Orchid Project

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The Orchid Project is a British charity which works towards ending female genital cutting (also known as female genital mutilation or FGC). The Orchid Project is based in London and primarily works to advocate for increased resources towards ending FGC and raising awareness about how the practice can end. [1] They also have programmes with Tostan in West Africa, Feed the Minds [2] in Kenya, and with Senegalese musician and activist Sister Fa. [3]

Contents

History

Julia Lalla-Maharajh founded the Orchid Project after first encountering the issue of FGC in Ethiopia. [4] Julia was volunteering with Voluntary Service Overseas and learned that 75% of women in Ethiopia had been cut. Lalla-Maharajh talked with local activists, all of whom said to her, "Please go, tell the world that this happens. This violates human rights and we need people to know about it." [5]

Lalla-Maharajh returned to the UK and began campaigning against FGC. In 2010, she entered a video competition called the Davos Debates with a video about FGC. [6] [1] This led her to later meet Tostan's founder, Molly Melching. Lalla-Maharajh spent time working with Tostan in Senegal and Gambia before returning to the UK and setting up Orchid Project as a charity dedicated to ending FGC. [5]

Orchid Project advocates for policy change and funding commitments from local and national governments and international humanitarian organisations. Orchid Project commissions research on how to achieve abandonment of the practice of FGC. [7]

Goals

  1. Advocate to ensure stakeholders resource and prioritise an end to FGC. [8]
  2. Communicate the potential for an end to FGC; raising awareness about how, why and where female genital cutting happens. [9]
  3. Partner with organisations that deliver a sustainable, proven end to female genital cutting. [10]

Key areas of work

Advocacy

Orchid Project claims that they aim to secure attention and resources to be invested in ending female genital cutting by engaging with actors and decision-makers at every level–from grassroots, through to regional, national, and international actors. [11] [12] They argue that significant investment is needed if FGC is to end. [13]

Communications

Orchid Project claims to raise awareness of FGC. The journalist Bidisha has said, "The work of The Orchid Project has been invaluable in showing, with great clarity, the reasons, history and arguments surrounding female genital cutting. For anyone learning about this issue, The Orchid Project is the first and best place to go". [14]

Programmes

Orchid Project claims to partner with organisations that are working to end FGC through work that involves whole communities in ending the practice through a social norms led approach. [15] [16] Like UNICEF, [17] Orchid Project believes that the best way to achieve this is through human rights-led education. [18] They support this change through partnerships with organisations working at a grassroots level. [19]

Hope that FGC can end

Julia Lalla-Maharajh states that: "Our vision is a world free from genital cutting, and we believe that’s possible within a generation". [20] Orchid Project often cite similarities between how footbinding ended and FGC, and how the right conditions can motivate mass change. [15] [21] "As with footbinding, public declarations of abandonment are vital to solidify any commitment to ending FGC. When a group of people stand up and publicly declare that they will no longer practice FGC, they are held accountable by everyone" – Gerry Mackie. [22]

Orchid Project have stated that FGC can end through the idea of "organised diffusion", where change is led by communities, and the process of dialogue between communities leads to social change. [23] [24]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Female genital mutilation</span> Ritual cutting or removal of some or all of the vulva

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is the cutting or removal of some or all of the vulva for non-medical reasons. FGM prevalence varies worldwide, but is majorly present in some countries of Africa, Asia and Middle East, and within their diasporas. As of 2024, UNICEF estimates that worldwide 230 million girls and women had been subjected to one or more types of FGM.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Molly Melching</span>

Molly Melching is the founder and Creative Director of the Tostan Community Empowerment Program (CEP). Tostan is a non-governmental organization (NGO) headquartered in Dakar, Senegal whose mission is to empower African communities to bring about sustainable development and positive social transformation based on respect for human rights. Her website, Tostan.org, states "Tostan implements a holistic, three-year empowering education program in African national languages that has engaged over 3,500 rural communities in eight African countries on themes of democracy, human rights, health, literacy, and project management skills". These themes include the abandonment of female genital cutting, the abolishment of child/forced marriage, and female empowerment in leadership positions such as leadership positions in countries across West and East Africa.

