Maria Mugire  27 years old hails from Ruiru town  just a couple  of miles from Nairobi town , she got married at the age of 20 years and wasn’t able to complete her primary education due to RVF which she got at a tender age of 7 Years after rape. She has lived with that problem for a period of 20 years not knowing that there was a cure or hope for being well and back on her feet again.

Mugure recalls and is moved to tears when she narrates the ordeal that took place that day, she had been sent to the posho mill by the Mother only to meet a man on the way who she believes was a friend to their mother in laws and promised to direct her since she was new to that place, she had fled from Molo with her parents due to clashes. Maria laments that “If I wasn’t raped, I had dreams of having a brighter future that never was…………….” It took time to accept her condition and learnt how to manage herself.

The mother was very supportive even as they finally moved back to Molo after a while. Maria got married with the problem and had never told her husband that the RVF was due to rape, she said that it was caused by child birth, she didn’t want to disclose to him but it had not caused any serious marital problems. However it’s a constant source of stress living in secrecy.

She promises to advice other women to stop delivering at home as a way of preventing fistula and also encourage the ones that have fistula that there is hope and free treatment for fistula. She also gives a vote of thanks to the doctors and AMREF at large for restoring her dignity. Maria Says “ I feel now more confident and free to interact with others…………….”, I intend to borrow a  loan from  Youth development fund to set up a business and improve my standard of living  now that am back on my feet.