone, often justified by the false claim that abandoning it means rejecting faith and tradition.

But survivors and religious leaders are rewriting that story. Imam Ousmane Yabara Camara, a respected voice in Guinea, speaks plainly: "Female genital mutilation is not a prescription of Islam. Too many girls suffer from the severe health consequences of this practice."

In 2025, Islamic scholars in Djibouti, Eritrea, and Somalia issued national fatwas stating clearly that no religious grounds exist to justify FGM. "In our neighbourhoods, we now have two powerful shields: the Constitution and the fatwa," said activist Nafissa Mahamoud Mouhoumed from Djibouti.

The legal shield matters too. New laws across Africa are giving activists the backing they need to protect girls while the religious declarations remove the justification families used for generations.

In Ethiopia, where three quarters of women aged 15 to 49 have undergone FGM, district chief Mitiku Gunte watched helplessly as women died from childbirth complications. Now he leads a program engaging hundreds of men and boys in ending the practice, going door to door with messages tailored for elders, young men, women, and youth.

Olivia Albert joined community dialogues where survivors shared their experiences openly. "When girls hear from someone who has lived through this, they listen differently," she said. "They find courage."

The Ripple Effect

Schools across the region now teach comprehensive sexuality education, reaching thousands of children with facts about FGM's dangers. Healthcare providers like Dr. Maram Mahmoud in upper Egypt, who once treated complications after the damage was done, now confidently guide families away from the practice before harm occurs.

The combination of survivor voices, religious clarity, legal protection, and male allies is creating momentum that seemed impossible a generation ago. "We cannot erase the past, but we can make sure the next girl grows up without fear," Olivia said, speaking for millions who refuse to let this practice define their daughters' futures.