Renowned Nollywood actress and UNICEF champion, Kate Henshaw, has called for an immediate end to the practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).
Speaking in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Saturday, Henshaw urged perpetrators to cease the harmful act.
FGM is internationally recognized as a violation of the rights of girls and women, involving the alteration or injury of female genitalia for non-medical reasons.
The World Health Organization (WHO) reported that as of 2023, approximately 230 million girls and women globally have undergone FGM, with around 68 million girls at risk of experiencing the practice between 2015 and 2030.
Nigeria holds the third highest burden of FGM worldwide, accounting for about one-tenth of global survivors and ranking highest in Africa.
Henshaw strongly condemned the practice, stating, “The act is not supported by science and has no medical or moral value attached to it.” She urged women who perform FGM to stop and to become advocates against the practice to protect other women.
“The same women that carry it out are the same women that are going to end it,” Henshaw emphasized. “Times have changed, we are in the 21st century; we cannot be talking about practices that harm but should be talking about things that will add value to the female child.”
Henshaw highlighted the importance of continued dialogue on the issue to raise awareness and support the efforts of those campaigning against FGM.
She noted that significant efforts have been made by various individuals and organizations to eradicate FGM in Nigeria but stressed the need for more action, especially within families.
“We need to talk to our gender, women, because we are at the forefront of these harmful practices. Women are the gatekeepers to some of these harmful practices,” she said. “We have some for widowhood too, even domestic violence, and child abuse is sometimes perpetrated by women.”
Henshaw called for empathy and the protection of young girls, advocating for their right to grow and live without the threat of FGM. “We should always sound the alarm on anything that is harmful to another human being,” she concluded.
