By Isaac Atunlute
The battle to end repressive cultural practices that endanger adolescent girls has gained steam in recent years, with even state governments in Nigeria taking bold actions.
In a groundbreaking initiative, more than 3,900 adolescent girls from Oyo State have been mobilised as adolescent gender champions to combat female genital mutilation (FGM) in their communities.
The girls underwent a two-day training in Ibadan, organised by the Oyo State Government in partnership with Trailblazer Initiative Nigeria (TBI) and UNICEF.
They will now serve as advocates in four local governments—Ido, Oluyole, Olorunsogo, and Saki East—raising awareness, supporting survivors, and driving attitude shifts.
This youth-led initiative is not only raising awareness but also fostering community accountability and resilience. By placing adolescent girls at the heart of the solution, the programme is nurturing a generation of leaders who are changing the narrative around FGM.
“We’re building a movement—one girl, one facilitator, one safe community at a time,” said Dare Olagoke Adaramoye, TBI’s executive director.
The programme integrates multiple layers of engagement—training community facilitators through neighbourhood girl clubs, engaging traditional and religious leaders in conversation, and embedding the gender champions into local structures to sustain long-term change.
In 2018, Oyo State had one of the highest FGM prevalence rates in Nigeria—estimated at 66–67% among women aged 15–49, ranking fifth in the country.
However, over the past six years, the state has made significant progress, reducing the rate to 31.3%.
This progress is inspired in part by successful models in other southwestern states. Similar initiatives supported by UNFPA and UNICEF in Osun and Ekiti States have created “women champions” and trained community responders to counsel survivors and follow up on cases.
Projects like HACEY Health Initiative’s “The Stop Cut Project” across these states have shown measurable declines in FGM prevalence where legal reforms and community engagement were enhanced.
Nationally, Nigeria’s 2021–2025 National Policy and Plan of Action for the Elimination of FGM, backed by the Violence Against Persons Prohibition Act, provides a legal framework that supports such local efforts.
Meanwhile, the UNFPA–UNICEF Joint Programme on the Elimination of FGM brings together stakeholders and survivors annually to assess progress, with support from high-profile advocates like First Lady Oluremi Tinubu.
Yet despite these advancements, the pace of progress remains slow. A 2024 UNICEF–UNFPA report cautions that efforts to extirpate FGM are currently falling short, lagging twelvefold behind the pace needed to meet the Sustainable Development Goal of ending the practice by 2030.
Nonetheless global initiatives like the #FrontlineEndingFGM caravans, which drive through the hundreds of villages across 20 countries, are sustaining the momentum.
In Nigeria, models like TBI, driven by teen girls, are proving transformative. These young advocates are reshaping cultural norms, holding leaders accountable, and institutionalising anti-FGM values within their communities.
These actions demonstrate that eliminating FGM demands a multisectoral approach—legal action, survivor assistance, and community education, as well as mobilisation by young people.
With continued community ownership in states like Oyo, Osun, and Ekiti, the dream of an FGM-free Nigeria is within reach. And, with it, the promise of a future where every girl can live with health, dignity, and freedom.
In recent years, efforts to combat female genital mutilation (FGM) in Nigeria have intensified, with significant actions taken by state governments. In Oyo State, over 3,900 adolescent girls have been trained as gender champions to address FGM by raising awareness, supporting survivors, and promoting cultural shifts in four local governments. This initiative, a collaboration between the Oyo State Government, Trailblazer Initiative Nigeria (TBI), and UNICEF, emphasizes community accountability and resilience, focusing on empowering adolescent girls as leaders against FGM.
Oyo State has witnessed a significant reduction in FGM prevalence, declining from 66–67% in 2018 to 31.3% today, through community-centric efforts. These initiatives draw inspiration and successful strategies from other southwestern states like Osun and Ekiti, which have also seen progress through community engagement and legal reforms. Nationwide, Nigeria's 2021–2025 National Policy and Plan of Action for the Elimination of FGM and the UNFPA–UNICEF Joint Programme on the Elimination of FGM provide a supportive legal and collaborative framework for such efforts.
Despite advancements, challenges remain. The pace of eliminating FGM is not meeting the targets needed to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal of ending the practice by 2030. However, global campaigns like the #FrontlineEndingFGM caravans continue to drive awareness and change. Within Nigeria, models led by young advocates, such as TBI, are effectively reshaping cultural norms, holding leaders accountable, and promoting anti-FGM values. Ultimately, the comprehensive, multisectoral approach involving legal action, community education, and youth mobilization promises an FGM-free future where all girls can live with dignity and freedom.
