Atleast 22 girls in Kapchorwa district have been saved from mutilation this year alone.
This was revealed by the Chief Administration Officer of Kapchorwa District, Charles Olubo while basing on District Community Development Officer’s (DCDO) statistics.
Mr. Olubo said that “These are merely the reported incidents; just think about how many go unreported.”
According to him, other statistics from the same department also revealed that 619 cases of child marriage, 420 (defilement), 2,870 (gender-based violence), 1,694 (child and women torture), 522 (abandoned children), 221 (assault cases), have so so far happened this year.
Olubo was giving remarks during the Sabiny Cultural Day celebrations held in Kapchorwa on Wednesday , October 30, under the theme “Preventing harmful traditional practices against women and girls.
He said that “Despite the enactment of the Anti-FGM Act in 2010, the practice continues to occur secretly in remote areas, and forests.
He said that these statistics are not good at all. And this is awake up call to all leaders in the area to reflect and take immediate action against the vices, noting that “ Together we can end this vice and we must start now.”
The event was organised by the Kapchorwa District with support from ActionAid International Uganda (AAIU) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) attracted over 200 participants, including community members, cultural and religious leaders, and government officials, and other stakeholders.
During the event, leaders noted that FGM is a key factor contributing to the prevalence of child marriages, which remain widespread in the three districts of Kapchorwa, Kween, and Bukwo.
“Once circumcised, these girls are considered ready for marriage, often in exchange for significant gifts like cows” said Mr. Olubo, adding that FGM practice is still viewed as a rite of passage into womanhood, with girls undergoing the procedure around the ages of 10 to 15.
He emphasized the importance of embracing positive cultural practices to safeguard the identity of the Sabiny people while fostering development in the area.
He called for enhanced collaboration with police and security agencies, and other partners like cultural leaders, AAIU and the UNFPA, to address the issue.
He said that “as the Kapchorwa district, we denounced all the harmful practices including child marriage and FGM which remain rampant.”
Peter Swilikei Kissa, the Sabiny cultural leader, who was the guest of honor emphasized the importance of acknowledging the vulnerabilities faced by women and girls.
He said that “We think the cultural institution is a platform which can unite. It can help us to address the community as whole, especially the challenges which affect the community like the cultural traditional practices. Those ones cut across. They are not unique to Kapchorwa or Kween or Bukwo.”
“Cultural institution possesses the expertise to collaborate with partners and effectively carry out a range of programs aimed at enhancing people’s quality of life” he emphasized.
Sam Ononge, the AAIU Sebei FGM project officer, said that FGM surveillance teams also rescued seven girls from Bukwo and four from Kween districts who were at risk of undergoing FGM.
He highlighted the ongoing challenge of cross-border FGM, which continues to make it difficult to identify those responsible for the acts.
He noted that “the issue of cross border continues biting us and is not stopping. Being an even year, we have got intelligence through our different platforms, that this year might even be worse.”
According to the Uganda Demographic Health Survey (UDHS 2016), there has been a notable decline in FGM prevalence, dropping from 1.4% in 2011 to 0.3% in 2016. However, the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) survey from the same year reported that the FGM rate stands at 68% among women in Karamoja and Sebei, with 8% of girls aged 15-24 affected.
The Pokot community typically performs the procedure on girls between the ages of 9 and 14, while the Sabiny community tends to carry it out on girls aged 10 to 15.
Within the Pokot community, the prevalence of FGM is alarmingly high, reaching nearly 95%, while the Sabiny community has an estimated prevalence of around 50%, according to a UNFPA report from 2011.
