NIGERIA

STATISTICAL PROFILE ON FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION

1999-2006 FGM passed in some states

National legislation criminalizing
Female genital mutilation (FGM) refers to “all
procedures involving partial or total removal of the
female external genitalia or other injury to the female
KEY STATISTICS ON WOMEN’S STATUS
genital organs for non-medical reasons.” While the
exact number of girls and women worldwide who
of women 20-24 years were married or
have undergone FGM remains unknown, at least
200 million girls and women have been cut in 30
18% in union before age 15
of women 20-24 years were married or
countries with representative data on prevalence.
FGM is a violation of girls’ and women’s human 44% in union before age 18
rights and is condemned by many international 31% by age 18
treaties and conventions, as well as by national of women 20-24 years have given birth
legislation in many countries. Yet, where it is
practised FGM is performed in line with tradition and of women 15-49 years think that a
social norms to ensure that girls are socially
accepted and marriageable, and to uphold their
34% husband/partner is justified in
hitting/beating his wife under certain
status and honour and that of the entire family. circumstances
UNICEF works with government and civil society
of women 15-49 years make use of at
partners towards the elimination of FGM in countries
where it is still practised. 54% least one type of information media
at least once a week (newspaper,
1. World Health Organization, Eliminating Female Genital Mutilation: An
interagency statement, WHO, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNIFEM, OHCHR, UNHCR, magazine, television or radio)
UNECA, UNESCO, UNDP, UNAIDS, WHO, Geneva, 2008, p. 4.

Source: MICS 2016-17

Data and Analytics Section

DIVISION OF DATA, RESEARCH AND POLICY
 HOW WIDESPREAD IS THE PRACTICE?

In Nigeria, the prevalence of FGM varies significantly by state

Percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years Percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years who have undergone FGM,
who have undergone FGM, by state by ethnicity, residence and household wealth quintile

50 45
40
Less than 10% 30 23 23

10% - 25%
18
26% - 50% 20 16
10
51% - 80% 10 8
0 Total Ethnic group Ethnic group Rural Urban Poorest Richest
Above 80%

with highest with lowest

prevalence prevalence

Among daughters of cut girls and women, the percentage of girls aged 0 to
Percentage of girls aged 0 to 14 years who have undergone FGM (as reported by their
14 years who have undergone FGM (as reported by their mothers), by
mothers), by residence, mother’s education and household wealth quintile
mothers’ attitudes about whether the practice should continue

100 100
80 79
80
60 60
60
40 41
40
20 23
20 13 12 14 11 13 17 12 11
0 Daughters whose Daughters whose Daughters whose Daughters whose
0 Total Rural Urban No education Primary Non-formal Poorest Richest

mothers think FGM mothers say it mothers are mothers think FGM
should continue depends unsure should stop

WHEN AND HOW IS FGM PERFORMED?

Almost eight out of ten adolescent girls who experienced the practice were cut before the age of five
Two in three girls experienced the practice between ages 5 and 14
Percentage distribution of girls aged 15 to 19 years who have undergone FGM, by age at which cutting occurred

0-4 years
5-9 years
10-14 years 77 7 31 12
15+ years
Don’t know/
Missing
0 20 40 60 80 100

Percentage distribution of girls aged 0 to 14 years who have Percentage distribution of girls aged 0 to 14 years Notes: The boundaries and the names shown and the
designations used on the map do not imply official
undergone FGM (as reported by their mothers), according to who have undergone FGM (as reported by their endorsement or acceptance by the United Nations. Only
the type of person/practitioner performing the procedure mothers), by type of FGM performed categories with 25 or more unweighted cases are presented.
Due to rounding, some of the data presented may not add up
0.3 to 100 per cent. Prevalence data for girls aged 0 to 14 reflect
their current, but not final, FGM status since some girls who
12 11 8 Cut, no flesh
have not been cut may still be at risk of experiencing the
practice once they reach the customary age for cutting.
Health personnel 5 removed/Nicked
Therefore, the data on prevalence for girls under age 15 is
Cut, flesh actually an underestimation of the true extent of the practice.
Traditional removed Since age at cutting varies among settings, the amount of
underestimation also varies and this should be kept in mind
practitioner Sewn closed when interpreting all FGM prevalence data for this age group.
87 Don’t know/ Don’t know/ ‘Health personnel’ includes doctors, nurses, midwives and
other health workers; ‘Traditional practitioner’ includes
Missing 77
Missing traditional circumcisers, traditional birth attendants, traditional
Source: DHS 2013 midwives and other types of traditional practitioners.

Source for all charts on this page: MICS 2016-17

 WHAT ARE THE PREVAILING ATTITUDES TOWARDS FGM?

