Fuambai Sia Ahmadu is a Sierra Leonean-American anthropologist.Hernlund, Ylva (2003). "Childhood: Coming of Age Rituals", in Suad Joseph, Afsāna Naǧmābādī (eds.). Encyclopedia of Women & Islamic Cultures: Family, Body, Sexuality And Health. Volume 3, Brill, p. 74. She has worked for UNICEF and the British Medical Research Council in the Gambia."About Fuambai", fuambaisiaahmadu.com.
Ahmadu obtained her PhD in social anthropology from the London School of Economics and undertook post-doctoral work at the Department of Comparative Human Development, University of Chicago.
Ahmadu is known for her work on female genital mutilation (FGM) and, in particular, for her decision as an adult and member of the Kono ethnic group to undergo it as part of initiation into the female-controlled Bundu secret society.Ahmadu, Fuambai (2000). "Rites and Wrongs: An Insider/Outsider Reflects on Power and Excision", in Bettina Shell-Duncan and Ylva Hernlund (eds.). Female "circumcision" in Africa: Culture, Controversy, and Change. Lynne Rienner Publishers, pp. 283–312. Contrary to the position of the World Health Organization, UNICEF and other UN bodies, she has argued that the health risks of most types of FGM are exaggerated, its effect on women's sexuality misunderstood, and that most affected women do not experience it as an oppressive practice.Tierney, John (30 November 2007). "A New Debate on Female Circumcision". The New York Times. Ahmadu's views are shared by some other anthropologists.Londoño Sulkin, Carlos D. (December 2009). "Anthropology, liberalism and female genital cutting". Anthropology Today Vol. 25 No. 6, pp. 17-19.
In December 2025, she published a study, alongside other researchers such as Brian Earp, detailing their perceptions of harm of anti-FGM campaigns.
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External links Personal website