Islamabad: More than 4.5 million girls around the world are at risk of undergoing female genital mutilation (FGM) in 2026, many of them under the age of five, as declining global investment in health, education and child protection threatens to slow or reverse progress made against the harmful practice, the United Nations has.
In a joint statement issued on the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation on Friday, the heads of UNFPA, UNICEF, UN Women, the World Health Organization (WHO), UNESCO and the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights said that despite decades of work, millions of girls remain vulnerable to a practice that violates basic human rights and causes lifelong physical and psychological harm.
According to UN estimates, more than 230 million girls and women alive today have undergone FGM and are living with its long-term consequences.
The practice involves the partial or total removal of external female genitalia, or other injury to female genital organs, for non-medical reasons. It is mostly carried out on young girls, often before the age of five, and sometimes during adolescence.
The procedure is commonly performed without anaesthesia, using unsterilised instruments, and can result in severe bleeding, infections, complications in childbirth, long-term pain, trauma and, in some cases, death.
The UN leaders said female genital mutilation has no health benefits and cannot be justified on cultural, religious or social grounds. They stressed that the practice undermines the health, dignity and rights of women and girls and places a heavy burden on already strained health systems.
The cost of treating complications linked to FGM is estimated at around $1.4 billion every year, adding further pressure on health services in low- and middle-income countries.
Despite these risks, the UN noted that progress has been made in recent decades. Public support for abandoning FGM has grown significantly in countries where the practice is common, with nearly two-thirds of people in affected communities now saying they want it to end.
The number of girls subjected to FGM has declined from around one in two in 1990 to about one in three today. Half of the progress achieved since 1990 has taken place in the past decade, indicating that change is possible when sustained political commitment and community engagement are maintained.
Health experts say the decline is largely due to long-term investment in education, awareness campaigns, legal reforms and community-led initiatives. Efforts that involve religious and community leaders, parents, teachers and health workers have helped challenge harmful social norms and reduce acceptance of the practice. Media campaigns and youth networks have also played a growing role in changing attitudes, particularly among younger generations.
However, the UN agencies warned that the momentum could be lost as international funding for health, education and child protection programmes comes under pressure. Cuts in development assistance and shrinking budgets for gender and child rights programmes are already affecting community outreach efforts in several countries.
Without predictable and sustained financing, frontline services that protect girls and support survivors risk being scaled back at a time when millions remain at risk.
The UN also expressed concern over what it described as growing “pushback” against efforts to eliminate FGM, including attempts in some settings to normalise the practice by framing it as acceptable when performed by doctors or health workers. Health authorities have repeatedly warned that so-called “medicalised” FGM is still harmful and unethical, and does not reduce the long-term physical and psychological damage caused by the procedure.
The joint statement stressed that investments in ending FGM are not only a moral and human rights imperative but also make economic sense. UN agencies estimate that every dollar invested in prevention and protection yields around ten dollars in social and economic returns.
An investment of $2.8 billion over the coming years could prevent up to 20 million cases of FGM and generate nearly $28 billion in long-term benefits by reducing health costs and improving education and economic outcomes for girls.
As the 2030 deadline for achieving the Sustainable Development Goal of ending female genital mutilation approaches, UN leaders urged governments, donors and partners to renew their commitment. They called for increased support for community-led movements, stronger integration of FGM prevention into health and education systems, and expanded access to medical, psychosocial and legal services for survivors.
“Without sustained political will and financing, the progress made over decades could be reversed,” the UN leaders said, warning that millions more girls could be exposed to the practice if current efforts weaken.
The UN said it would continue to work with governments, civil society groups, community leaders and survivors to accelerate efforts to end female genital mutilation and ensure that girls and women affected by the practice receive the care and protection they need.
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