Nigeria: Anti-Female Genital Cutting Program

• Overview
• Partners
• Target Audience
• Objectives
• Activities
• Outputs
• Future Plans

Overview

Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation with over 110 million people, has the largest number of circumcised women in the world with an estimated 27.1 million. Throughout Nigeria, female genital cutting (FGC) prevalence rates vary widely. Within southeastern Nigeria, Enugu state has one of the highest rates of FGC prevalence, most recently estimated at 59% (RMS Report, 1999).

As a result of these DHS findings, JHU/PCS conducted participatory formative research in three geographically distinct areas of Enugu to explore community beliefs and practices surrounding FGC, as well as women's perceived reproductive health needs and problems. The formative research in Enugu State revealed that:

1. FGC is commonly practiced, usually within a newborn's first week of life.
2. FGC is primarily practiced because both men and women believe it prevent women's promiscuity later in life.
3. Women frequently experience serious reproductive health problems - the most frequently cited are complications and/or death during or after delivery and infertility.
4. A high degree of social organization and experience with collective action in Enugu State presents an opportunity for mobilizing communities to address women's rights and reproductive health needs, including reduction in FGC.

In 2002, JHU/PCS and Save the Children developed a program promoting public dialogue and action on eliminating female genital cutting (FGC) in Enugu State, Nigeria. The program is now supported under the Health Communication Partnership (HCP), Nigeria. The 'Ndukaku" project (Igbo for 'health is better than wealth") uses a multi-pronged, non-confrontational approach that challenges individuals and communities to examine their beliefs and values around FGC. Ndukaku also encourages individual and community action toward the elimination of FGC where it no longer contributes to the family, community, or society well-being.

Partners

• Save the Children
• WARO (Women Action Research Organization)
• NAWOJ (National Association of Women Journalists)

Target Audience

Women of child bearing age, with infant daughters in particular, are the primary target audience for the Ndukaku project. Secondary audiences are: 1) community leaders and families; and 2) opinion leaders at the state level. The project operates in one southeastern state (Enugu State).

Objectives

The Ndukaku project aims to decrease the number of families in target communities in Enugu State, Nigeria, who circumcise their infant daughters. This anti-FGC project involves community mobilization, media advocacy, capacity building activities for local NGOs and behavior change communication across three levels--hamlet level, locality level, and state level.

This multi-channel approach encompasses:

• Hamlet level (the smallest unit of social organization), capacity building and community mobilization efforts to improve the health of women, including the reduction of harmful traditional practices;
• Hamlet, locality and LGA level communication activities to change social norms and contribute to a more conducive environment for the elimination of FGC; and
• A state level media coverage of activities at the hamlet and LGA levels as the basis of a campaign to engage the public in an on-going dialogue on the practice of FGC.

Specific objectives of this campaign are:

• Promote public dialogue on FGC.
• Increase the number of people who understand the harmful effects of FGC.
• Reduce the number of commonly held myths and misperceptions about the practice of FGC.
• Increase the number of traditional, religious, and political leaders who support the elimination of FGC.
• Increase the number of people who have taken specific steps towards eliminating the practice of FGC.

Activities

The main community mobilization activity at the hamlet level, called the Community Action Cycle (CAC), focuses on strengthening community members' abilities to identify, analyze and address their most pressing health issues.

The CAC uses the community members' perceived reproductive health priorities as an entry point and begins to engage the community in related issues, such as taking a critical look at traditional or cultural practices, household decision-making, the status of women, etc. Save the Children (a partner under HCP) developed the community action cycle, whereby a core group of community members first identifies and explores health priorities and then leads a process of community-wide planning and action to achieve improvements and meet community needs. The core groups represent a cross-section of the community, including men, women, and youth. Monitoring and evaluation by the community ensures that they know whether the actions that they take are working and allows them to modify their approach when necessary. The emphasis of the CAC is on long-term development and sustainability of a process for addressing behavior change and problem solving by community members.

Outputs (Phase I):

• Targeted advocacy visits with local leaders.
• Anti-FGC discussions at the annual tribal "Home and Abroad" meetings.
• Anti-FGC newspaper columns and radio shows.
• Completion of the autodiagnosis stage of the community action cycle.
• Regular networking meetings.

Impact (Phase I)

• Established a firm foundation for the project.
• Strengthened the capacity building of local partners through training in CAC management.
• Conducted participatory formative research, resulting in joint strategies and workplans.

Future Plans

In Ndukaku Phase II, the Women Action Research Organization (WARO) will continue to support and strengthen the core groups that have been established in the project's three intervention hamlets during Phase I. The HCP team will provide a second training for WARO staff to strengthen their skills and confidence in effectively leading the community level planning and action phases of the CAC. Under Phase II, the core groups will be able to complete the community action cycle in each of the three hamlets. WARO will continue to make regular monthly visits to each of the three project hamlets.

HCP expects that WARO staff will be able to independently lead future sessions of the CAC process by the end of Ndukaku Phase II. The intention is that these three hamlets will inspire neighboring hamlets to take action towards eliminating the practice of FGC. These three core groups will begin to link with other interested hamlets and neighboring communities in the area, share the lessons and achievements from CAC, and demonstrate how to use the CAC in other communities.

By the end of Phase II of Ndukaku, HCP anticipates the following results in Enugu State:

• Public discussion and debate on FGC;
• Religious, traditional, and political leaders as anti-FGC advocates;
• Social pressure for the elimination of the FGC practice;
• Reduction of the practice of FGC within three targeted localities; and
• Sustainability of the community action cycle in three targeted intervention hamlets.

Previous | Next
Table of Contents