“Am I More than a Housewife”? An Exploration of Education, Empowerment, and Gender Preference in Relation to Female Genital Cutting/Mutilation in the Far North Region of Cameroon

Result code in IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F00216224%3A14230%2F23%3A00130361" target="_blank" >RIV/00216224:14230/23:00130361 - isvavai.cz</a>

Result on the web

<a href="https://vc.bridgew.edu/jiws/vol25/iss1/7" target="_blank" >https://vc.bridgew.edu/jiws/vol25/iss1/7</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

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Result language

angličtina

Original language name

“Am I More than a Housewife”? An Exploration of Education, Empowerment, and Gender Preference in Relation to Female Genital Cutting/Mutilation in the Far North Region of Cameroon

Original language description

Despite the United Nations (UN) efforts to eliminate all forms of discrimination against women, gender discrimination remains visible in most regions of Cameroon. Traditional practices such as female genital cutting/mutilation and early marriage violate the human rights of their victims and continue to perpetuate gender gaps, leaving women vulnerable and dependent on their male counterparts for their daily needs. The aim of this ethnographic study is to examine the influence of the traditional practice of female genital cutting/mutilation (FGC/FGM) in the face of modernity and as a driver of gender inequality. Study participants were girls and women from the Far North Region of Cameroon and activists and academics involved in the study of FGC/FGM. A total of 36 participants were interviewed. This study shows that within these communities, the practice of FGC/FGM contributes to constructing gaps between men and women in education, empowerment, and offspring gender preference. By examining how these gaps are perpetuated, this study highlights the reasons for the region's high illiteracy rate among women, the lack of female empowerment, and why parents prefer having male children over female children. This study also reveals that women in this part of Cameroon are primarily recognized only in specific areas of life, such as in the “housewife” role, their ability to satisfy their husbands, start biological reproduction, and perform household chores. Victims of FGC/FGM are often limited to household roles, thereby depriving them of fundamental human rights and opportunities. This study contributes to the existing research on how the practice of FGC/FGM promotes gender inequalities in different areas of life. This work is rooted in the shared experiences of women themselves, revealing how they conceptualize the practice of FGC/FGM.

Czech name

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Czech description

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Type

J_SC - Article in a specialist periodical, which is included in the SCOPUS database

CEP classification

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OECD FORD branch

50403 - Social topics (Women´s and gender studies; Social issues; Family studies; Social work)

Project

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Continuities

S - Specificky vyzkum na vysokych skolach

Publication year

2023

Confidentiality

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Name of the periodical

Journal of International Women's Studies

ISSN

1539-8706

e-ISSN

1539-8706

Volume of the periodical

25

Issue of the periodical within the volume

1

Country of publishing house

US - UNITED STATES

Number of pages

16

Pages from-to

1-16

UT code for WoS article

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EID of the result in the Scopus database

2-s2.0-85150908229