FGM/C is #MyIssueToo

On the eve of International Day against FGM/C, we are glad to announce that the European Parliament will vote this week, a Resolution proposed by its Women and Gender Equality (FEMM) Committee this week that speaks about “Invites the Commission and the Member States to include basic information on FGM and other practices harmful to a girl child in the educational programmes of those disciplines that play a key role in the prevention of FGM”. This Resolution , which requires a the mainstreaming of prevention of FGM/C in all policies is the result of sustained advocacy work of the European End FGM network.

The insertion of gender and culture-sensitive training on FGM/C has been the purpose of MAP-FGM,Multisectoral Academic Program to prevent and combat female Genital Mutilation (FGM/C), an innovative project aimed at raising awareness, knowledge and skills of future professionals in contact with possible victims of FGM/C in the European Union. For this purpose, a pluridisciplinary team of professors and researchers has developed a Multisectoral Academic Training Guide available in 6 languages. In January, it has been published in full colour and interactive electronic format to broaden the scope of academic insertion of the subject.

The pluridisciplinary drafting methodology adopted has lead to a multiperspective academic manual aimed at developping critical, gender and culture-sensitive thinking around FGM/C as well as practical recommendations stemming from experience of work with women and girls who have undergone FGM/C, their families, the community and profesionnals.

During the project, which has just come to an end on 31^st January, more than 6000 students of Medicine, Nursery, Midwifery, Law, Social Work, Education, Gender Studies, Communication, Anthropology and International Development have been trained in five pilot Universities of four European countries (Vrije Universiteit Brussel in Belgium, Roma Tre and Fondazzone Angelo Celi in Italy, ISCTE-IUL in Portugal and Universidad Rey Juan Carlos y Fundación Wassu-UAB in Spain).

Bianca Kalenski

Bianca Kalenski is a dedicated medical professional and journalist with an extensive portfolio of published articles and studies in the field of medical science. Her work is notable for its precision and transparency, contributing to the credibility and persuasiveness of her publications.