Fatou Baldeh, a survivor and dedicated campaigner, has been at the forefront of the battle against female genital mutilation (FGM) in Gambia.
Despite the practice being banned in 2015, it remains pervasive, with approximately 75% of women and girls aged 15 to 49 still undergoing the procedure, according to the United Nations Population Fund.
In an interview with Time, Baldeh, the founder of Women in Liberation & Leadership (WILL), highlights that the law against FGM is poorly enforced. “We continue to have those issues where we will have a case, we go to the police and report, and the police would be like, ‘This is our culture, this is our tradition.’ So they do not see it as a crime,” Baldeh explains.
Over the past year, Baldeh and WILL faced a significant challenge when Gambian parliamentarians considered a bill to overturn the FGM ban. Baldeh describes this as “an attack on women’s rights.” The organization collaborated with survivors, who courageously shared their personal experiences with lawmakers, and engaged religious leaders to emphasize the health risks of FGM. Their efforts included a nationwide study documenting the procedure’s severe health impacts, which they presented to politicians. Their persistence paid off in July 2024, when the Gambian parliament rejected the bill.
Baldeh believes that the heated debate has brought FGM back into the public eye. “People are talking about it, and that is a positive thing because we cannot end the practice if we don’t talk about it,” she tells Time.
She argues that global attention has cast a spotlight on this human rights violation, making it clear that more needs to be done. “It’s 2025, and little girls are being pinned down and their genitals are being cut in the name of culture and tradition,” Baldeh asserts.
She emphasizes the importance of sustained advocacy to protect women and girls from this harmful practice, not only in Gambia but worldwide.
