EU Questions Sierra Leone’s Failure to Ban FGM, Raises Concerns Over Child Protection

The European Union has criticized Sierra Leone for failing to outlaw Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in its newly enacted Child Rights Act of 2025, describing the omission as a major setback in the country’s efforts to protect women and girls.
Speaking at the launch of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence in Freetown, EU Ambassador to Sierra Leone Jacek Jankowski commended the government for recent reforms but said the Act missed a critical opportunity to criminalize FGM.