BURKINA FASO

© Mwangaza Action/2013/Waongo G

STATISTICAL PROFILE ON FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION

Female genital mutilation (FGM) refers to “all

procedures involving partial or total removal
1996 National decree/legislation banning
FGM passed
of the female external genitalia or other injury
to the female genital organs for non-medical SELECTED STATISTICS ON WOMEN’S STATUS
reasons.”1 While the exact number of girls and
women worldwide who have undergone FGM
remains unknown, at least 200 million girls
and women have been cut in 31 countries with
10% of women 20-24 years were married or
in union before age 15
representative data on prevalence. FGM is a
violation of girls’ and women’s human rights 52% of women 20-24 years were married
or in union before age 18
and is condemned by many international
treaties and conventions, as well as by national
legislation in many countries. Yet, where it is
28% of women 20-24 years have given birth
by age 18
practised FGM is performed in line with tradition
of women 15-49 years think that a
and social norms to ensure that girls are socially
accepted and marriageable, and to uphold
their status and honour and that of the entire
44% husband/partner is justified in hitting
or beating his wife under certain
circumstances
family. UNICEF works with government and civil
society partners towards the elimination of FGM of women 15-49 years make use of at
in countries where it is still practised.
1. World Health Organization, Eliminating Female Genital Mutilation: An interagency statement,
WHO,UNFPA, UNICEF, UNIFEM, OHCHR, UNHCR, UNECA, UNESCO, UNDP, UNAIDS, WHO,
52% least one type of information media at
least once a week (newspaper,
Geneva, 2008, p. 4. magazine, television, or radio)

Source: DHS 2010

Data and Analytics Section

DIVISION OF DATA, ANALYTICS, PLANNING AND MONITORING
 HOW WIDESPREAD IS THE PRACTICE?

The prevalence of FGM in Burkina Faso ranges from 22 per cent to 87 per cent by ethnicity

Percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years

Percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years who have undergone FGM, by ethnicity and religion
who have undergone FGM, by region

100
87
81
80 76 76
66
62 60
60

40
22
20

Less than 10% 10-25 % 0

Total Ethnic group Ethnic group Muslim Traditional/ Roman No religion Other
26-50% 51-80% Above 80 % with highest with lowest Animist Catholic Christians
prevalence prevalence

Percentage Among daughters of cut girls and women, the percentage of girls aged
Percentage of girls aged 0 to 14 years who have undergone FGM (asof girls and
reported bywomen aged 15-49 years
their mothers),
who wealth
have had FGM/C, by préfecture 0 to 14 years who have undergone FGM (as reported by their mothers),
by residence, mother's education and household quintile
by mothers' attitudes about whether the practice should continue

50 100

40 80

30 60 54

20 15 16 40
13 14 24
10 7 8 8 20 11
2
0 0
Total Rural Urban No Primary Secondary Poorest Richest Daughters whose Daughters whose Daughters whose
education or higher mothers think FGM mothers say it mothers think FGM
should continue depends/are not sure should stop

WHEN
WHENAND
ANDHOW
HOWISIS
FGM/C PERFORMED?
FGM PERFORMED?

The majority of adolescent girls in Burkina Faso who underwent FGM did so before the age of five

P Percentage distribution ofyears

15-49 girls aged 15 to at
who have 19least
yearsone
who have undergone
daughter FGM,
who has had by ageby
FGM/C, atplace
whichofcutting occurred
residence and mother's education

