FORWARD unveils new research exploring and showcasing the critical work of diaspora changemakers in the global movement to end Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), work that often goes underappreciated.
FORWARD commissioned the research set out in this report to document the motivations, actions, and impact of African people and organisations in the diaspora who are part of the movement to end FGM in Europe and Africa. This specific work has not been explored before. We wanted to provide a more holistic understanding of change makers’ efforts and of the societal and cultural landscapes that change makers must navigate in order to deliver this important advocacy work.
FORWARD is extremely grateful to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the Comic Relief Maanda Programme and the Schwab Charitable Fund, who have funded this research project. This research was part of the Accelerating African-Led FGM Change Makers project under the African Union Spotlight African Regional Programme implemented in Europe and Africa and led by FORWARD.
This report analyses the views of Africans in the diaspora who are working to end female genital mutilation (FGM), who we refer to as “change makers”.
In their own voices, it explores:
- what motivated them (and their organisations) to begin working to end FGM;
- what their roles are and what actions they are taking to end the practice; and
- their impact on the global movement to end FGM in Africa, Australia, Europe and North America.
