Why is the public declaration a critical step in abandoning female genital cutting (FGC) and child/forced marriage?

On Sunday, May 26th, 27 communities from the Kedougou region of Senegal came together and publicly declared their commitment to human rights through ending harmful practices such as FGC and child/forced marriage.

Why is this public declaration a critical step in abandoning FGC and child/forced marriage?

Tostan frequently is asked this and other questions about public declarations: Are public declarations really so important? Do they mean that everyone in the declaring communities has stopped FGC and child/forced marriage? Why do communities find it so important to organize such a major event to announce their decision to abandon harmful practices, inviting government officials, media and other development partners??

Here are some brief general answers:

1?? The public declaration consolidates and expands commitment to abandon practices that are not aligned with health and wellbeing?

The public declaration is a high point in a process that begins two to three years earlier. Communities learn about and apply human rights and responsibilities, connecting them to their values and vision of wellbeing.? They share their learning and decisions - including the decision to abandon harmful practices - with communities in their social and religious networks. The group of communities discuss and continue to diffuse their learning. They organize a public declaration when they believe they have reached enough support for ending the practices. It is only they who know when they are ready.?

In African villages, communities are deeply bound by the weight of their words. Making an announcement in a public setting, in the presence of government officials and other dignitaries, is like signing a social contract. When an entire social network comes together to publicly commit to abandon practices like FGC or child/forced marriage, everyone becomes aware of the majority’s stance. This accelerates the movement towards ending those practices.? Individuals who may have feared giving up the harmful practices because they were linked to good marriage prospects are reassured that it is both safe and advantageous to do so. Over time, the new practices of not cutting girls and of keeping girls in school, thus delaying the age of marriage become social expectations: new social norms emerge in the communities.

2?? A public declaration does not always mean that the declaring communities are 100% free from FGC or child/forced marriage

While public declarations represent a significant milestone in the process of abandonment, they do not mean that the declaring villages are completely free from FGC or child marriage. Instead, they signal a change in social expectations and express the community's commitment to create an environment conducive to the wellbeing of all its members. As with many deeply embedded traditions, there will always be some who don’t agree and will continue to practice.? Nonetheless, as increasing numbers of individuals see that others oppose the harmful practices, they perceive the benefits of abandonment and decide to abandon. Not cutting and delaying marriage of girls are established as the new social norms.

3??Evidence establishes a link between public declarations and a decline in the prevalence of FGC

In 2008, a groundbreaking UNICEF evaluation examined villages that participated in the Tostan program from 1997 to 2001 and made public pledges to abandon FGC. The evaluation highlighted the significant impact of public declarations on reducing the practice which had decreased drastically over the ten year period in communities that went through the CEP.?

In a more recent study (2014) by Dr. Bettina Shell-Duncan on the effectiveness of legislation, she found that public declarations serve as a reference point signaling that changes in behavior are accepted and should be collectively followed. They also provide cultural, religious, and societal backing to outreach efforts by those who have abandoned - such as existing legislation - to encourage a larger movement to end the practice of FGC.