Ilaria Rosella Pagliaro The Women's Pastoral Council has helped Nai and many other women escape arranged marriages, fighting to secure their property rights and economic independence
@PWC
Naishorua Masago, known to all as Nai, is a young Maasai woman from northern Tanzania who dared to go up against the ancient traditions of her people and the pressure exerted by her family in order to try not to get married. Growing up in Kirtalo village in northern Tanzania, Nai discovered to her shock at the tender age of 13 years that the man she called father was actually her grandfather, while her biological father had already planned her wedding.
Despite such social and family pressures, support came to Nai from the Pastoral Women’s Council, set up in 1997 by Maasai women themselves in their quest to fight for women’s rights within their community. Appreciative of the intervention by the PWC, Nai was able to continue her education, winning a scholarship to the Emanyata Secondary School-an institution specifically established for girls who were in danger of being victims of forced marriages or other gender-based violence.
But when she turned 17 and came back home with her diploma, he tried again to marry her off. Resolute not to give in, Nai contacted the PWC once more, just in time as it was, to rescue her from the very day of the ceremony.
Economic independence for Maasai women
PWC’s initiative is not only focused on combating early marriages; it also provides a commitment to the economic independence of the Maasai women, offering them land ownership and microcredit projects. From 2016 onward, groups started to emerge that have contributed with their funds in support of the group members in case of emergencies or to support each other in the construction of small businesses. The way has brought about a change in the lives of thousands of Maasai women who attained economic independence and could take part in community life effectively.
Yet another area in which PWC has done remarkably well is sensitizing the need to ensure Maasai women’s property rights. Through the influence of community leaders, more than 350 have acquired land in their names, arguably a revolutionary step in the traditional patriarchal society.
The PWC-supported Maasai women’s movement is at an increasingly rapid pace, fuelling social change and the ability to raise awareness on women’s rights so that they become key players in their own emancipation process and leaders their community will need tomorrow.
A warrior in the fight for women’s rights
These are the critical questions, and after decades of silence, thanks to organizations and individuals like Maasai warrior Nice alone, he was able to rescue more than 20,000 girls from genital mutilation.
In fact, in 2019, Tanzania’s High Court banned marriage for girls under the age of 18. However, forced marriages continue to take place across Africa, where some girls have become wives as young as 15. According to the international NGO Girls Not Brides, 5% of girls in Tanzania marry by age 15, and 29% before reaching 18. It is this widespread practice of forced marriages that keeps Pastoral Women’s Council committed to fighting for the rights of Maasai women and girls and was this commitment which allowed them to save the 17-year-old Nai.
The implications of child marriages
Child marriage is among the worst manifestations of human rights violations, with adverse consequences on health, education, and further perspectives for the bride. According to UNICEF, in every year, nearly 12 million girls below the age of 18 years are being compelled into marriage, usually by men much older than them. These are especially reported in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, with rates even as high as above 40% in some sub-regions.
Early marriage puts girls at a heightened risk of pregnancy complications, domestic violence, and abandoning their education, which in the long run has consequences on economic and social development in their communities. As much as progress has been made in the last decades through educational and legislative interventions, much remains to be done in order to eradicate child marriage-a path that is very long and will need global commitment.
Stories like Nai’s form one of the small but sure steps to change the unacceptable traditions that have been part of life for far too long-to make sure more girls become scholars, not brides.
