Our girls back to school campaign is ongoing
The global literacy rate is as low as one per cent for women with disabilities. Being a girl has only made things harder for Mima. She has to fight against various forms of discrimination –being female, having a disability, and being amongst the poorest of the poor. Moreover, she is a double orphan and also lost her siblings.
Hello!
Hey!
Are you okay?
I'm fine thanks.
What is your name?
My name is Mima.
Do you have a full name?
I do not have. I only have half of my name.
Why don't you have a full name?
Because I didn't live with my mother. I lived my whole life with my father.
Didn't your parents register you with the notary?
No.
Can you share a little about your academic life?
Yes! I can.
Have you ever attended school?
Yea.
When was the first time you went to school?
When I was 7 to 8 years old I studied at preschool. Then my disability got worse, I got sick and had to stop studying.
After staying at home for a long time, I went back to school when I was 14 to 15 years old. I started to study again in preschool.
When was that?
Well, the first time I went to pre-school was in 2007-2008. Second time when I returned to school it was in 2018-2019 here I was already 14-15 years old. Even so, I didn't stay there for long, in the same year my father died and I stopped studying again.
Did your father pass away?
Yes.
Is your mother still alive?
No, she died, too.
Are you a paternal and maternal orphan?
Yes.
Who do you live with?
I live with my grandfather my father's father and my aunts my father's sisters.
How old are you now?
I'm 21 I will turn 22 soon.
Would you like to study again?
Yes I would like.
Are you eager to study?
Yes.
Do you work?
I do not work.
Could you share with us a little of your social life, your disability?
Well, what caused my disability was the fact that my parents never vaccinated me since I was born.
Why did your father and your mother never vaccinate you?
I dont know.
What life did they have? Did they live together? were married?
They lived together but were not married.
How was their relationship?
They lived well but then my mother suddenly abandoned my father and me. I lived with my father only.
Did your father lead a good life?
Yes, but his problem was alcohol. He drank a lot.
Did he have any serious problems with alcohol?
Yes.
Was he a good father to you?
Yes, he was a good father.
How has your social life been? Don't you suffer insults and discrimination?
No no. Nobody abuses me. When I went to school, some classmates abused me but the teachers prevented and sensitized the students to not abuse me, because one day they can also have a disabled daughter. And when I fall down they help me get up.
When you were at school. Have you learned anything?
Yes, I learned numbering, multiplication tables and drawing. Unfortunately I didn't learn to read, make copies and write my name.
Are these one of the biggest challenges of your academic life?
Yes, writing my name, reading and copying are great challenges for me.
Do you have the possibility to learn at home? make copies and proofread your notebooks?
Yes, I review my notebooks
Do you have brothers and sisters?
I do not have. I had two brothers but they also passed away.
Oh, you are an orphan of father and mother and you have lost your brothers.
Are you the only one left in your family's generation?
Yes.
Discrimination, social isolation, illness and abuse are common experiences among women living with disabilities in poverty. Mima lost her blood family, could not continue studying and is unable to access the market, school, or healthcare services.
Orphanhood is an expanding issue that requires the effective involvement of all stakeholders. The orphan situation is more precarious than many vulnerable members of society, because of their exposure to limited social support systems, the inadequate basic social services, lack proper supervision, care, support and guidance at a very crucial time.
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