Health
Female genital cutting in Somalia: how common it is, what the law says, and what is changing
Almost all Somali women, 99% of those aged 15 to 49, have been cut, according to the 2020 national health survey, and 64% had the most severe, Pharaonic type. Most girls are cut between ages 5 and 14. The 2012 Constitution bans the practice and calls it 'tantamount to torture', and religious leaders in Puntland signed a fatwa against all forms in 2013.
In short
Female genital cutting, called gudniin in Somali, is practised on almost every girl in Somalia. The Constitution prohibits it, and religious scholars in Puntland have ruled against it. This page sets out the numbers and the law.
How common it is
The Somali Health and Demographic Survey of 2020 asked women aged 15 to 49 about cutting (SHDS 2020, chapter 10):
| Finding | Share |
|---|---|
| Women aged 15 to 49 who have been cut | 99% |
| Pharaonic type (the most severe, with stitching) | 64% |
| Intermediate type | 12% |
| "Sunni" type (the least severe) | 22% |
| Women cut between ages 5 and 9 | 71% |
| Daughters aged 10 to 14 already cut | 76% |
| Women who believe it is a religious requirement | 72% |
| Women who want it to continue | 76% |
The types
The survey used three definitions (SHDS 2020):
- Sunni: removal of the clitoral hood, with or without part or all of the clitoris.
- Intermediate: removal of the clitoris with partial or total removal of the inner labia.
- Pharaonic: removal of part or all of the outer genitals and stitching to narrow the opening.
The survey describes the practice as harmful, because it puts the health and well-being of women and girls at risk (SHDS 2020).
Belief, schooling and wealth
Most women surveyed see cutting as a religious requirement. Education changes this: 74% of women with no schooling see it as a religious requirement, against 44% of women with higher education. Wealth matters too: 77% of the poorest women hold this belief, against 59% of the richest (SHDS 2020).
What the law and scholars say
- The Constitution. Article 15(4) of the 2012 Provisional Constitution says: "Circumcision of girls is a cruel and degrading customary practice, and is tantamount to torture. The circumcision of girls is prohibited" (28 Too Many, Somalia: the law and FGM, July 2018).
- No criminal law yet. As of 2018, there was no national law that set out a crime and a punishment for cutting (28 Too Many 2018).
- Puntland. In November 2013, 18 leading religious scholars in Puntland signed a fatwa banning all forms of cutting, on health and religious grounds (28 Too Many 2018). In June 2021 Puntland's cabinet approved a bill banning all forms, which UNFPA welcomed (UNFPA Somalia).
Voices for change
Somali midwife Edna Adan Ismail, who was cut as a child, has said: "Islam forbids female circumcision" (see Edna Adan Ismail). Health workers abroad meet its effects in pregnancy and birth; see caring for Somali patients.
Read more
- Health in Somalia: the national health numbers.
- Islam in Somalia: faith and daily life.
Sources
- Federal Government of Somalia and UNFPA (2020). Somali Health and Demographic Survey 2020, chapter 10.
- 28 Too Many (2018). Somalia: the law and FGM.
- UNFPA Somalia (2021). UNFPA Somalia congratulates Puntland for passing a bill that prohibits FGM.
Sources
- SHDS 2020, chapter 10 · somalia.unfpa.org
- 28 Too Many, Somalia: the law and FGM, July 2018 · orchidproject.org
- UNFPA Somalia · somalia.unfpa.org
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