Mariam Nabatanzi Babirye has always dreamed of a happy big family with six children. As a result, at almost 40 years old, she became the mother of 44 offspring, not needed by her only father.
Your attention is drawn to the incredible story of the most prolific woman in Africa.
Mariam Nabatanzi’s life cannot be called simple. When she was only 13 years old, her parents sold the girl to a man 27 years older. They called it marriage, but Mariam didn’t even realize what was going on until she was in his house.
A year later, she gave birth to her first twin children, the next year – triplets, and a year later — 4 babies at once.
There was a moment when Mariam turned to the doctors asking if something could be done so that she would no longer have children. At that time, she had already given birth to 23 children. After the examination, the doctors concluded that she had increased ovarian function and any intervention could endanger not only the woman’s health, but also her life.
In total, Mariam gave birth to 44 children: 6 twins, 4 triplets, 3 fours and only 2 children who did not have a «copy». 6 children were not viable and died in infancy.
Mariam herself believes that having children is God’s blessing, and claims that she does not regret anything.
The only thing that upsets a woman is that all her children grow up without a father. Her husband was a real tyrant, and after the birth of the last child, he abandoned her. Mariam’s husband could not appear for months, then for years, until finally he finally disappeared.
But this woman just doesn’t have time for complaining and self-pity. She has devoted her life to children: she tries to give them enough love and care and provide them with everything necessary for life.
The most significant expenses of this large family are, of course, food. Every day they eat about 10 kg of corn flour, 7 kg of beans and 4 kg of sugar.
All of Mariam’s children receive an education. The eldest daughter has already become a nurse, the son is a qualified builder.
To cope with the financial burden, Mariam had to master many different skills. She collects and sells medicinal herbs, bakes cakes, makes wedding hairstyles, organizes and decorates parties and even lays bricks.
The single mother became known thanks to the assistance of journalist Kassim Kairi, who not only told her story, but also initiated a fundraiser in support of her extended family.
Having had the opportunity to reach a wide audience, Mariam spoke about the problems of women in her culture: «Stop selling your daughters to men, ban early marriages. The girls suffer terribly, and it is impossible to fully recover from the loss of parental love.»
In her interview with Kassim, Mariam also addressed men: «Do not forget about your responsibility to children, marriage is a joint work on their upbringing.»