The EU 'AFTER - Against Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting Through Empowerment and Rejection' project combats the issue of FGM has been implemented  over the past 2 years and will end in February 2018. It aims to combat FGM through community-based activities in five different European countries: Belgium, Ireland, Italy, Spain and Sweden. ''We are here to raise awareness among migrant communities in Europe. There are 200 million victims of FGM in the world. There are between 46,000 and 57,00 victims in Italy alone,'' Giulia D'Aguanno said, the coordinator of the EU project in Rome for ActionAid, the Italian organization in charge of the initiative.  ''We have a series of projects in Italy as well as African countries to prevent and fight against FGM. We are fighting for women's rights, the right to make choices about one's own body and against every form of violence and discrimination.'' The project focuses on the community and the stories of men and women. It relies on a method to get participants to reflect before they act on decisions. ''We use it in empowerment, both with women and with men, to deal with themes of the body, the roles of men and women in different cultures and of sexuality,'' she said. The project focused on the issues of the body and sexuality, as well as on citizenship and getting gainful employment. ''The youths in the center live in a sort of limbo. They have sporadic contact with the outside world and while waiting for a response to their requests for asylum their future appears uncertain. With this initiative, we bring them together with other people and help them to get to know migrant experiences in Rome, such as the Barikamà yoghurt cooperative and the Karalò tailors.''

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