The United Nations Population Fund has estimated that at least 4.5 million girls could be at risk of female genital mutilation in 2026, noting that about 230 million girls and women worldwide have already undergone the practice.
The agency said that even when carried out by health professionals using sterilised equipment, FGM is neither safe nor necessary, stressing that there is no medical justification for the practice.
UNFPA said female genital mutilation remains a global problem, with cases reported in 94 countries across all continents.
It expressed concern that millions of girls and women continue to live with severe, long-term and sometimes life-threatening physical and psychological consequences of the practice, despite sustained global efforts to eliminate it.
According to the agency, one of the factors sustaining FGM is the mistaken belief that campaigns to end the practice are driven by foreign influence rather than local realities.
UNFPA data show that in about one-third of countries where FGM is practised, prevalence has declined over the past 30 years, with one in three girls affected compared to one in two previously. It added that globally, two-thirds of men and women support ending female genital mutilation.
The agency noted that thousands of children are now being educated about the dangers of FGM through schools that increasingly provide comprehensive sexuality education, while Africa continues to bear the heaviest burden of the practice.
In Ethiopia, UNFPA said about three-quarters of women and girls aged 15 to 49 have experienced some form of female genital mutilation.
However, it added that in several countries where the practice is deeply rooted, legislative reforms are gradually contributing to a decline.
UNFPA also highlighted that in Djibouti, Eritrea and Somalia, Islamic scholars issued a national fatwa in 2025 declaring that there are no religious grounds to justify female genital mutilation.