Equality Now is a non-governmental organization founded in 1992 to advocate for the protection and promotion of the human rights of women and girls. Equality Now works through public policy channels to create a just world for women and girls. Through a combination of regional partnerships, community mobilization and legal advocacy the organization works to encourage governments to adopt, improve and enforce laws that protect and promote women and girls' rights around the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tostan</span> Nonprofit organization

Tostan is a US-registered 501(c)(3) international non-governmental organization headquartered in Dakar, Senegal. The organization's mission is "to empower communities to develop and achieve their vision for the future and inspire large-scale movements leading to dignity for all" in several West African countries, including Senegal, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, The Gambia, Mali, and Mauritania.

International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation is a United Nations-sponsored annual awareness day that takes place on February 6 as part of the UN's efforts to eradicate female genital mutilation. It was first introduced in 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Women in Mauritania</span>

Issues impacting Women in Mauritanian society include female genital mutilation, child marriage, and polygamy.

Khitan or Khatna is the Arabic term for circumcision, and the Islamic term for the practice of religious male circumcision in Islamic culture. Male circumcision is widespread in the Muslim world, and accepted as an established practice by all Islamic schools of jurisprudence. It is considered a sign of belonging to the wider Muslim community (Ummah).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Religious views on female genital mutilation</span> Female genital mutilation

There is a widespread view among practitioners of female genital mutilation (FGM) that it is a religious requirement, although prevalence rates often vary according to geography and ethnic group. There is an ongoing debate about the extent to which the practice's continuation is influenced by custom, social pressure, lack of health-care information, and the position of women in society. The procedures confer no health benefits and can lead to serious health problems.

Malicounda Bambara is a village in the rural community of Malicounda within M'bour Department of the Thiès Region in western Senegal, located northeast of Saly on the Petite-Côte and approximately 85 km from the Senegalese capital of Dakar. It is one of three villages all named Malicounda, but with affixes Bambara, Sérère and Wolof, each denoting the prevalent ethnicity. The three are closely connected through relations. Malicounda Bambara is especially notable for being the first village in Senegal to publicly abandon the traditional practice of female genital cutting.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prevalence of female genital mutilation</span>

Female genital mutilation (FGM), also known as female genital cutting (FGC), female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) and female circumcision, is practiced in 30 countries in western, eastern, and north-eastern Africa, in parts of the Middle East and Asia, and within some immigrant communities in Europe, North America and Australia, as well as in specific minority enclaves in areas such as South Asia and Russia. The WHO defines the practice as "all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Female genital mutilation in the United States</span> Occurrence and regulation of FGM in the US

Female genital mutilation (FGM), also known as female circumcision or female genital cutting, includes any procedure involving the removal or injury of part or all of the vulva for non-medical reasons. While the practice is most common in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, FGM is also widespread in immigrant communities and metropolitan areas in the United States, and was performed by doctors regularly until the 1980s.

Female genital mutilation in Sierra Leone is the common practice of removing all or part of the female's genitalia for cultural and religious initiation purposes, or as a custom to prepare them for marriage. Sierra Leone is one of 28 countries in Africa where female genital mutilation (FGM) is known to be practiced and one of few that has not banned it. It is widespread in part due to it being an initiation rite into the "Bondo," though initiation rite-related FGM was criminalised in 2019. The type most commonly practised in Sierra Leone is Type IIb, removal of part or all of the clitoris and the labia minora. As of 2013, it had a prevalence of 89.6%.

Nigeria has the highest rate of female genital mutilation (FGM) in the world in total numbers. It is usually experienced by girls aged 0 to 15 years old. It involves either partial or complete removal of the vulva or other injury to the female genital organs and has no medical benefit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sahiyo</span>

Sahiyo is a non-governmental organization founded in 2015, to advocate for girls' and women's rights and oppose the practice of female genital mutilation (FGM) in Asian communities, with a focus on the Dawoodi Bohra community in India.

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is a cultural practice that occurs in several cultures and is practised in India by some Islamic groups. The Dawoodi Bohra is one sect of Islam in India known for their practice of FGM, with other Bohra sects reported as partaking in practices of FGM as well. The procedure frequently occurs at the age of seven and involves "all procedures involving partial or total removal of the external female genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs.". The process is typically performed by a traditional practitioner using a knife or a blade and can range from Type I to Type IV. The consequences of FGM take on a wide range and can span from discomfort to sepsis and have also been correlated with psychological consequences, such as post-traumatic stress disorder.

