FGM Study and SGBV Screening Tool Pilot, Kiryandongo Refugee Settlement

UHF carried out a study in Kiryandongo Refugee Settlement to understand the prevalence, incidence, drivers and consequences of female genital mutilation (FGM), and to test an SGBV screening tool. Working with the Population Council and the Ministry of Health, the team used household surveys, focus group discussions, key informant interviews, health facility assessments and integrated SGBV screening, with oversight by a Research Ethics Committee.

• FGM prevalence of 35.2%: more than one in three women and girls aged 15 to 49 have undergone FGM.
• Incidence of 4%: four new cases per 100 girls aged 0 to 14 in the past 12 months.
• Low knowledge: 81.2% of participants had low knowledge of FGM and its consequences.
• Reporting gaps: 86% did not know where or how to report FGM cases.
• Little outreach: 73% had never attended an FGM awareness campaign.
• Support for change: 72.2% believe FGM should be abandoned.

• No FGM-specific clinical guidelines or standard operating procedures
• No routine screening services
• Limited provider training on FGM prevention and management
• Low awareness of anti-FGM laws among health workers
• No information, education and communication materials on FGM
• Limited counselling and mental health services
• No de-infibulation services

Enumerators adopted the SGBV screening tool readily after training, and it fitted into surveys and interviews without a major time burden. It helped them ask about sensitive topics with confidence and supported more accurate disclosure and better links to referral pathways. Some translation and cultural adaptation was needed.

Findings are being shared with government, partners and community leaders, including a dissemination meeting at Panyadoli Health Centre IV in July 2026. UHF will refine the screening tool and support action on the findings through intervention design, pilots and operational research, subject to funding.