Mirian Gom 
OSUN, Nigeria – Action Health Incorporated partners with the Osun State Government to train 45 secondary school teachers on comprehensive sexuality education and the prevention of female genital mutilation.
The three-day programme, held in Osogbo, receives support from the United Nations Population Fund under the UNFPA-UNICEF joint programme on ending female genital mutilation.
UNFPA South-West Gender and FGM Analyst, Uzoma Ayodeji, says the initiative aims to equip teachers with the skills needed to educate students about sexuality and harmful cultural practices.
“Teachers are frontline actors in education, and they are in daily contact with these teenagers,” Ayodeji says.
Participants drawn from public and private schools are expected to establish school clubs and replicate the training in their respective institutions.
Ayodeji says interventions by Action Health Incorporated have already contributed to a significant decline in female genital mutilation cases in Osun State.
“We are hopeful that by 2030, FGM will be completely eradicated in Osun State,” she adds.
Programme Officer Fatimah Idris urges teachers to use classrooms as safe spaces to protect students from abuse and misinformation.
“Your classrooms are the safest spaces these young people have outside their homes,” Idris says.
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Korede Abdullah 