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Munavara Ghauri, UK
International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) was initiated by the United Nations in 2003 and is marked on February 6th. It is a day designed to raise awareness of the practice whereby the female genitalia of girls and women are removed or altered for non-medical reasons in some societies. Contrary to common misconceptions, there are no religious grounds for this barbaric practice.
The UN are campaigning to eradicate female genital mutilation (FGM) by 2030 worldwide. Although primarily concentrated in African countries such as Somalia and Guinea, FGM is increasingly a universal problem. The COVID-19 pandemic has also exacerbated the situation. The UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund)[1] has predicted that the pandemic will prevent another 2 million cases of FGM being averted by 2030.
