Rose never thought that she would learn to drive. It just wasn’t an expectation in the family she grew up in, where men drove and women took the passenger seat. Now, it’s not uncommon for her to give her husband a lift.
Rose is mum to five daughters. Her smile is warm and, from talking to her, it’s clear that she is a powerhouse, full of positivity and relentlessly championing gender equality in her community. So, it’s surprising when she explains that when her fifth daughter was born, her overriding emotion was sadness and shame.
‘At the time, it felt like I was ending the family lineage. As though my girls, and even me personally, were not as important as if they had been boys,’ explains Rose. ‘My sadness led me to prayer and to God. I knew I couldn’t go further and have more children, so I prayed for my children to become a blessing.’
A lot of the pressure to have more children came from belonging to a big family and a cultural insistence on birthing a boy child, but Rose’s husband was in agreement that five children was right for them as a couple.
