5 Key facts on FGM
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Globally, it is estimated that at least 200 million girls and women alive today have undergone some form of FGM.
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Girls 14 and younger represent 44 million of those who have been cut, with the highest prevalence of FGM among this age in Gambia at 56 percent, Mauritania 54 percent and Indonesia where around half of girls aged 11 and younger have undergone the practice.
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Countries with the highest prevalence among girls and women aged 15 to 49 are Somalia 98 percent, Guinea 97 percent and Djibouti 93 percent.
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FGM causes severe bleeding and health issues including cysts, infections, infertility as well as complications in childbirth and increased risk of newborn deaths.
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The elimination of FGM has been called for by numerous inter-governmental organizations, including the African Union, the European Union and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, as well as in three resolutions of the United Nations General Assembly.
