“They Tore Away My Dignity” – A Teenage Mother’s Success Story over Child Marriage, Sexual Violence

Now 16, Aissatou stands tall, her health and well-being restored. Amid despair, the UNFPA health workers became her lifeline

By Boris Esono Nwenfor

BUEA, Cameroon – When Aissatou, not her real name was just 14 years old, her dreams of schooling in Maroua, Far North Region of the country were crushed as she was forced into marriage. Aissatou’s story is part of a series of stories from UNFPA illustrating progress made since the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development, which committed to ensuring gender equality and the right to sexual and reproductive health for all

With few resources left after fleeing violence from armed groups in their village, Aissatou’s parents saw no other option than to marry their daughter off to a wealthier man 40 years her senior, who they hoped would look after her as they no longer could.  Isolated from any support, Aissatou was soon assaulted and raped by one of the armed groups, UNFPA reported.

“They tore away my dignity, leaving me broken and alone,” she told UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency. “They took everything – my books, my dreams, and my childhood.” 

When Aissatou found out she was pregnant, her husband's family cast her out to fend for herself on the streets – still a child but soon to be a mother.  Aissatou struggled to support herself and resorted to selling peanuts to earn a living before being referred to a programme run by UNFPA, which she described as “transformative”.

 With funding from the governments of Norway and the United States of America, since July 2023 the programme has supported displaced people in conflict-affected areas of northern Cameroon who are in urgent need of gender-based violence protection and sexual and reproductive health services, particularly women and girls. 

Aissatou received prenatal and postnatal checkups, clinical management for the rape she had endured, and assistance through childbirth by Caesarean section. She was also given a ‘baby box’ full of essential supplies for her newborn son.

Now 16, Aissatou stands tall, her health and well-being restored. "Amid the despair, they became my lifeline," she said of the health workers. "They provided not just medical care, but also a safe space to heal and hope again."

As well as supporting survivors like Aissatou, UNFPA has distributed emergency reproductive health kits to eight health facilities in the Far North Region. These contain supplies such as soap and antiseptic wipes, sterile gloves, umbilical cord clamps, and maternal health medications to prevent postpartum haemorrhage and treat infections, helping to ensure safe childbirth even in settings lacking proper medical facilities.

More than 30 UNFPA-supported midwives are also deployed in health facilities and mobile health units across hard-to-reach areas of Far North Cameroon, with a team of community health workers providing maternal and newborn care. 

The units can carry out screenings for sexually transmitted infections and refer patients to specialist centres for HIV and AIDS screening and clinical management of rape. Survivors of gender-based violence have access to eight safe spaces supported by UNFPA, where they can seek psychosocial support and be referred for further care.