AkiDwA FGM Conference in Dublin

Save the Date: 22 October 2019

Community Dialogue: Debunking the myths about FGM

This AkiDwA Conference on Female Genital Mutilation  next week seeks to dispel the myths that still surround FGM

AkiDwA, Ireland’s network for migrant women, is holding a conference in Dublin on Tuesday to raise awareness of FGM as a serious issue for girls living in Ireland and to discuss the most effective strategies for engaging with communities to encourage them to end the practice.

Conference is at the Irish Human Rights & Equality Commission,

Green Street, Dublin 7

 on Tuesday October 22^nd

^{from 10 am to 3.30 pm}

FGM was banned in Ireland seven years ago, when the 2012 Criminal Justice Bill was passed after a decade of campaigning by AkiDwA.  However the number of women and girls in Ireland at risk of FGM continues to increase.

AkiDwA has been working with Irish authorities at local and national level to end FGM for almost two decades. AkiDwA delivers training on how to deal with people affected by FGM to Gardaí, healthcare professionals and  front line staff like social workers and psychologists.

Misunderstandings in communications about FGM pose a very serious risk to women and girls in communities at risk of FGM, as they can affect their ability to integrate into wider Irish society and can even prevent them from seeking help when they really need it.

 The hidden and sensitive nature of FGM means that organisations like AkiDwA have to be pro-active to ensure that women and girls are protected. This conference will provide a platform for AkiDwA to address the challenges in communicating about FGM, while allowing  us to highlight some of the most effective strategies that we can employ to encourage migrant communities in Ireland to abandon it.

This Conference will also be an opportunity for AkiDwA staff to share early findings of new research on how FGM affects teenagers. This conference will be of interest to  lawyers, youth workers, medical professionals, social workers, sexual and reproductive health specialists and development practitioners.  The Conference Programme is here:  Community Dialogue: Conference Programme

It is free to attend and it will be useful for academics, researchers, students and to  anyone who is interested in championing the rights of women and girls.

We hope you will be able to come along on Tuesday.

You can reserve your place here through Eventbrite

You can find more information in our press release: AkidwA-FGM Conference-Release-October19-approved