“It ends with me”: How Aussie entrepreneur Khadija Gbla is putting an end to FGM

African-Australian entrepreneur and activist Khadija Gbla sees a future where every little girl can dream her wildest dreams, free from the threat of sexual violence and female genital mutilation.

She founded the Desert Flower Center Australia to do just that, by providing treatment, care and trauma counselling for women who have been affected by FGM, and to raise awareness and get people talking about a taboo topic.

In this interview, part of the #ShareThePlatform campaign from One Life Australia and entrepreneur Priyanka Ashraf, Gbla has a virtual sit down with American author and tech entrepreneur Seth Godin to talk about her business, her life’s work, and creating change.

Born in Sierra Leone, Gbla herself was a victim of FGM, she explains. When she came to Australia aged 13, it dawned on her that this was not deemed acceptable, or standard practice, around the world.

“I remember looking my mother in the eye and saying to her, ‘this ends in my generation’,” she recalls.

“It ends with me.”

From dismissing those who say FGM is ‘not their problem’, to approaching her business with an intersectional mindset, to holding those at the top accountable, in this powerful interview Gbla lays our her big-vision business goals, and how she plans to reach them.

“There’s power in seeing ourselves as the solution-makers,” she says.

You can see more #ShareThePlatform interviews here.

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