This Country Profile Update provides comprehensive information on the most recent trends and data on FGM/C in Nigeria. It includes an analysis of the current political situation, legal frameworks and programmes to make recommendations on how to move towards eradicating the practice. This report serves as an update to 28 Too Many’s 2006 Country Profile.
The prevalence of FGM/C in Nigeria appears to be decreasing. In 2013, 24.8% of women aged 15–49 years had been cut, and in 2018 this figure was down to 19.5%. In 2018, 13.7% of women in Nigeria aged 15–19 had undergone FGM/C, as opposed to 31.0% of women aged 45–49. However, there is some evidence from interviews conducted in Nigeria that at least part of the reported decrease is due to social desirability bias and community self-surveillance of cutting, as a result of which women will be more reluctant to report that they have been cut.