Female Genital Cutting in Guinea: Qualitative and quantitative research strategies

Abstract

This report presents the results of two contrasting research approaches--the formative study and the national sample survey--to better understand how female genital cutting (FGC) is practiced in Guinea and how it may have changed over the past few decades. Overall results of both studies indicate that FGC is nearly universal in Guinea with girls being circumcised at younger ages than in the past as well as spending less time in the period of seclusion and instruction that follows circumcision. It is also observed that there is a clear tendency toward medicalization of FGC in the data from both studies. Moreover both approaches found that the practice of FGC forms part of the expectations of most individuals. Although organizations and agencies planning campaigns against FGC in the country and elsewhere face several critical choices in addressing the issue it is suggested that a dialogue with the population is of critical importance since it would allow the debate to expand and include the domain of social development as well as the health domain.