Abstract
Background:Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) is a traditional practice which involves the partial or total removal or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons. Although current trends indicate that the practice is becoming less prevalent, as many as 30 million girls may still be at risk of FGM/C. Given the associated risks and violation of the human rights of girls and women, the practice is discouraged through preventative interventions.Aims:To systematically review the effectiveness of anti-FGM/C interventions, applying a realist perspective.Methods:The realist synthesis approach addressed context-mechanisms-outcomes (CMO) underlying intervention in an attempt to explain interventions’ success or lack thereof. The process involved exposed the usefulness of strategies in different contexts.Results:Eight effectiveness studies and 27 context studies were included. All of the effectiveness studies employed a controlled, before-and-after study design. They formed five broad categories of intervention: training, formal classroom education, media communication, outreach and advocacy, and informal adult education. The CMO configurations showed that the proposed engine behind changing behaviours regarding FGM/C appeared largely to be dissemination of information. Some interventions’ acceptability and success rested on the incorporation of FGM/C abandonment efforts within a larger set of related issues. However, greater success of the interventions could have materialised with systematic pre-planning involving thorough community analyses and securing religious leaders’ commitment to halting FGM/C.Conclusion:The results of this analysis point to conditions that facilitate the success of FGM/C abandonment programmes in different contexts and can be used in future prevention efforts to reduce the risk of girls being subjected to FGM/C.
Highlights
Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) is a traditional practice, most prevalent in Africa and the Middle East, which involves the partial or total removal or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons.[1]
FGM/C comes in many forms, but four general types are described: clitoridectomy, excision, infibulation, and other, with infibulation being the most invasive.[1]
In some countries such as Eritrea and Ethiopia, the number of girls subjected to FGM/C is greater than the number of women who support it, probably indicating that it is decided in a wider context.[2]
Summary
Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) is a traditional practice, most prevalent in Africa and the Middle East, which involves the partial or total removal or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons.[1]. Current trends indicate that the practice is becoming less prevalent, as many as 30 million girls under the age of 15 may still be at risk of FGM/C.2. In some countries such as Eritrea and Ethiopia, the number of girls subjected to FGM/C is greater than the number of women who support it, probably indicating that it is decided in a wider context.[2]. All of the effectiveness studies employed a controlled, before-and-after study design They formed five broad categories of intervention: training, formal classroom education, media communication, outreach and advocacy, and informal adult education. Conclusion: The results of this analysis point to conditions that facilitate the success of FGM/C abandonment programmes in different contexts and can be used in future prevention efforts to reduce the risk of girls being subjected to FGM/C
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