FGM can be viewed in four dimensions:

Health:
FGM/FGC is closely related to maternal morbidity and mortality. Studies indicate that Obstetric Fistula is often associated with obstructed labour and lack of assisted delivery. Women who have undergone FGM especially types II and III excision and infibulations have increased likelihood of scarred and/or tightened vulva which can contribute to obstructed labour.

There is no evidence to prove or reject the links between FGM and HIV/AIDS transmission, although there are various circumstances, which can be considered as risk factors for the transmission of HIV/AIDS or other blood borne infections (Hepatitis B). These include: unsanitary conditions and use of contaminated instruments, consummation of marriage; in cultures where intercourse takes place immediately after FGM is performed, when intercourse is undertaken with an open wound or if, the partner forces himself into the vagina causing tears. There are instances when women are de-infibulated prior to the wedding and are expected to have sex immediately after.

The immediate physical health consequences include haemorrhage, pain, shock, trauma, which can lead to unconsciousness or death, infections and abscesses: Unhygienic conditions, use of contaminated instruments, bare hands and applications of substances such as herbs or ashes to the wound frequently cause serious infections, acute urinary retention, injury to the adjacent tissues: e.g. Urethra and the Vaginal opening, perineum and rectum/anus, fractures and dislocation, and failure to heal.

Long- term consequences that are also most likely to occur are: Cysts and abscesses on the vulva: recurrent urinary tract infections and incontinence: difficulties in menstruation: chronic pelvic infection: obstetric complications, keloid scar formation.
The psychosexual consequences include: sexual dysfunction which may occur in both partners as a result of painful intercourse and reduced sexual sensitivity following clitoridectomy and narrowing of the vagina opening, clitoral neuroma, perineal lacerations and possible brain damage to infants during birth

Social Cultural:
Among many communities, FGM has a deep cultural significance. It gives women and girls a sense of belonging to the community. Families who promote FGM claim that the practice has been there since time immemorial and feel obliged that their traditions are followed. Among other reasons is that FGM enhances a girls marriage prospects and allows them to become mothers and socially acceptable. Girls who are not circumcised stand to be ridiculed, stigmatized and are not allowed to participate in community activities. Male dominance in society has contributed to the prevailing notions of significance of the practice.

Economics:
There are certain factors that contribute to the cultural importance of FGM. In some communities, the ritual is often associated with presentation of gifts to the girl and a great honour to the family. A girl who is circumcised brings great honour to the family and is likely to fetch high bride price. For the women who perform circumcision, it is a lucrative business and a source of income. Sometimes it is not remuneration but the prestige and power of the position that compels practitioners to continue.

Human Rights:
Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) may be viewed through the human rights lens by recognizing that the practice violates the set of universally accepted minimum standards. This is not only because it is discriminatory against women but also because of its side effects, which effectively affect women’s enjoyment of their human rights by either ending it or significantly lowering its quality.

It is a human rights abuse that functions as an instrument for socializing girls into prescribed groupings hence denying them the right to self-determination (Masterson and Swanson, (2000) identify the justifications for FGM as being based on aspects of tradition, religion and notions of women’s sexuality. The latter is most prominent as the reasons put forward for the practice of FGM is that it controls sexuality. It has been claimed that the cut preserves the girl’s virginity and protects marital fidelity because it diminishes her sexual desire and ensures that by removing a part of the genitalia that controls sexual pleasure in a woman during sex. Without this part women are condemned to a life of only giving pleasure to men and not receiving any. This effectively makes FGM discriminatory as compared to male circumcision where the practice is beneficial and not aimed at denying men any rights. The practice of FGM is also a violation of other human rights which include: Right to be free from gender discrimination, Right to life and to physical integrity, Right to health and Rights of the child.

Today, there are various international, regional and national legal instruments that address FGM. These include; the 1993 UN World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna, the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action which called  for the elimination of all forms of violence against women to be seen as a human rights obligation: ''In particular, the World Conference stresses the importance of working towards the elimination of violence against women in public and private life and the eradication of any conflicts which may arise between the rights of women and the harmful effects of certain traditional or customary practices.''

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights also underscores the obligation of states to respect and ensure respect for basic human rights, such as the right to physical and mental security, freedom from discrimination on the basis of gender.

Similarly, on the agenda of the UN Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities since the early 1980s, FGM was recognized as a form of violence against women in the UN Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women, the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the Millennium Development Goals. At the regional level, the Maputo Protocol on the rights of women in Africa and the ICPD 1994 and ICPD+10 reports condemn the practice as a violation of the rights of women and girls. More particularly, the African Parliamentary Conference of 5th December 2005 on Violence Against Women, Abandoning Female Genital Mutilation: the Role of National Parliaments make specific recommendations on the eradication of FGM. These include: Development of a multidisciplinary and comprehensive approach, establishment of International and regional framework for the abandonment of FGM/C, development and enforcement of legislation for the abandonment of FGM/C, development of national strategies, adoption of adequate national budgets, changing mentalities, strengthening parliament's role and enhancing its international and regional cooperation operations. Many non-governmental actors have also adopted a human rights framework in their approach to eradicate FGM practices.