TERRE DES FEMMES is a German women's rights organization based in Berlin that has been working on the issue of female genital mutilation since it was founded in the 1980s, including through political lobbying and public relations work, training for professionals, work with communities in Germany and support for partner organizations abroad.
At the time of the expert dialog, the Gambian government was about to vote on whether the ban on FGM/C should be overturned. Although FGM/C has been banned there since 2015, 73% of women are still affected. Last year, a debate about the ban on FGM/C flared up; leading religious leaders spoke out against the ban and in favor of preserving FGM/C as a supposedly valuable part of their culture. A bill to lift the ban was then tabled in the National Assembly earlier this year. The Gambia would have been the first country to reverse a ban on FGM/C. This development led to national and global reactions from activists and those affected: Educational and campaign work as well as political activism on the ground, diplomatic talks with actors in The Gambia by the German and American embassies, among others, political lobby trips, petitions and open letters.
On 15.07.2024, the Gambian National Assembly finally voted against the law to repeal the ban on female genital mutilation in an early vote!
The legal ban on FGM/C gives the fight against FGM/C legitimacy and a legal framework. However, many more steps are needed to bring about lasting change to the practice. A large number of civil society organizations are committed to this and we can support them in various ways. These include, for example
Girls Pride Gambia
Network Against Gender Based Violence
ActionAid International The Gambia
Safe Hands for Girls
Shine Light in Girls Education
and many more...