FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION: ATTITUDE AND PRACTICES AMONG WOMEN IN OKADA COMMUNITY, EDO STATE

In Africa, an estimated 3 million girls are at risk of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) annually. This study assessed attitude and FGM practices in Okada Community, Edo State, to help develop programs and interventions to curtail this harmful cultural practice. A community based descriptive cross sectional study was conducted involving interviewer administration of semi-structured questionnaires to 325 consenting women in Okada Community. Data was analysed using SPSS version 21.0 statistical software, with statistical significance set at p?0.050 and 95% confidence interval. The respondents studied had mean age of 22.78 ± 9.30 years. Awareness of FGM was 96.6%(314) while 268 (85.3%) had negative attitude towards FGM. The prevalence of FGM was 28.7% (90),age group of respondents (OR=0.157; 95%CI=0.028-0.869; p=0.034) and attitude towards FGM (OR=0.115; 95%CI=0.056-0.235; p?0.001)were identified as significant predictors influencing FGM practices in the study area. FGM is still a common cultural practice and there is need for a well-coordinated approach engaging relevant stakeholders to curtail this harmful cultural practice