On the occasion of the International Day Against Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting, February 6th the UNFPA Executive Director Thoraya Obaid and UNICEF Executive Director Ann M. Veneman issued statement in which they stated that progress has been made in recent years in reducing the incidence of female genital mutilation or cutting (FGM/C), largely because communities and families are taking action and calling for change.

The statement said that an estimated 120 to 140 million women have been subject to this harmful and dangerous practice and 3 million girls continue to be at risk each year. The practice persists because it is sustained by social perceptions, including that girls and their families will face shame, social exclusion and diminished marriage prospects if they forego cutting. These perceptions can, and must, change.

According to UNFPA and UNICEF, FGM/C poses immediate and long-term consequences for the health of women and girls, and violates their human rights. The statement indicated that success in reducing the incidence in several countries where it was once highly prevalent has occurred as a result of culturally sensitive engagement with local communities, encouraging change from within. Where communities have chosen to make public declarations against the practice, for example in Senegal, declines of up to 65 per cent have been recorded.