UN aims to end FGM by 2030

The United Nations has devised new development goals, which include bringing to an end female genital mutilation (FGM) over the next 15 years.

Writing for the online news provider Open Democracy, Nafissatou J. Diop, senior advisor and coordinator of the UNFPA-UNICEF Joint Programme on FGM/Cutting: Accelerating Change, explained that world leaders are to commit to new targets.

Over the next few months, heads of state will work together to deliver Sustainable Development Goals, which replace the Millennium Development Goals that were established in 2000.

Mr Diop noted that this is a big ask, as FGM is still widely practiced, especially in Africa and the Middle East.

“Although FGM prevalence has dropped in many countries, the rate of decline is far below what is needed,” he stated in the article.

“If the current trend continues, UNFPA estimates that 86 million girls born from 2010-2015 will be at risk of being cut by 2030.”