Female circumcision is a traditional practice in Africa, extending across the width of the continent between the Tropic of Cancer and the Equator. There are various methods, all barbaric to a greater or lesser extent, with the most dramatic being infibulation, which consists of the removal of the entire clitoris and the adjacent labia minora, after which the two labia major are brought together and stitched, obliterating the introitus except for a very small, posterior opening for the passage of urine and menstrual blood. In Africa, infibulation is practiced in Somalia, the Sudan, in the southern areas around the Nile in Egypt, and in some isolated areas in the western region such as Mali and Nigeria. Infibulation, unlike other less dramatic forms of circumcision (sunna and clitoridectomy), which are primarily sexual mutilations, presents serious hazards for women's because of the obliteration of natural openings. The danger becomes particularly acute with menarche, consummation of marriage, and childbirth (WHO 1982). The practice continues to be widespread in many African countries, despite continuous reports, and documented evidence, of its harmful effects. Today, in Mogadish, Somalia, the custom has lost much of its traditional meaning and is evolving into a simple clinical practice (Grassivaro Gallo in press a). At present, there is a greater demand for the operation to be performed by medical or paramedical practitioners, even if they are not fully qualified (Ismail 1982:274), but who, because they work in hospitals, can avail themselves of some drugs and employ more hygienic practices. There is no evidence, however, of Western physicians performing the procedure. Traditional midwives, using the empirical knowledge transmitted from mother to daughter, perform the operation in less important medical centers and in the bush (Costanzo 1968). For this reason, the opinions of future Somalian medical professionals about female circumcision are important, because they should be predictive of future trends in this practice in Somalia. Also, modifications in the training of students are urgently needed to cultivate an awareness in the students of the negative effects of female circumcision. Arguments against the custom are associated with new concepts of health and respect for a new identity and roles for women in the society, concepts that should not be neglected in the training of medical workers.