Gambian mothers fear for their daughters as court weighs FGM ban

In Wellingara, a community roughly 15 kilometres from Banjul, mothers who survived female genital mutilation are watching closely as The Gambia's Supreme Court prepares to issue a ruling on the nation's FGM ban. The legal decision, scheduled for Wednesday, will determine whether existing protections for girls remain intact or face potential erosion.

Mariama Jabbie, now 28 years old, was subjected to FGM at six years old alongside her nine-year-old sister. She carries the physical and psychological consequences of the procedure into her adult life, including her role as a mother to daughters aged six and nine. Her anxiety intensified following the death of a three-month-old infant in late 2023, attributed to an illegal FGM procedure performed in her vicinity. She expressed her determination to prevent her own daughters from experiencing similar harm.

Other mothers share comparable concerns. Binta Jawo, 30, underwent FGM during childhood and is raising a seven-year-old daughter. She acknowledges that the existing ban has contributed to reducing the prevalence of the practice, though it has not eliminated it entirely. She worries that a weakened legal framework would expose families to renewed pressure to subject girls to FGM.

Sarjo Kambi, 37, experienced the consequences of inadequate legal protection firsthand. In 2023, while she was away on business, her daughter was taken by her paternal grandmother and subjected to FGM without consent. Kambi was herself cut at age six, an experience that created lasting health complications and affected her marriage. She described the day her daughter underwent the procedure as the most painful of her life.

The upcoming court decision represents a critical moment for girls' safety in The Gambia. Survivors and mothers view the ruling as a test of whether legal safeguards can continue to shield the next generation from a practice they have experienced firsthand.