As global attention focuses on ending female genital mutilation (FGM), The Gambia faces a pivotal legal battle that could reverse its 2015 ban on the practice. The Supreme Court is currently hearing arguments that, if successful, would strip women and girls of their legal protection from FGM. The urgency of this moment is underscored by recent reports of the deaths of two babies in Banjul and Basse following FGM procedures, highlighting the immediate and severe risks the practice poses to girls.
FGM has long been a historic practice in The Gambia, persisting even after its criminalisation in 2015, despite opposition from feminists, women’s rights activists, and survivors. In August 2023, three women were convicted for subjecting eight infant girls to FGM, marking the first prosecutions since the ban and demonstrating that decades of advocacy had begun to achieve tangible accountability.
However, a backlash quickly emerged. Pro-FGM religious leaders paid the fines imposed on the convicted women and launched public campaigns portraying the ban as foreign-imposed, uncultural, and un-Islamic. The Supreme Islamic Council issued a fatwa asserting that FGM is a religious requirement. In 2024, a National Assembly Member introduced legislation to repeal the ban, framing it as a defense of religious norms and challenging other protective laws, including those prohibiting child marriage. Although Parliament upheld the ban after advocacy efforts, pro-FGM campaigners have advanced their challenge to the judiciary, claiming that criminalising FGM violates constitutional rights to religious and cultural freedom.
The prevalence and severity of FGM in The Gambia is stark. According to the 2019-2020 Gambia Demographic and Health Survey, approximately 73% of women aged 15-49 have undergone FGM, with the vast majority subjected to the practice before the age of five. Most procedures involve cutting and removal of flesh (WHO Type II), while 17% involve more severe forms such as stitching or narrowing of the vaginal opening (Type III). FGM is deeply entrenched as both a social norm and an actively defended practice, making legal protections critical for girls’ safety.
If the Supreme Court overturns the ban, the consequences would be immediate and far-reaching. Legal safeguards for girls would disappear, legitimising FGM as a purported “religious and cultural right.” The state would lose prosecutorial power to prevent, investigate, or punish the practice, and other protections, including child marriage laws, could be similarly challenged under claims of religious or cultural freedom. The ruling could set a dangerous precedent across Africa, undermining international standards and emboldening anti-rights movements continent-wide.
The crisis in The Gambia reflects a broader, coordinated anti-rights backlash across Africa, including restrictions on abortion access, criminalisation of LGBTQI+ rights, weakening of domestic violence protections, and resistance to women’s political participation. The strategy is consistent: frame women’s rights as foreign impositions, mobilise religious authority, claim protections violate freedoms, and litigate while harm continues.
On the International Day of Zero Tolerance for FGM, Gambian feminists and women’s rights advocates are on the frontlines defending bodily autonomy. Sustained international solidarity is essential, including flexible long-term funding for legal defense and survivor services, amplification of Gambian feminist expertise, accountability from governments and international bodies, and recognition of the fight as an ongoing struggle. The advocacy in The Gambia represents a fight for rights and protections that extend far beyond its borders.