The Five Foundation is an organisation working towards the elimination of the practice of female genital mutilation (FGM). It was founded by Nimco Ali and Brendan Wynne. It was launched in September 2019 in New York and currently has signed-up partners which include Plan International, Action Aid, The ONE Campaign, Save The Children (UK), UN Women (UK) and Women for Women International.

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is highly prevalent in Sudan. According to a 2014 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS), 86.6 percent of women aged 15–49 in Sudan reported living with FGM, and said that 31.5 percent of their daughters had been cut. The most common FGM procedure in that country is Type III (infibulation); the 2014 survey found that 77 percent of respondents had experienced Type III.

The legal status of female genital mutilation (FGM), also known as female genital cutting (FGC), differs widely across the world.

Masooma Ranalvi is an activist for the ending of female genital mutilation (FGM) in India.

Female genital mutilation in the Gambia is the practice of removing all or part of the female's genitalia for cultural reasons, believed by those who practice it to affect sexual purity and obedience and required before marriage in some communities. The Gambia is one of 28 countries in Africa where female genital mutilation (FGM) is known to be practiced.

References

  1. 1 2 "Interview with Julia Lalla-Maharajh of the Orchid Project". Archived from the original on 2015-02-11. Retrieved 2015-02-10.
  2. ↑ "Coordinated community action against FGM". Feed the Minds. Archived from the original on 2015-02-10.
  3. ↑ "Rapper Sister Fa takes FGM campaign to Guinea". Thomson Reuters Foundation. Archived from the original on 2015-02-10. Retrieved 2015-02-10.
  4. ↑ "London charity helping to save African girls from mutilation". 7 March 2013.
  5. 1 2 "Working for a Generation of Girls Who Won't be Cut".
  6. ↑ "Julia puts Female Genital Mutilation on the agenda at Davos - FORWARD". 30 January 2010.
  7. ↑ "BBC Radio 4 - Radio 4 Appeal, Orchid Project". BBC. Retrieved 2024-09-06.
  8. ↑ "Advocacy « Orchid Project".
  9. ↑ "Communications « Orchid Project".
  10. ↑ "FGC Programmes « Orchid Project".
  11. ↑ "Martin Horwood writes … Much more than a number". Archived from the original on 2015-02-10. Retrieved 2015-02-10.
  12. ↑ "We Have the Opportunity to Bring an End to FGM Within in the Next Generation". 6 February 2015.
  13. ↑ Crocker, Lizzie (6 March 2013). "David Cameron's Ambitious Plan To End Female Genital Mutilation". The Daily Beast.
  14. ↑ "Cutting Us Down To Size: Working to End Female Genital Mutilation". 3 September 2013.
  15. 1 2 "Victory in sight for revolution over female genital mutilation" . 6 February 2012. Archived from the original on 2022-05-24.
  16. ↑ "Empowering change to end 'cutting' rituals". 29 December 2013.
  17. ↑ "Female genital mutilation/cutting". Archived from the original on 2015-05-23. Retrieved 2015-02-09.
  18. ↑ "Women of the World : April 2012 :: Woman Alive". Archived from the original on 2015-02-10. Retrieved 2015-02-10.
  19. ↑ "Skoll - Orchid Project".
  20. ↑ "Dr Frederick Mulder on Supporting the Orchid Project to End FGC". www.spearswms.com. 7 February 2013. Retrieved 2019-04-29.
  21. ↑ Designory.co.uk. "World Femininity Day - more about The Orchid Project".
  22. ↑ Mackie, Gerry (1 January 1996). "Ending Footbinding and Infibulation: A Convention Account". American Sociological Review. 61 (6): 999–1017. doi:10.2307/2096305. JSTOR   2096305.
  23. ↑ "How Female Genital Cutting is Ending – Urban Times". Archived from the original on 2015-02-09. Retrieved 2015-02-09.
  24. ↑ "Report" (PDF). www.who.int. Retrieved 2019-05-21.
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