victim by giving psychological support, and encourage the girl to go back to school. Community involvement of the to avoid stigmatization is also promoted. 311. On the other hand, fighting against FGM and under-age marriage is also a major target. By law, underage marriage is totally banned in Eritrea. Furthermore, FGM is legally abolished and criminalized under Proclamation 148/2007. These practices which have been rooted in culture and not in religion for centuries would require time and effort to completely stop them. But the political commitment of the Government is apparent and extensive mobilization and sensitization of the whole society for transformation is gaining momentum. Continuous monitoring on these issues also takes place by law enforcement agencies, local administrations and NUEW and whenever reported is accounted by the law. 312. The nationwide campaign on FGM has been going on since 2006 in 56 sub-regions encompassing 759 local administrations. The campaign targeted every household and was organised in three phases. The first phase focused on sensitisation and 90% of the target set was achieved. The second phase dealt with increasing the knowledge on FGM and contributed significantly in influencing attitudes. This led to the issuance of public declarations statements by communities at local level. The third phase focuses on public discussions on the Proclamation that banned FGM. Furthermore, engagements with law enforcement agencies, local and regional administrations and religious leaders are continuously done in parallel. 313. The 548 anti-FGM committees established nationwide at all levels (up to the village level) also shoulder the responsibility of fighting under age marriage. A great deal of consultations and advocacy is also conducted by these committees. These are mainly male dominated and include 460 at the village level (1404 female and 2262 male members), 82 at sub regional level (211 female and 587 male members) and 6 at regional level (12 female and 58 male members). Extensive media and community sensitization programme to consolidate the legal provisions are also conducted. 314. Under the leadership of the NUEW, the Proclamation 158/2007 was extensively discussed by all sections of the society before it was promulgated. It is being implemented extensively with the wide public support and in particular the support of religious leaders. The result is promising. FGM that affected 89% of girls under the age of 5 in 1995 has dropped to 12.9% by 2014. Monitoring on the issue through the available means has also been heightened. In the last decade, a total of 147 of which 128 were from two regions (Anseba - 83 and Gash Barka 45) were brought to justice. 315. Concerted effort is also going on against under age marriage. While the legal age for marriage is 18 years for both male and female, cultural and traditional views and practices are the main obstacles. Similar strategy and techniques used to eliminate FGM are also used to fight against the perception and practices of underage marriage. Hence, a great deal of consultations and advocacy spearheaded by the NUEW and the NUEYS takes place. The Page 79 of 100