Nii Afotey Botwe II, Chief of Otinor Nungua, has expressed concerns over how infertility is causing the collapse of marriages.
He said stigmatisation attached to childlessness by society and families worsened the plight of victims.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency on the sidelines of a fertility conference, 2024, organised by Xoese Ghana, as part of the infertility awareness month, Nii Botwe noted that childless couples continued to face strong stigma, the use of offensive utterances to describe their situation, and name-calling, which normally occurred within their own environment, including their families, church, and society.
Experts describe infertility as having unprotected sex for over a year or more without a successful pregnancy.
Although the situation could partly or generally be the fault of the husband, women always take the blame and all the shame.
The Chief of Otinor Nungua expressed worry about the situation, which was disappointingly affecting many marriages.
He said instead of shaming them, such couples should rather be encouraged to seek medical attention while urging husbands to be part of the treatment journey to help address the problems.
“In the treatment journey, men should assist their wives in seeking solutions to their problems; women should not bear the shame and ridicule alone. We need to support our wives at that critical moment; it is not an issue for women to tackle alone,” he advised.
He lamented that many childless couples were unwilling to adopt children, saying it worsened the stigma.
Nii Botwe, who is also the Founder of New Life Nungua Children’s Home International, advised couples who had issues with childbirth naturally to opt for alternatives.
Ms Emelia Naa Ayeley Aryee, the Founder and Director of Xoese Ghana, said it was an offence to stigmatise childless couples because it was not their choice not to have children.
She noted that many such couples were depressed due to public ridicule.
She appealed to Ghanaians to support couples experiencing infertility issues to address the problem.
“For us in Xoese Ghana, what we are saying is that, instead of calling for an end to the marriage, please visit the hospital when you are faced with childlessness after one year of unprotected sex,” she said.
The fertility conference 2024 was held in Accra to commemorate infertility awareness month to educate the populace and help couples address their challenges with childbirth.
GNA