According to UNFPA, more than 200 million women and girls have undergone FGM/C globally, and over three million more are at risk every year. FGM/C is recognized internationally as a violation of the rights of women and girls.
The Girl Generation-Support to Africa-led Movement (TGG_ALM) has developed its flagship training for Survivors of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C). TGG-ALM has gained confidence and momentum in recent years, with backing from both governments and international and national agencies.
“Survivor activists and others who work to end FGM/C face numerous challenges to their emotional well-being, particularly when working in resource-poor settings with low levels of support for ending FGM/C, and where women and girls face multiple vulnerabilities including economic insecurity, forced marriage, and sexual violence. They often face stigma, social ostracism, and threats to their safety,” says Dr. Leyla Hussein, OBE, the Global Advocacy Director and Deputy Team Leader of TGG-ALM.
“Survivors of FGM/C report feeling isolated and alone and do face emotional burnout out by working, often over many years on extremely troubling cases, and with limited support. Many activists are survivors of FGM/C themselves. These present challenges to emotional well-being, combined with limited support networks or resources for self-care, tend to limit the end FGM/C movement’s sustainability and effectiveness. There are increasing calls within the movement to recognize and respond to these challenges.” Added Dr. Leyla Hussein.
Survivor activists working in affected communities are also increasingly calling for the psychosocial impact of FGM/C to be recognized and addressed, both for women’s well-being and as a critical component of prevention.
“If women can create safe spaces in which to reflect on their own experiences, and what this means for their own daughters, this creates an opportunity for the inter-generational cycle of FGM/C to be broken.” Says Dr. Leyla Hussein.
Small group sessions during the training including Hon. Monica (left) who won a Member of the County Assembly seat at Bomet County in the last general elections. “One important skill I gained is making it known what I’m bringing to the table.” Said Monica
THE OVERALL GOAL OF SLT IS TO STRENGTHEN THE AFRICA-LED MOVEMENT’S ABILITY TO:
- Provide sustainable emotional support and funding for women and girls affected by FGM/C, in order to enhance prevention efforts and support survivors
- Fill the gap for survivor leadership in the end FGM/C movement by equipping and empowering survivors to become leaders
- Ensure self-care for survivors working to end FGM/C, and
- Break down the stigma associated with FGM/C and associated emotional/mental health issues
THE PROGRAMMES SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES ARE TO:
- Co-create and Implement a Survivor Leadership Training (SLT) support package (incorporating existing training guide and related resources on ‘Ending FGM and promoting emotional wellbeing’ package of support), for survivors of FGM/C in Africa to adapt and use in their own contexts. The SLT will strengthen the individual and institutional capacities of Survivor-led organizations effectively to plan, implement, and scale up social change initiatives to end FGM/C.
- Increase access to funding for grassroots survivor-led grassroots organizations through the Survivor Leadership Fund (SLF) to catalyze survivor-led social change to end FGM/C
- Amplify survivor stories by using of digital storytelling method to support survivors of FGM/C to tell their stories in a supportive and validating environment and to create a digital resource that lasts in perpetuity and can be used ad infinitum.
- Build knowledge, skills, and good practice using a survivor-centered approach among all those with a role in providing care, support, and protection for survivors.
SEE BELOW THE SURVIVORS LEADERSHIP TRAINING MODEL
Survivors learning to develop SMART projects during the training
This year in Kenya, 20 survivors from 18 hot spot counties have been trained in Survivors Leadership skills. The survivors have been keen to pass the skills to girls and women who are survivors in their communities as they continue to create awareness of the dangers of FGM/C. This leadership training will be replicated in other TGG-ALM focus countries, which are Ethiopia, Senegal and Somaliland.
