Fertility Is A Right, Not A Lab Experiment

Something strange is happening in Africa.A new “miracle” contraceptive—an IUD that can stop pregnancy for up to eight years—has just been introduced. Not in New York. Not in London. Not in Tokyo.But in Kenya with Nigeria and at least 35 countries, including Uganda, Senegal, Malawi, Nigeria, Zambia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo to follow.

And I have to ask… why us?

Let’s Talk About This.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation says it’s about empowering women, about choice, about access. But if that’s true—why start in countries where most women, especially in rural areas, don’t even get full information about their own reproductive health?

Why not begin in places with stronger medical systems, where women can read the fine print, ask questions, and demand accountability?

Africa is being told, once again, “This is good for you.”And history tells us—whenever someone says that, it rarely ends well for us.

Our Fertility Is Not a Problem to Fix.

Kenyan women are already having fewer children—from 8 kids per woman in the 1970s to just over 3 today. Nigerian women, too, have gone from over 6 to about 5.1.

That’s not by force.That’s by choice—through education, empowerment, and evolution.

So, when someone brings an 8-year lock to a door that’s already opening naturally, you have to ask—what’s the real agenda here?

Empowerment? Or Control?

Let’s be clear. Empowerment is not an 8-year pause button on a woman’s body.Empowerment is the freedom to decide—without fear, without pressure, and without hidden strings attached.

Our young girls in villages and towns deserve transparency. They deserve to know what’s being put in their bodies. They deserve choices, not experiments.

Because when you silence information, you don’t create empowerment—you create control.

Let’s Flip the Script.

If this contraceptive is so safe, so revolutionary, then roll it out first in the US. Try it in the UK. Give it to the CEOs, the senators, the influencers who shape the policies that tell us what’s “best.”

But don’t start with Africa.We’re not your testing ground—we’re your equal.

My ‘Say No’ Moment

I’ve spent years writing and performing songs about empowerment and resilience. My track “Say No” was born to stand against gender-based violence—but today, it also carries another message:

Say no to silence.Say no to manipulation disguised as progress.Say no to systems that try to own what God gave us—the right to choose, the right to be, the right to bring life when we decide.

As an artist, a woman, and an African, I believe our voices matter more than ever. And if music, art, or storytelling can wake us up to what’s really going on—then I’ll keep singing, performing, and speaking until Africa stands tall again.

Africa, We Are the Story.

Our bodies are not battlegrounds. Our fertility is not a project. Our daughters are not data points.

So the next time someone knocks on our door with a shiny new solution, let’s ask the real question:Who does this truly serve? Because empowerment starts with knowledge.And knowledge starts with asking why.

“We don’t need an 8-year lock on our fertility. We need 8 years of education, opportunity, and freedom.”

Multidisplinary Creative Entrepreneur,

– Liz Ogumbo