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180 Female Circumcision ‘Experts’ Get N43m After Surrendering ‘Tools’

Published

4 years ago

October 29, 2021

Grants worth N42,500,000 have been handed out to 180 former practitioners of female circumcision by Ekiti State Government, as part of efforts to discourage Female Genital Mutilation, FGM, in the state.

The beneficiaries of the grants publicly handed over their trade tools to the wife of Governor of Ekiti State, Erelu Bisi Fayemi, at the ‘Drop the Blade Initiative’, in Ado-Ekiti.

Addressing the beneficiaries, Erelu Fayemi said the grant was to discourage the former practitioners from returning to the harmful practice having denounced the trade.

Mrs Fayemi reiterated the State Government’s zero tolerance for gender-based violence and female genital mutilation.

She said the government would not hesitate to clamp down on people who still practise the trade which is seen as violence against girls.

She said a minimum N250,000 grant given each of the former practitioners was a start-up capital for them to start a profitable business venture that would not be harmful to the society.

Mrs Fayemi charged the beneficiaries to make judicious use of the money.

According to her, “this would be the second time government would empower former female circumcision practitioners in the State as part of efforts to discourage the dastardly act.

“We are empowering these women today to take them away from the illegal business.

“If what they were gaining from female circumcision was why they could not let go of the job, we are ready to empower them,” she said.

The Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Alhaja Maryam Ogunlade reaffirmed the Government’s zero-tolerance for female genital mutilation and called for stakeholders involvement in stamping it out in all communities across the State.

Alhaja Ogunlade reminded the people of an existing law banning female circumcision in Ekiti State, adding that anyone caught will face legal action.

The Permanent Secretary Ministry of Health and Human Services, Mr Akinjide Akinleye expressed displeasure that Ekiti State has the highest prevalence of FGM in Southern Nigeria.

He urged the people to complement the synergy of the First Lady’s office to eradicate FGM practice in the State by not going back to the renounced unlawful act.

Also, the Director-General, Ekiti State Micro Finance and Enterprise Development Agency, Otunba Kayode Fasae advised the beneficiaries against frivolous spending but to engage in self-reliant businesses.

One of the beneficiaries who spoke on behalf of others, Mrs Funmilayo Adedeji, thanked the government for putting up such an initiative to assist them.

(VANGUARD)

Related Topics:Circumcision expert Tools

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Headline

12 Die, 30 Missing In Peru Landslide

Published

15 hours ago

December 1, 2025

Editor

At least 12 people, including three children, died in a landslide at a river port in central Peru on Monday, and 30 were reported missing, officials said.

The landslide submerged a boat with about 50 passengers on board, and another with none, as they were docked at the port of Iparia in the Amazon jungle region of Ucayali, according to a police report cited by the Andina news agency.

Six people were injured, it added, and a search and rescue operation was underway at the start of the Peruvian rainy season.

Without giving a toll, Peru’s COEN national emergency operations centre said on X that tragedy struck at dawn due to “erosion” of the bank of the Ucayali river.

It said the navy has been called in to help.

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Nigeria Grants Asylum To Guinea-Bissau Opposition Candidate

Published

15 hours ago

December 1, 2025

Editor

The Nigerian embassy in Guinea-Bissau has granted asylum to Fernando Dias da Costa, the country’s opposition presidential candidate, following alleged threats to his life after last week’s military coup, The Cable Reports.

The coup was announced by military officers on Wednesday, just days after Guinea-Bissau’s presidential election in which both incumbent President Umaro Embaló and his main challenger, da Costa, claimed victory before official results were released.

Nigeria condemned the takeover and urged an immediate return to constitutional order.

In a letter to the President of the Economic Community of West African States Commission, Omar Touray, dated November 30, the Foreign Affairs Minister, Yusuf Tuggar, said President Bola Tinubu had approved asylum and protection for da Costa inside the Nigerian embassy in Bissau.

Tuggar wrote that the decision was made “in response to threats made against da Costa’s life.”

“In this regard, it would be appreciated if you would kindly mandate the ECOWAS Stabilisation Support Mission in Guinea-Bissau to provide him protection and security while in the premises of the Nigerian embassy,” the letter stated.

The foreign affairs minister’s Special Assistant on Media and Communications Strategy, Alkasim Abdulkadir, confirmed the letter’s authenticity to The Cable on Monday.

He said, “The decision of the Federal Government of Nigeria to grant asylum and provide protection to Fernando Dia Da Costa falls squarely within Nigeria’s sovereign responsibility and longstanding commitment to regional peace, stability, and democratic governance.”

He added that Nigeria acted “in the broader interest of de-escalation,” saying the government had exercised its discretion “to prevent further deterioration of tensions and to promote social cohesion in Guinea-Bissau and the wider West African sub-region.”

According to Abdulkadir, the intervention aligns with ECOWAS principles and reflects Nigeria’s role as a stabilising force in West Africa.

Following the coup, ECOWAS held an emergency virtual summit of heads of state and subsequently suspended Guinea-Bissau from the regional bloc until constitutional order is restored.

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Trump To Attend FIFA World Cup Finals Draw On Friday

Published

15 hours ago

December 1, 2025

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The White House on Monday confirmed US President Donald Trump would attend the draw for the FIFA World Cup finals in Washington later this week.

The United States will co-host the 2026 tournament alongside Canada and Mexico.

“On Friday, President Trump will attend the FIFA World Cup final draw at the Kennedy Centre,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters.

Trump has made the World Cup a centrepiece event of both his second presidency and the 250th anniversary of US independence next year.

But the giant sporting extravaganza has not escaped the political turmoil caused by Trump’s hardline stance on a host of issues.

Trump, a Republican, has raised the possibility of moving games from some US host cities amid a crackdown on what he says is crime and illegal migration in some Democratic-run areas.

AFP