The Fruitless Tree - Childless Women in Niger

Married, but childless - there can be hardly a greater disgrace for women in some Muslim countries. That's how it is in Niger too: Women are expected to have children. In this film, director Aicha Macky talks about her own childlessness and the sadness and stigma attached to it - but also about her courage, and the courage of other women who choose to live their own lives.

Having no children is simply unimaginable in Niger, Aicha Macky says. Although the doctors cannot establish any medical reason in her case, she hasn't been able to conceive. Her mother-in-law abuses her as a "fruitless tree." In strictly hierarchical Muslim societies, the cause of infertility is rarely sought among the men - the woman is almost always blamed. Aicha Macky tells her own touching story in this film. Her mother died giving birth to one of her siblings; in quiet reflection, she asks for advice from the dead woman and tries to overcome her sadness. That women openly talk about this issue at all is bordering on taboo in Niger. Aicha says this film has helped her to find herself. No longer willing to be excluded from society, she is bravely going her own way.