Gov. Hope Uzodinma of Imo has said that laws prohibiting the practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) are not enough to stop the practice.
Uzodinma said this while speaking at a workshop to mark the year 2025 International Day of Zero Tolerance for FGM, organised by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Owerri, on Thursday.
Uzodinma spoke on the year’s theme: “ Stepping Up The Pace: Strengthening Alliances and Building Movements to End FGM”.
He regretted that Imo was the state with the highest prevalence of FGM in the southeast and called for immediate domestication of the campaign against FGM.
The governor called on town union leaders, other grassroots leaders and parents to take ownership of the campaign and rise in unison against FGM.
“ FGM is psychologically dehumanizing; we must condemn the practice and make a pledge that we go to work and ensure that by the time we convene here next year, zero tolerance for FGM will have become a reality in Imo.
Speaking, the governor’s wife, Mrs Chioma Uzodinma, described girl child education as a potent weapon that can enable the female folk become agents of change.
Mrs Uzodinma called for mentorship programmes to address immediate and long term consequences of FGM, while stating that Imo was determined to face the challenge and lead by example.
She thanked UNICEF and the United Nations Population Fund for their willing, healthy partnerships and called for more holistic engagements around FGM.
Our correspondent reports that the UNICEF’s Head of Enugu Field Office, Mrs Juliet Chiluwe, had, on Wednesday, identified Imo as the state with the highest prevalence of FGM in the southeast, and called for efforts to change the narrative.
Present at the event were Nigeria’s Minister of Women Affairs, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, as well as members of the All Progressives Congress national working committee.