The workshop was held under the high patronage of the Ministry of Women, Family and Childhood of Senegal and was organised with the support of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.Participants included representatives from the Ministry of Women, Family and Childhood and the Ministry of Justice, the judicial sector, civil society activists, as well as representatives of UN agencies (UNICEF, UNFPA).
In addition to aiming to consolidate the political will of Senegalese authorities to implement Resolution 69/150, the workshop provided an opportunity to analyse and discuss national mechanisms designed to protect women and girls against FGM and to identify adequate measures to improve existing strategies addressing violations of the prohibition of FGM and build the capacity of the police, gendarmerie and the judiciary in ensuring compliance with the law, with a focus on areas of the country where FGM prevalence is high (Matam, Tamba, Kédougou, Kolda, Sédhiou, Ziguinchor, Saint Louis, Thiès (Mbour)).
The Senegalese law banning FGM dates to 1999, and furthermore, the Constitution of 22 January 2001 establishes that the right to the integrity of the person must be guaranteed and protected, notably against any form of physical mutilation. Similarly to other countries in which FGM is committed, the fight against this human rights violation requires enhanced cooperation and synergy of action among all institutions and civil society organisations focused on FGM, including work to prevent and condemn the rise of its medicalisation, as well as the strict and effective enforcement of the law prohibiting FGM, to protect its victims and to hold perpetrators to account.
Documentation:
- Final report of the national workshop (in French)
- Presentation made by Mr Abdoulaye BA, Directeur Adjoint des Affaires Criminelles et des Grâces, Ministère de la Justice
- Concept note of the national workshop (in French)
- Ban FGM Campaign
- NPWJ Gender & Human Rights Program activities
Press coverage:
- L’accélération de l’abandon de l’excision au menu d’une rencontre, mercredi, Agence de Presse Sénégalaise (APS), 20 décembre 2016
- Des acteurs prônent la “dénonciation positive’’ pour l’abandon des mutilations génitales féminines, Agence de Presse Sénégalaise (APS), 20 décembre 2016
- Excision : légère hausse du taux de prévalence à 14,6%, Agence de Presse Sénégalaise (APS), 21 décembre 2016
- Plaidoyer : Elimination des MGF : le mal n’est pas éradiqué, Interview de Khady Koïta, ,Le Quotidien (Sénégal), 21 décembre 2016
For more information, contact Alvilda Jablonko, Coordinator of the Gender and Human Rights Program, on ajablonko@npwj.org, phone: +32 494 533 915 or Nicola Giovannini, email: ngiovannini@npwj.org, phone: +32 2 548 39 15.
