Project Overview
Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) remains a deeply entrenched harmful practice affecting millions of girls and women worldwide. In Kenya, an estimated 15% of girls and women aged 15–49 have undergone FGM/C, a decline from 21% in previous years. Despite this progress, the practice persists in specific communities and regions. According to UNFPA estimates, approximately 813,159 girls were at risk of undergoing FGM/C in Kenya between 2015 and 2030.
The Kuria community, a marginalized ethnic group residing in Migori County in western Kenya and across the border in Mara Region, Tanzania, continues to record some of the highest prevalence rates of FGM/C in the region. Within Kuria tradition, FGM/C is considered a rite of passage into womanhood and a prerequisite for marriage. The practice typically occurs between the ages of 13 and 14, though recent trends show girls being cut as young as eight years old. As FGM/C is closely linked to child marriage, many girls are married shortly after the procedure. At an estimated prevalence rate of 84%, the Kuria community in Migori County and neighbouring areas of Tanzania remains among the most affected populations.
Despite global and national efforts to eliminate FGM/C, emerging trends—particularly cross-border FGM/C—pose a significant challenge. The Kenya Demographic and Health Survey (KDHS) 2022 key indicators highlight cross-border FGM/C as a growing concern, contributing to the persistence of the practice. It is estimated that over 70% of women and girls from Tanzania, Uganda, Somalia, and Ethiopia who have undergone FGM/C traveled to Kenya for the procedure, often to evade stricter enforcement or community surveillance in their home countries.
In East Africa, border communities along the Kenya–Tanzania frontier face unique challenges, as girls are trafficked across national boundaries to undergo FGM/C, effectively bypassing national legal frameworks, protection systems, and intervention mechanisms. Weak cross-border coordination further exacerbates gaps in prevention, protection, and response.
It is within this context that Tunaweza Empowerment Organization, with support from AmplifyChange, seeks to strengthen coordinated, cross-border approaches for the prevention of and response to FGM/C between Kenya and Tanzania. The project aims to enhance collaboration among community actors, civil society organizations, and relevant authorities to address cross-border FGM/C, protect girls at risk, and contribute to the long-term abandonment of the practice in Migori County and neighboring border regions.
Our Approach
This project adopts a community-driven, survivor-centered and cross-border approach, focusing on long-term social norms change rather than one-off interventions. Key strategies include:
1. Survivor Healing and Empowerment
We support survivors through the Tree of Life psychosocial healing model — a trauma-informed, group-based approach that helps survivors heal, reclaim their voices and become community change agents.
2. Community Dialogue and Capacity Building
Through structured academies and grassroots dialogues, we build the capacity of youth advocates, community elders, religious leaders, women’s groups and local activists to challenge harmful norms and lead anti-FGM/C action.
3. “Born Perfect” Caravans
Mobile outreach caravans travel to hard-to-reach cross-border villages, creating safe public spaces for discussion on FGM/C, child marriage, and gender-based violence. Survivors, former cutters, leaders, and activists openly share lived experiences to spark reflection and change.
4. Media and Community Awareness
We use trusted local radio s
