For many Nigerian women, motherhood is seen not just as a blessing but as an expectation, and women who have trouble conceiving face stigma that strips them of dignity, identity, and belonging.
According to the World Health Organisation, infertility affects one in four couples in developing countries, and men and women experience it in nearly equal measure. Yet, in Nigeria, the burden of infertility and the blame almost always fall on women. A woman struggling with infertility may be mocked, cast aside in her marriage, denied inheritance, or even subjected to physical or psychological abuse. While men’s infertility is rarely discussed, women often suffer in silence, carrying the shame for a condition that is not theirs alone.
However, this stigma contradicts Nigeria’s legal and international human rights commitments. For instance, Section 34 of the Nigerian Constitution protects the dignity of the human person, including immunity against inhumane and degrading treatment, which speaks against the stigma infertile women face in society. Under Article 16 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), governments are obliged to eliminate discrimination in marriage and family life, including practices that deny women equal treatment. Also, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, in Article 18(3), reinforces the duty of States to eliminate harmful practices against women, all of which the Nigerian society is flouting by allowing stigma and discrimination against women living with infertility to persist.
Meanwhile, the consequences of infertility stigma are devastating, as women may be abandoned by their spouses, pressured into polygamous marriages, or subjected to exploitative traditional “cures” that endanger their health. The psychological toll is heavy, with depression and isolation common among women facing such rejection. In some cases, stigma leads directly to gender-based violence and domestic violence, compounding the suffering.
Interestingly, amid these challenges, there are signs of progress. Civil society organisations and health advocates have begun to raise awareness that infertility is a shared condition, not a women-only problem. Fertility clinics and counselling centres now provide support to couples rather than placing blame on women alone.
To break the cycle of infertility stigma, Nigeria must expand public education to correct misconceptions about infertility, making it clear that both men and women can be affected. Health policies should include infertility treatment as part of reproductive health care, ensuring access beyond the wealthy elite. Religious and community leaders must be engaged to dismantle cultural norms that equate womanhood with motherhood. Most importantly, women must be supported and protected under the law so that no one is shamed, abused, or excluded because of infertility.