Circumcisions and Related Practices about Child Birth in Sagamu, Ogun State, Nigeria

Abstract

From time immemorial, studies have shown the importance of cultural practices in ensuring human sustenance in every society. Circumcisions and related practices concerning child birth are some of the vital ones in African settings such as Sagamu in Ogun State, South West Nigeria. Surprisingly, it is equally noticeable that there are FGM practicing and non-FGC practicing communities within the same ethnic group of Yoruba, South West Nigeria. In this regard, the Egba and the Ijebu (both in Ogun State) are Oduduwa descendents who may be similar in many areas of life but quite different in their perception of circumcision of newborn babies particularly the girl-child. Each of the communities values its perception with utmost sense of pride and dignity irrespective of their common ancestral origin. The difference from the same ethnic group on this subject matter could be regarded as a research concern since it has been relatively neglected in academic literature over the years. The study employed various PLA tools, such as FGDs, KIIs, Sexuality Life Line [SLL] and Flow Chart to collect data from respondents and analyzed the data through Pair Wise Ranking and Matrix Scoring/Ranking. The study concludes that the practice of circumcision is prevalent in the community under study because of social, cultural factors backing it and makes it very intricate to eradicate since it has a strong connotation with marriage.