It’s Spring 2026, and with wars raging in the Middle East and Ukraine, climate change accelerating, and approximately 120 million people displaced worldwide, the world needs a win. And there is one in reach.
Grassroots women across Africa are delivering real on-the-ground change. Impact results from the Liberia pilot campaign in February 2026 are here: 85% of those who recall the Born Perfect Bus Tour pilot said it changed their minds about FGM. See the latest impact report HERE.
The pilot, funded by Irish Aid and UN Women, shows that when local activists travel into remote communities, tell communities that FGM is unnecessary, illegal, and harmful to their daughters, parents listen. Now, building on these lessons, the frontline network is gearing up for a region-wide Born Perfect campaign, spanning across the Mano River region – Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea – scaling the Born Perfect model for real, widespread change to eradicate FGM.
A revolution is happening across Africa as hundreds of women drive the Born Perfect message home village by village via the Born Perfect Caravans and local radio blitzes. The locally-led FGM eradication campaign is achieving real results, with an average of 79% of people who see the campaign saying it changed their minds about FGM (see all the impact studies HERE.) It is now rolling across Kenya, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea Bissau, and launching Somalia next month.
Wallace Global Announces New $10M Match Fund to Back Frontline Women Ending FGM
As frontline women drive the Born Perfect Caravans across Africa – delivering real, measurable impact – the Wallace Global Fund is stepping in to ensure they are backed with sustained, direct funding for years to come.
After more than 40 years of supporting frontline efforts to end FGM, the Wallace Global Fund has announced it will close its doors – and, in its place, launch a new $10 million End FGM Global Action Fund. Designed as a match-funded pooled mechanism, the fund will channel resources directly to locally-led solutions proven to work.
The announcement was made in March at a private donors’ breakfast in New York, where Executive Director Ellen Dorsey called on governments, foundations, and corporate partners – from Canada to the UK – to scale up investment in frontline women, with funding delivered through their fiscal sponsor, Women Win.
Now, Wallace Global is taking this call to Europe – meeting government donors in London, Dublin, Amsterdam, and Oslo to secure partnerships and match-funding. At a critical moment for global development, the fund offers a reliable pipeline to locally-led solutions that deliver results – and have the evidence to prove it.
