My name is Mwanarabu Mwambasa, and I come from Vihiga County in Western Kenya. I am 20 years old and I am educated up to class 8. I have lived with fistula for five years now, and this is my story. At the age of 15 years, I fell pregnant. It was a relatively uneventful …Read More

41 year-old Marion Wambui, a casual farm laborer from Nyeri County, Central Kenya and a mother of two, has been living with fistula for the last 20 years. It all began with the birth of her second child in 1997. “I had enjoyed a good pregnancy, but I wish I could say the same of …Read More

BROKEN VESSEL By Lesley C.   A friend will ask, how are you? Often we reply, am OK. But inside we’re not fine at all. We are all created as beautiful vessels. But sometimes the vessels break. We break, emotional, spiritually or physically. Others can be mended, others take long and others suffer silently alone …Read More

43 year-old Juliet Muthoni is a vegetable vendor in her hometown in Nyeri County. She is a mother of three children aged between 5 years and 15 years. Her dream to bring to life her fourth child in April 2015 is however a painful memory etched deep in her heart. It all began on the …Read More

The motherhood journey for 26 year-old Milkah Mailu from Kwale County in Kenya’s Coast Province has not been an easy one. A class eight dropout, Milkah fell pregnant at the age of 20 years. At that time, she was still living with her parents in a rural village in Shimba Hills. When it was time …Read More

47 year-old Evalynne Nekesa is a primary school teacher in Bungoma County, Western Kenya. She is married with four children. Evalynne enjoys motherhood and all the responsibilities that come along with it. This is evident in the way she talks about her children, with such love and passion. However, beneath the radiant smile on her …Read More

When 15 year-old Naropil Enole Kereto got married to her 29 year-old husband in 2010, she was a happy young lady. She had acquired the much coveted status of being somebody’s wife –a second wife. Naropil comes from Narok County in Kenya’s Rift Valley province. In her Maasai community, polygamy is not unusual. Having never …Read More

In 2003, at the age of 20 years, Caroline Kemunto discovered she was pregnant. The new wife was excited, elated at the thought of becoming a new mother – the dream of almost every woman. It was a smooth pregnancy -one that she enjoyed, and which thankfully, was devoid of any complications. If only she …Read More

43 year-old Hellen Cherotich Sanga describes the last nine years of her life as a ‘complete nightmare’. It all began after the birth of her second child –ironically, an event that is supposed to bring a mother untold joy and happiness. “Even though I delivered in hospital under the guidance of skilled birth attendants, something …Read More

For years, 55 year-old Nankin Sampei from Kilgoris, in Kenya’s Rift Valley province had enjoyed a relatively stable marriage. It was a marriage that had been blessed with seven children, and in a culture that revers large families – the traditional Maasai family, Nankin was a happy woman. The livestock farmer was even more elated …Read More