Summary of presentation of information

Moderator: Carol Jenkins – President and CEO of the ERA Coalition and the Fund for Women’s Equality

• Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) affects over 200,000,000 women and girls globally.
• The call to action includes acknowledging that we cannot bring about its end without engaging everyone, including boys and men.

Speaker 1: Mireille Tushiminina – Global Coordinator of the UNFPA-UNICEF
 “We can’t have solutions to FGM without involving both genders”

Speaker 2: Rodrigue Nkwayaya – European End FGM Network

• Discussions around FGM used to be a taboo in many cultures. Some men believe when a woman is mutilated it gives them control over the women.
• Men must be sensitised, trained, and empowered on the consequences of FGM and the long term and also short-term effects on women and girls.
• FGM is recognised worldwide as a fundamental violation of the human rights of girls and women.
• Some tools used in training men to end FGM are:
  • Body Map - which shows the full body image of the female
  • Human Rights - Which elaborates on the rights of individuals, and
  • Problem Trees - Which helps to visualize the problems in form of a tree diagram in order to analyse cause-effect relationships

Speaker 3: Dame Ndiaye – Coordinator of the National Youth alliance for Reproductive Health.
  “The practice of FGM is not supported by God”

Speaker 4: Fatima Sy – Executive Secretary of the Senegalese Association for the future of Women and Children.
  "To participate in the fight against female genital mutilation, it is important to involve future parents, namely young people". "Participating in the emancipation of women and girls is a duty of every citizen".

What information shared in this meeting is of significance to The Salvation Army and why?

Creation of awareness in the fight to end Female gender Mutilation/Cutting and training and sensitizing men on the long- and short-term side effects of FGM.

What is The Salvation Army currently doing to address the UN Sustainable Development Goals addressed in this meeting?

• For almost as long as The Salvation Army has existed, it has operated hospitals and clinics in some of the neediest areas of the world.
• The Salvation Army works in 131 countries responding to the health concerns in communities. In addition to church-based programmes, The Salvation Army currently has 172 health facilities in 37 countries, focusing on healthcare and the prevention of disease.
• The Salvation Army also provides health awareness and education sensitizing people on various health topics.

What opportunities are there for The Salvation Army to create or further develop the work in this area?

As The Salvation Army has access to many communities (especially in Africa where FGM is high in prevalence) there are opportunities to be able to raise awareness of the dangers of FGM and its long-term effects on girls and their families.

Web links for more information

https://actiontoendfgmc.com/csw66-info/ - CSW66 Information (actiontoendfgmc.com)