0-4 years
5-9 years

10-14 years 64 27 7 11

15+ years
Don’t know/
Missing
0 20 40 60 80 100

Notes: The boundaries and the names shown and the

Percentage distribution of girls aged 0 to 14 years Percentage distribution of girls and women designations used on the map do not imply official endorsement
who have undergone FGM (as reported t by their aged 15 to 49 years who have undergone FGM, or acceptance by the United Nations. Only categories with 25 or
mothers), according to the type of person/practitioner by type of FGM performed more unweighted cases are presented. Due to rounding, some of
r performing the procedure
the data presented may not add up to 100 per cent. The category
ting of 'Other Christians' includes 'Protestant.' Prevalence data for
2 0.2 1 Cut, no flesh girls aged 0 to 14 reflect their current, but not final, FGM status
removed/ Nicked since some girls who have not been cut may still be at risk of
5
Health personnel Cut, flesh experiencing the practice once they reach the customary age
17 removed for cutting. Therefore, the data on prevalence for girls under age
Traditional 15 is actually an underestimation the true extent of the practice.
practitioner Sewn closed Since age at cutting varies among settings, the amount of
underestimation also varies and this should be kept in mind when
Don’t know/ Type not determined/ interpreting all FGM prevalence data for this age group. ‘Health
Missing Not sure/
98 personnel’ includes doctors, nurses, midwives and other health
77 Don’t know
workers; ‘Traditional practitioner’ includes traditional circumcis-
ers, traditional birth attendants and other types of traditional
practitioners.
Source for all charts on this page: DHS 2010
 WHAT ARE THE PREVAILING ATTITUDES TOWARDS FGM?

Approximately nine out of ten people in Burkina Faso think that the practice should stop

Percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years and boys and men aged 15 to 49 years Percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years and boys and
who have heard about FGM, by their attitudes about whether the practice should continue men aged 15 to 49 years who have heard of FGM and believe the
practice is required by religion

Think FGM should continue Think FGM should stop Say it depends/are not sure 50

40
Girls
and women 30

20 17 15
Boys
and men 10

0
Girls and women Boys and men

Percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years who have heard about FGM and think the practice should continue,
by household wealth quintile, education, ethnicity and age

50

Total Poorest Richest No education Primary Secondary Ethnic group with Ethnic group with 45-49 15-19
or higher highest support lowest support years years

IS THE PRACTICE OF FGM CHANGING?

Fewer adolescents have undergone FGM compared to older women, and support for the practice
has declined significantly

Percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years who have undergone FGM, by current age

45-49 years 40-44 years 35-39 years 30-34 years 25-29 years 20-24 years 15-19 years

Source for all charts on

Percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years who have undergone FGM, and percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years
this page: DHS 2010, unless
who have heard about FGM and think the practice should continue otherwise noted.

Prevalence of FGM Think FGM should continue

DHS 1998-99 DHS 2003 DHS 2010

 BURKINA FASO
INTER-COUNTRY STATISTICAL OVERVIEW
Percentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years who have undergone FGM

100 98
94 95
86 87 87 89
83
80 76 76
65 67
60
44 45
40 37 38

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100

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60
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39 43
40 33
29 30

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100

80 76
65 65 68
60 54
44
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Notes: In Liberia, girls and women who have heard of the Sande society were asked whether they were members; this provides indirect information on FGM since it is performed during initiation into the society. Data on girls’ prevalence in
Egypt refer to girls aged 6 months to 14 years and in Indonesia refer to girls aged 0 to 11 years. An older source is used to report on the prevalence of FGM among girls and on the percentage of support for FGM in Uganda (DHS 2011) since
the latest source did not collect these data. Data on the prevalence among girls refer to an older source in Nigeria (MICS 2016-17) due to an anomaly in the results in the most recent source. MICS data for Ghana (2011) could not be used to
report on attitudes towards FGM due to the fact that information is missing for girls and women with no living daughters; data from MICS 2006 are used instead. EDSF/PAPFAM data for Djibouti (2012) could not be used for attitudes towards
FGM since the question is different from the standard; data from MICS 2006 are used instead. In Liberia, only cut girls and women were asked about their attitudes towards FGM; since girls and women from practicing communities are
more likely to support the practice, the level of support in this country as captured by DHS 2013 is higher than would be expected had all girls and women been asked their opinion. In Egypt and Somalia, the support for FGM was calculated
among all girls and women, since respondents were not first asked whether they had heard of the practice. Prevalence data for girls and women aged 15 to 49 years and data on attitudes towards FGM are not available for Indonesia.

Source: DHS, EDSF/PAPFAM, MICS, Health Issues Survey, Population and

Health Survey and RISKESDAS, 2004-2018.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Updated January 2020
Data and Analytics Section - Division of Data, Analytics, Planning and Monitoring
UNICEF, 3 UN Plaza, New York, 10017
Website: data.unicef.org Email: data@unicef.org