#childmothers exhibition in Oslo

Poko (15) from Burkina Faso became pregnant at age 12. She almost lost her life when she was giving birth due to loss of blood. Photo: Pieter ten Hoopen

#childmothers exhibition in Oslo

Next week the exhibition #childmothers opens to the public – a photo exhibition about children who have children – in Oslo. Every day, 20,000 girls under the age of 18 give birth in the World. Through the exhibition you are acquainted with some of them.

 

Poko (15) from Burkina Faso became pregnant at age 12. She almost lost her life when she was giving birth due to loss of blood.

– Life as a mother is difficult. We do not have enough food to eat; we do not have food every day, or afford to buy such things as soap to wash clothes. I wish I could return to school, says the 15-years-old who is one of the girls portrayed in the #childmothers exhibition.

The photos will be viewable in Dokkveien at Aker Brygge for one year, and is a cooperation project between the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Plan International Norway and the UN Federation. The aim is to highlight how giving birth early affect the girls’ life situation, health and prospects for the future. 

About the exhibition

The exhibition contains 17 portraits of girls, all of whom have had children at a young age. They come from seven different countries and all have unique stories to tell. Some of them are child brides, others have been raped and some have lacked the knowledge about how to prevent pregnancy. Common to all of them is that their lives are dramatically changed.

#childmothers is a photo exhibition and a website that provides young mothers from all over the world with a voice. The pictures have been shown in several places in Sweden, Denmark, Finland and now Norway. It was also shown during the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva in 2017.

The award-winning photographer Pieter ten Hoopen is behind the photos, which is a collaboration between Plan International and the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), to break the silence of children who become mothers.

Visit the website: www.childmothers.org where everybody’s stories are collected.

Background

Every day 20,000 girls under the age of 18 give birth. 95 per cent of cases happen in developing countries. 70,000 girls under 18 years of age die every year as a result of complications associated with pregnancy. Approximately 3.2 million unsafe abortions are performed on girls under 18 years of age every year.

Young girls has the highest risk of dying or being seriously injured in connection with pregnancy and childbirth, and is one of the most common causes of death among girls worldwide.

 

© Plan International Scanpix / #Norway Today