Kawai David, Mbogo Bernard, Opanga Yvonne, Muhula Samuel, Esho Tammary C, Conradi Hilke, Rutto Viola J, Lugayo Denge, Matanda Dennis J
Amref Health Africa, Nairobi, Kenya.
Amref International University, Nairobi, Kenya.
Front Reprod Health. 2025 May 20;7:1445504. doi: 10.3389/frph.2025.1445504. eCollection 2025.
Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) and child marriage (CEFM) are harmful practices that are a human rights violation. For decades, many interventions have been implemented to end these practices. One such intervention is the Alternative Rite of Passage (ARP), which allows girls to go through a meaningful rite of passage without the cut. The ARPs have come under scrutiny due to a lack of data to show how effective ARPs have been. This study aimed to establish the effect of the Community-Led Alternative Rite of Passage (CL-ARP) model on incidences of FGM/C, CEFM and keeping girls and young women in school.
The study adopted a longitudinal design where girls and young women were enrolled into the CL-ARP programme and later followed up for over three years to assess the effectiveness of the CL-ARP model in preventing incidences of FGM/C, CEFM and keeping girls in school. A total of 2,647 girls aged 10-23 years who resided in Kajiado County were recruited and followed up post-exposure to CL-ARP. Data analysis involved conducting descriptive and logistic regression analyses.
The CL-ARP programme kept 98% of girls free of FGM/C, 99% free of CEFM and 98% kept in school. 41 cases of FGM/C, 12 cases of CEFM and 48 cases of school dropouts were reported three years post-exposure. Girls who underwent FGM/C had been kept free of FGM/C for an average of 39.5 months, those who experienced CEFM had been kept free of CEFM for an average of 40.2 months, and those who dropped out of school had been kept in school for an average of 38.5 months. Girls and young women who experienced instances of threats/violence were more likely to experience FGM/C, CEFM and drop out of school than those who had not.
The CL-ARP programme was successful in keeping the majority of girls and young women free of FGM/C and CEFM, and retained in school post-enrollment. Reported cases of FGM/C, CEFM and school dropouts underline the importance of considering other contextual factors such as gender-based violence that may continue to put girls and young women at risk despite embracing CL-ARP.
女性生殖器切割（FGM/C）和童婚（CEFM）是侵犯人权的有害行为。几十年来，人们实施了许多干预措施来终结这些行为。其中一种干预措施是替代成人礼（ARP），它让女孩们能够经历一场有意义的成人礼而无需接受切割。由于缺乏数据表明替代成人礼的效果如何，这些替代成人礼受到了审查。本研究旨在确定社区主导的替代成人礼（CL-ARP）模式对女性生殖器切割/切割女性生殖器官（FGM/C）、童婚（CEFM）发生率以及让女童和年轻女性继续上学的影响。
该研究采用纵向设计，将女童和年轻女性纳入CL-ARP项目，随后对她们进行了三年多的随访，以评估CL-ARP模式在预防女性生殖器切割/切割女性生殖器官（FGM/C）、童婚（CEFM）发生率以及让女童继续上学方面是否有效。总共招募了2647名居住在卡贾多县、年龄在10至23岁之间的女孩，并在她们接触CL-ARP后进行随访。数据分析包括进行描述性分析和逻辑回归分析。
CL-ARP项目使98%的女孩未遭受女性生殖器切割/切割女性生殖器官（FGM/C），99%未经历童婚（CEFM），98%继续上学。在接触CL-ARP三年后，报告了41例女性生殖器切割/切割女性生殖器官（FGM/C）、12例童婚（CEFM）和48例辍学情况。接受过女性生殖器切割/切割女性生殖器官（FGM/C）的女孩平均39.5个月未再遭受此类行为，经历童婚（CEFM）的女孩平均40.2个月未再经历，辍学的女孩平均38.5个月继续留在学校。经历过威胁/暴力事件的女童和年轻女性比未经历过的更有可能遭受女性生殖器切割/切割女性生殖器官（FGM/C）、童婚（CEFM）并辍学。
CL-ARP项目成功地使大多数女童和年轻女性未遭受女性生殖器切割/切割女性生殖器官（FGM/C）和童婚（CEFM），并在入学后继续留在学校。报告的女性生殖器切割/切割女性生殖器官（FGM/C）、童婚（CEFM）和辍学案例突显了考虑其他背景因素（如性别暴力）的重要性，尽管采用了CL-ARP，但这些因素可能继续使女童和年轻女性面临风险。
