Maternal education-related inequality in female genital mutilation/cutting among daughters aged 0–14 years in three East African countries: DHS data from 2016–2022

BACKGROUND: Globally, more than 230 million girls and women have undergone female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C). It is estimated that about one-fourth of them reside in East Africa. Studies highlight educational attainment as one of the major factors contributing to the practice. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to assess maternal education-related inequality in FGM/C among daughters aged 0-14 years by using Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) data (2016-2022) from three East African countries. METHODS: Stata version 17 was used for the data analysis. We analyzed pooled, nationally representative DHS data (2016-2022) from three East African countries (Ethiopia, Kenya, and Tanzania), involving a weighted sample of 23,596 daughters. Maternal education-related inequality was measured using the Erreygers Normalized Concentration Index. A decomposition analysis was conducted to determine the percentage contribution of maternal and household-level factors to the observed inequality. RESULTS: < 0.001), indicating that FGM/C is significantly concentrated among daughters of less educated mothers. Decomposition analysis showed that maternal education accounted for the largest share of the observed inequality (42.51%), followed by maternal FGM/C status (23.79%), non-exposure to media (22.58%), rural residence (13.86%), and maternal age < 18 years at first cohabitation (8.7%), whereas the wealth index narrowed the inequality by 23.44%. CONCLUSIONS: FGM/C is disproportionately concentrated among daughters of less educated mothers. The observed inequality was largely shaped by maternal factors, indicating that limited educational attainment and intergenerational transmission play a substantial role in sustaining FGM/C among daughters.