By: Seringe S.T. Touray
Prominent anti-FGM advocate Jaha Dukureh has publicly challenged Gambia’s Gender Minister Fatou Kinteh, accusing her not only of falsely claiming credit for efforts to uphold the country’s ban on female genital mutilation but also of actively working to obstruct progress during a critical advocacy initiative.
In essence, Dukureh claims Minister Kinteh falsely took credit for organizing and funding a crucial Egypt trip that influenced Gambia’s anti-FGM law, when Dukureh says she herself took out a loan to finance it and worked with others outside the ministry to arrange it. She alleges the Ministry actively obstructed these efforts, continuing a pattern of Fatou Kinteh and her ministry undermining her advocacy work while taking undue credit.
The dispute emerged after Minister Kinteh allegedly misrepresented the government’s role in maintaining the 2015 FGM ban at a side event during the 68th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW68) in New York last Wednesday.
Dukureh, founder of Safe Hands for Girls and a UN Women Regional Goodwill Ambassador for Africa, expressed her frustration in a series of posts on X, which quickly gained attention.
In her posts, Dukureh specifically contested the minister’s account of a crucial trip to Egypt that reportedly influenced Gambian lawmakers to maintain the FGM ban last year.
“GRTS reporting of our Egypt trip. Hon Seedy Njie [Deputy Speaker, National Assembly] worked behind the scenes with me day and night to make this happened. I had to drag @saitmatty to co-sign the loan I took out for this trip,” Dukureh wrote, contradicting the minister’s alleged claims that the government organized and funded the initiative. Sait Matty is a well-known Gambian political scientist and governance expert. Apart from her taking the loan, she also had additional support from the National Assembly, the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), UNFPA, and the SWEDD project.
In response to a post by Omar Champion Cham, Youth Activist and Speaker of the National Youth Parliament of The Gambia, Dukureh further expressed her frustration. Omar had commented on the difficulties she faced: “Aunty Fatou Kinteh must be integrity deficient to be that bold and heartless. I can remember all the struggles and sacrifices you had to make for this trip to happen, with last minute call offs and insults.”
Dukureh replied: “For her to sit there and claim they organized it using the partners and past work they have done with Al Azhar! I was like wait. Am I dreaming. Bebe bulen Faleh kee.” Al-Azhar refers to the prestigious Islamic university in Cairo whose religious authority is influential in addressing FGM in Muslim communities.
The Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Welfare has not directly addressed these specific allegations. However, in a statement released Wednesday about a bilateral meeting with UN Women officials, Minister Kinteh described the government’s strategy to uphold the anti-FGM law as “both strategic and effective.” Minister Kinteh also acknowledged “the significant investment made by the government and civil society organizations in combating FGM.”
In messages shared with The Fatu Network, Dukureh elaborated on the financial aspects of her advocacy work:
“They make the assumption that I get millions in funding when that is simply not true. I am sure they thought someone has given me back all the money I spent in the Gambia when that is also not true,” she stated.
Challenging both the government and international community, Dukureh added: “If any of them can come out and say they funded the work I did and especially that Egypt trip or they gave me the money for it let them come out and refute my claims.”
According to Dukureh, this incident is not isolated but part of a pattern spanning nearly a decade: “They have done this to me for nearly 10 years,” she told The Fatu Network.
She has vowed to use her platform at the ongoing CSW events to correct the record: “Every event I speak at for the rest of CSW and every platform I get on will know that civil society in the Gambia collectively won this battle along with the National Assembly Members (NAMs). Anything said outside of that is not true. No single person can take credit for the law being [passed].”
Dukureh claims the ministry was only brought in at the last minute due to World Bank requirements for funding. She alleges that not only did the ministry fail to provide support, but Fatou Kinteh and her ministry actively created obstacles.
“We brought the ministry in at the last minute because the World Bank required their involvement for funding. They did everything they could to stop it, and I ended up covering the costs personally after they failed to book tickets,” Dukureh was quoted as saying.
The controversy has sparked reactions from other figures involved in the anti-FGM campaign. “The Ministry shamelessly didn’t want to cooperate because of votes!” Cham added in his social media response.
The dispute highlights different narratives about the roles played by government and civil society in The Gambia’s fight against female genital mutilation. While Dukureh emphasizes the crucial contributions of grassroots advocates and claims obstruction from Fatou Kinteh and her ministry, the Ministry has publicly highlighted its leadership role and collaborative approach in upholding the country’s 2015 ban on the practice.
The Fatu Network is actively communicating with the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Welfare for their response to these allegations.
