FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION AND GIRL-CHILD DILEMMA: THE NIGERIA EXPERIENCE
FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION AND GIRL-CHILD DILEMMA: THE NIGERIA EXPERIENCE

Summary/Abstract: Female genital mutilation may have been outlawed in Nigeria; it is still widely practiced in several Nigerian societies and cultures. The focus of this paper is to explore the practice of female genital mutilation in Nigeria on the girl-child. In other to achieve this, the paper was broadly classified as the good, bad, and ugly. The study revealed that, Nigeria has one of the highest numbers of female genital mutilation in the world and that the practice is more prevalent in the southern part of the country than what is obtainable in the northern parts of the country although to an extreme in certain areas in the north. It was also discovered in the study that, female genital mutilation is more prevalent in societies with high rates of illiteracy, ignorance, poverty and low status of women. The study concludes that, the place of culture in any society cannot be over-emphasized; therefore the significance of female genital mutilation as a cultural practice to societies and culture in Nigeria cannot be undermined. It also concludes that since female genital mutilation is deeply rooted and entrenched in many Nigerian societies, total abolition of female genital mutilation may not be feasible because of its cultural significance which is imperative for the survival of the society. Therefore, despite the health implications of female genital mutilation on girls and women, there is cultural justification for the practice and as such, the study recommends clinical procedure for female genital mutilation in Nigeria.

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