Abstract:
An estimated of two million girls worldwide WERE at risk of experiencing genital
mutilation every year of which the majority are girls in 28 African countries. In Kenya
the practice is prevalent with 38% of women age 14-49 reporting being circumcised.
The aim of this research was to find out the effect of female genital mutilation on the
girl child education in the county of west Pokot. In this county, FGM prevalence is as
high as 95%. The practice has to let low girls’ enrollment in both primary and secondary
schools leading to an acute shortage of female professional from the community. It is
on this basis that the study ones to find out the effects in relation girl child education.
Areas of concern were enrollment, discipline and performance in both internal and
external exams. The study was recommending best approaches in the fight against FGM.
It investigated whether FGM has a contributed towards the low enrollment for girls in
the upper primary and secondary schools respectively and finally there is the effect of
FGM on performance in both internal and external examination. In this study the
researcher used both qualitative and quantitative methods. For quantitative methods, the
researcher used the following tables, charts and bar graphs. In qualitative methods, the
researcher used interviews, observation, questionnaires, focus group and discussions. It
is envisaged that the results showed the destructive effect of FGM. It led to the creation
of awareness in the community leading to sensitization. Anti-FGM campaign was taken
a notch higher. Finally discipline in schools was enhanced and performance improved.
The country benefited from a lot of female manpower that is otherwise wasted now due
to FGM. The other researchers equally shift their attention to focusing on FGM in
relation to education. The study concluded that exposure to a dissemination of the
information on the social, psychological and the health risk of the practice on girls and
women has impacted on the community beliefs and practices about FGM. The study
recommends that campaigns against female circumcision should be integrated. in the
social and economic development initiatives that particularly focus on women’s
empowerment.