FGM war in Samburu gets Sh709m boost

Miriam loves education and would do anything to succeed to help her parents back in Nkorika, Samburu County.

Her journey towards her dream of being a renowned teacher was well on course until March 2020, when the government shut down schools due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Unfortunately, she was subjected to female genital mutilation (FGM) and married off to old generational Samburu warriors who are christened lkishami as a result.

Miriam’s dream is deferred at the moment as she is nursing her one-year-old son in her rural village in Soit-Pus area, Samburu County.

"School closures ruined my life. Everyone turned against my wishes, including my parents whom I trusted most. My classmates then in school have moved ahead," says a devastated Miriam, who was then a Class Six pupil at Nkorika Primary School.

According to the Samburu culture, FGM symbolises transition from girlhood to womanhood, and is an adored traditional practice done on girls as young as nine years.

Despite it having devastating physical and psychological effects on girls, the retrogressive cultural practice is still rampant in Samburu County.

To address this challenge, World Vision injected Sh709 million in a five-year program aimed at ending FGM in the county.

World Vision Program Manager Alex Macharia, says they conduct mentorship programs to empower communities to abandon FGM.

He says the programs will take participants through several trainings including a model for alternative rites of passage. This, he says, will allow girls to transition into womanhood without being circumcised and married off as per their cultural demands.

“We will work with the community, parents and children to give them the knowledge they need on abandonment of the vice," Mr Macharia says.

The training will also see girls initiated into adulthood through mentorship and sensitisation on sexual reproductive health, child rights and the harmful effects of FGM.

Boys, men and older women will also participate in the training sessions so they can become anti-FGM champions.

Human rights

"We are not leaving men behind because we understand they are key in the fight against the retrogressive practice. We have lined up trainings to help them understand the harmful effects of FGM," he adds.

Kenya outlawed FGM ten years ago and it has since been recognized as a violation of human rights. Unfortunately, thousands of young girls across the country, majority under the age of 15, are at risk of undergoing this harmful practice annually.  

Despite strict legislation coupled with sensitization forums, the practice continues as some communities believe it is necessary for social acceptance and increases marriage prospects.

According to the United Nations, about four million women and girls (one in five women) have been subjected to the vice where prevalence rates in some communities are as high as 94 per cent. The UN also blames the closure of schools in 2020 (in response to the outbreak of Covid-19) for the surge in cases of FGM and child marriages.

The international body warns that an estimated 574,000 additional Kenyan girls are at risk of undergoing FGM between now and 2030 unless urgent action is taken.

Kenya committed to eliminating the retrogressive cultural practice by 2022. Time is ticking, will Kenya's quest succeed ahead of the 2022 global target? The government is now racing against time to end the vice.

Northern counties of Samburu, West Pokot and Wajir have prevalence rates of over 90 per cent - but anti-FGM campaigners say it possible to turn around the beliefs of those perpetrating these acts within the remaining time ahead of the 2022 target.

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