More than half of girls and women and boys and men think FGM should stop

Percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years and boys and men
Percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years and boys and men aged 15 to 49 years
aged 15 to 49 years who have heard of FGM and believe the practice is
who have heard about FGM, by their attitudes about whether the practice should continue
required by religion

Think FGM should continue Think FGM should stop Say it depends/are not sure 50
Girls and 40

22 68 11 30 24
women
Boys and
20 15
27 62 11
men 10

0
0 20 40 60 80 100
Girls and women Boys and men
Source: MICS 2016-17 for girls and women and DHS 2013 for boys and men Source: DHS 2013

Percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years who have heard about FGM and think the practice should continue,
by household wealth quintile, education, ethnicity and age

50
40

31 28 30 31
30 23 23
22 21
20 15
11
10

Total Poorest Richest No Primary Secondary Ethnic group with Ethnic group with 45-49 years 15-19 years
education complete or higher highest support lowest support

IS THE PRACTICE OF FGM CHANGING?

There is evidence of significant generational change in the prevalence of FGM in Nigeria as women aged 45-49 are
more than twice as likely to have been cut than girls aged 15-19

Percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years who have undergone FGM, by current age
50

40

30 28

24 21 20
20 17 15 12
10
0

45-49 years 40-44 years 35-39 years 30-34 years 25-29 years 20-24 years 15-19 years

Notes: Trends in attitudes towards the practice are not

Percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years who have undergone FGM, by survey year included since findings from 1999, 2003 and 2008 (DHS)
are not fully comparable. Similarly, data on the
prevalence of FGM in 1999, 2003 and 2008 (DHS) are
50
not included since findings are not fully comparable.
40
Source for all above charts: MICS 2016-17,
30 26 27 25 unless otherwise noted.

20 18

10

MICS 2007 MICS 2011 DHS 2013 MICS 2016-17

 NIGERIA
INTER-COUNTRY STATISTICAL OVERVIEW
Percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years who have undergone FGM

100 93 97 98

83 83 86 87 87

80 75 76
65 67
60
38 44 45

40 37
18 19 21 24 24

20
9 10
0.3 1 2 4 5 7
0
Uganda Cameroon Ghana Togo Iraq Benin Republic Nigeria Yemen Kenya African Senegal d’Ivoire Chad Liberia -Bissau Mauritania Gambia Faso Mali Leone Sudan Djibouti Guinea Somalia
Niger Ethiopia Eritrea Egypt

Unitedof Tanzania Central Republic Côte Guinea Burkina Sierra

Percentage of girls aged 0 to 14 years who have undergone FGM (as reported by their mothers)

100
80 73

60 51 56

45 49

40 30 33
29
20 10 10 13 13 14 14 16

0.2 0.3 0.4 1 1 1 1 3 8

0
Benin Togo Republic Ghana African Iraq Uganda Kenya Leone d' ire Chad Faso Nigeria Senegal Egypt Ethiopia -Bissau Sudan Eritrea Guinea Indonesia Mauritania Gambia Mali

Iv
te o
Tanzania Central Republic Sierra ô Burkina Guinea
Unitedof C

Percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years who have heard about FGM and think the practice should continue

100
80 75

65 65 67 68

60 54

40 36 37 39 41

22 29
20 18 19
11 12 13 14 15
7 9 9
2 3 3 3 6 6
1
0
Togo Ghana Republic Benin Iraq Niger Kenya Cameroon Uganda Faso African Eritrea -Bissau d'Ivoire Senegal Ethiopia Yemen Nigeria Mauritania Djibouti Liberia Sudan Egypt Somalia Gambia Guinea Leone
Chad Mali

T anzania Republic
United of Burkina Guinea Côte Sierra
Central

Notes: Data on attitudes for Yemen refer to ever-married girls and women. In Liberia, girls and women who have heard of the Sande society were asked whether they were members; this provides indirect information on FGM since it is performed during
initiation into the society. Egypt data refer to girls aged 1 to 14 years and Indonesia data refer to girls aged 0 to 11 years. An older source is used to report on the prevalence of FGM among girls aged 0 to 14 years for Gambia (MICS 2010) and Uganda (DHS
2011) since the latest source did not collect these data. MICS data for Ghana (2011) could not be used to report on attitudes towards FGM due to the fact that information is missing for girls and women with no living daughters; data from MICS 2006 are used
instead. In Liberia, only cut girls and women were asked about their attitudes towards FGM; since girls and women from practicing communities are more likely to support the practice, the level of support in this country as captured by DHS 2013 is higher than
would be expected had all girls and women been asked their opinion. Prevalence data on FGM for girls and women aged 15 to 49 years and data on attitudes towards FGM are not available for Indonesia.

Sources: DHS, MICS, Health Issues Survey, Population and Health Survey
FOR MORE INFORMATION
and RISKESDAS, 2004-2018. Data and Analytics Section - Division of Data, Research and Policy
Updated January 2019
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Website: data.unicef.org Email: data@unicef.org