Zainabu's Big Decision
Married at 15, Zainabu already has 9 children. Living in a small hut in Sierra Leone, she struggles to provide for them. Now she is going against traditional views of family planning to change their future.
The new family planning clinic near Zainabu's village has caused a mixed reaction: traditional beliefs still dominate here. "I'm young to have so many children: it earns me respect",argues Sullay, Zainabu's husband. Another man argues, "when women use contraception they are no longer afraid to flirt". Two-thirds of the population of Sierra Leone live in rural areas with only basic healthcare. A woman has a one in eight chance of dying in childbirth. But what worries Zainabu more than that is that she and her husband cannot offer their existing children a brighter future if they continue to have more. "We work hard to feed our children; it's not an easy life."
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