World
New $15.5 million fund backs efforts to end female genital mutilation
The Her Horizon Fund has launched with $15.5 million to support efforts to end female genital mutilation, as donor support declines and legal protections face challenges. Seeded by the Wallace Global Fund and an anonymous donor, it aims to attract $100 million. Activists say direct funding could sustain local prevention and advocacy work. The initiative comes as funding for the principal UN programme fell 45% last year; its ambition to accelerate elimination remains an expectation, rather than a demonstrated outcome.
Editorial summary · Publisher article
What matters
- The Wallace Global Fund contributed $14 million, with another $1.5 million from an anonymous donor.
- Funding for the joint UNFPA–Unicef programme fell from $29.6 million to $16.3 million last year.
- The Gambia's supreme court is considering a challenge to its FGM ban, while Sierra Leone's new Child Rights Act does not prohibit the practice.
Context & caveats
- The $100 million figure is a fundraising goal, not committed funding.
Why this made the edition
Substantial reporting documents the fund's committed capital, declining UN support and specific legal challenges, with named sources and public-health context.
Source material