Wycliffe Ogega Mbechne

Wycliffe Ogega Mbechne
Wycliffe Ogega Mbechne

is a young man. In tears, he tells the story of his eldest sister. She fought tooth and nail against the planned circumcision and eventually fled to relatives, but was discovered nonetheless and circumcised. Wycliffe says that the Fulda-Mosocho project has made “a dream come true”. Wycliffe studied, among other things, “Gender Studies” at university and has been working at Enka Eniya in business and project management since 2013, drawing on his specialist knowledge. He drafts proposals to present the “Wonder” – the miracle of the intact female body – to the Kisii people in rural areas at barazas (village assemblies). He attends the Barazas to discuss the consequences of female genital mutilation with the clan elders and to persuade them to advocate for the girls’ physical integrity at the village assemblies. The clan elders speak directly to the parents, who in turn attend parent education sessions to protect their daughters. Wycliffe translates the minutes and documentation of the barazas, which are held in the local language, into English so that they can later be shared as a model within the network against female genital mutilation in other Kisii counties and beyond.

Wycliffe points out that there is now a tendency to have girls circumcised secretly in clinics at night. This is a dangerous trend, and discussions are now underway with medical staff to dissuade them from performing secret circumcisions.

He says that talking to people is a process, and that it’s worth speaking to decision-makers and parents two or three times to give them time to make the right decision.


Did you know?

Educating parents is one of the most important aspects of conservation.