28 Too Many and Orchid Project join forces to end FGM/C

28 Too Many is delighted to announce that we will be joining Orchid Project on the 1st of April 2022. 28 Too Many joining Orchid Project will provide an opportunity to draw on the unique strengths and experiences of both organisations, ultimately enhancing the movement to end FGM/C. 
 
Orchid Project is an NGO catalysing the global movement to end FGM/C, a human rights violation that harms the lives of girls, women and their communities. Orchid Project partners with pioneering grassroots organisations around the world, and shares knowledge and best practice to accelerate change. Orchid Project also advocates among governments and global leaders to ensure work to end FGM/C is prioritised.
 
28 Too Many will bring to Orchid Project a wealth of experience in evidence-based research, which has received wide recognition over the years, including our 2018 Law and FGM report receiving the Thomson Reuters Foundation TrustLaw Collaboration Award and the #NoFGM Ribbon campaign received over 11 awards at the Dubai Lynx Awards in 2019. 28 Too Many’s work in generating high-quality research and advocacy tools has influenced policy reform, including the criminalisation of FGM/C in Nigeria and Sudan and the organisation has been invited to as an FGM expert positioned to advise multinational agencies including the United Nations, Population Council, governments, and the World Bank. 
 
As part of this exciting step, Orchid Project will work closely with the network of researchers and consultants that have supported 28 Too Many’s work to date. The combined experience of the 28 Too Many team, particularly that of Dr. Ann-Marie Wilson who has been at the forefront of ending FGM/C for over a decade, will help drive forward Orchid Project’s research and evidence function and shape the production of new country profiles and themed reports on FGM/C. 
 
“We are delighted to welcome 28 Too Many and look forward to the next chapter for Orchid Project,” said Delphine Rive, interim-CEO of Orchid Project. “Our decision to join forces is driven by a shared vision of ending female genital mutilations/cutting (FGM/C) through community-led change and we are confident that with our combined expertise and networks, we will be better positioned to positively impact the lives of girls and women by enabling evidence creation and its effective use to accelerate an end to FGM/C.”  
 
Commenting on 28 Too Many joining Orchid Project’s team, Dr. Ann-Marie Wilson said, “Over the last 12 years, 28 Too Many has worked in parallel with Orchid Project to embrace and drive forward ending FGM/C. We have been happy to work alongside Orchid Project in their endeavours over the last decade. We look forward to working together by joining forces to increase our collective impact in the space.”
 
28 Too Many brings an established research and evidence function to Orchid Project, helping it to play a key role in providing high-quality evidence and best practice needed to guide policy and decision making as well as donor investments in the Anti-FGM/C sector. This evidence and research coupled with Orchid Project’s existing programming, advocacy and movement building efforts will strengthen the capacity of organisations and activists globally and support them to bring an end to FGM/C by 2030. 
 
28 Too Many and Orchid Project would like to take this opportunity to thank Ashurst, PWC and Latham & Watkins for their tireless support in developing the transition agreement.