The End FGM EU Youth Forum
On the 18th of November, End FGM EU held its first Youth Forum meeting in Brussels. The forum aims to establish an End FGM Youth Group actively involved with our work to end FGM in Europe and beyond. Our commitments to end female genital mutilation in Europe and beyond would be incomplete and unsustainable without mobilizing and preparing the next generation of activists for the tasks ahead.
FGM is a global concern affecting more than 200 million girls and women in 30 countries in Africa, the Middle East and Asia, and girls below 14 represent 44 million of those who have been cut. An estimated 500,000 women and girls are living with the effects in European Union. It is evident that FGM is a deep rooted socio-cultural problem that requires coordinated and comprehensive actions for social change to make it an issue of the past. We believe that children and young people have a unique perspective and potential to drive this change if they are educated and empowered to play their future parent role promoting and protecting the rights of women and girls.
This group of young people will be strategic in influencing our work on advocacy and awareness raising, by taking the lead and or cooperating with older generations of activists to plan and implement activities that promote children’s right and protection from FGM.
Stay tuned for more!
