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MANILA – Six United Nations agencies on Thursday warned that an estimated 4.5 million girls – many under five years old – are at risk of undergoing female genital mutilation (FGM) in 2026 alone.

In a joint statement marking the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation, the heads of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), UN Women, World Health Organization (WHO), and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) renewed their commitment to end the practice and support survivors.

The agencies said more than 230 million girls and women worldwide are living with the lifelong consequences of FGM, describing it as a human rights violation that harms physical and mental health and can lead to serious complications. Annual treatment costs are estimated at about USD 1.4 billion.

They cited progress in recent decades, noting that nearly two-thirds of people in countries where FGM is prevalent now support its elimination. Half of the gains since 1990 were achieved in the past decade, reducing the proportion of girls subjected to FGM from one in two to one in three.

However, the UN officials warned that funding cuts and declining global investment in health, education and child protection programs threaten to reverse gains and put more girls at risk, as the 2030 deadline to end FGM approaches.

They called for sustained financing, stronger community-led efforts, and expanded access to health care, psychosocial support and legal services for survivors, stressing that ending FGM requires coordinated action from governments, communities and international partners.

The agencies also raised concern over what they described as a growing pushback against efforts to eliminate FGM, including arguments that the practice is acceptable if performed by medical professionals.

Without adequate and predictable financing, they warned, community outreach programs could be scaled back, frontline services weakened, and hard-won gains reversed, placing millions more girls at risk.