Following a letter of intent signed in December 2010, AWEPA is cooperating with UNFPA and UNICEF towards the abandonment of FGM/C in the context of their Joint Programme “Female Genital Mutilation: Accelerating Change” that focuses on 17 African countries. Initially, AWEPA will focus its support on three African countries, Burkina Faso, Mali and Senegal. This programme is funded by the Luxembourg Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through the UNFPA.

The overall objective of AWEPA‟s FGM/C programme is the abandonment of the practice of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting in Africa and Europe by 2015. The purpose of the programme is to enhance the capacity of selected African Parliaments to exercise their oversight, representative and legislative functions with regard to the practices of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting, with a focus on one hand on FGM/C legislation and the monitoring of its implementation, and on the other hand on the need for a community-based approach. The first activity, a national parliamentary workshop, will take place in Burkina Faso.

Date: 26 - 28 April 2012
Place: Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

AWEPA and the Women’s Caucus of the Pan-African Parliament have recently produced Guidelines for Parliamentarians on the abandonment of FGM/C that can be downloaded here:

>>> Parliamentary Guidelines on the abandonment of FGM/C

Further Information on AWEPA's FGM/C programme:

>>> FGM/C programme