Aminata
Conteh-Biger
“What I am capable of: I would not have known what I am capable of if I was not a mother at all. Whatever you throw at me, I just dive in. So it's sort of a strength that you gain.”
Sunday May 9
Sierra Leone-born Aminata Conteh-Biger lives with her doting husband and two young children in their North Sydney family home.
Her picture-perfect life, charisma and infectious smile do not reveal the immense adversity Aminata has previously faced.
At just 18 years of age, she was held captive during a civil war in Sierra Leone, before coming to Australia as a young refugee, alone. A near-death experience during the birth of her daughter was the catalyst for giving back to her home country: founding the Aminata Maternal Foundation.
Aminata wears Dolman Knit, Tie Paper Bag Pant and Kristen Leather Heel.
Aminata wears Mohair Cardigan, Tuck Bodice Dress,Morgan Leather Boot, Ilana Leather Belt and Aria Multi Chain Necklace.
What does motherhood mean to you?
What it means to me is that you have somebody – a human being – that you're responsible for. For their well-being, for their joy, for their happiness – but that's what it means - you have a being that you're responsible for. It's a fulfillment – it really fulfills my soul completely.
Was there something your mum always taught you growing up?
One thing that she has really taught me and she told me is – it's something she said – "When the music is playing, always dance, because whether you dance or not, the music will continue to play." So that's a lesson for life. I believe that's how I'm living my life. It doesn't matter what's happening, I will strive for joy. You can't control what you can't control. Whether you dance to the music, or whether you stop, life continues.
Aminata wears Mohair Cardigan, Tuck Bodice Dress,Morgan Leather Boot, Ilana Leather Belt and Aria Multi Chain Necklace.
What have you learnt since becoming a mother?
What I am capable of: I would not have known what I am capable of if I was not a mother at all. Whatever you throw at me, I just dive in. So it's sort of a strength that you gain.
When you hear the word "time", what do you think?
I think now, it's all I have. For me, "time" is now. See if I can love my kids now; I can give them a kiss, now; I can tell them they're beautiful, now; I can tell them they are kind, now – so don't wait for tomorrow.
“What it means to me is that you have somebody – a human being – that you're responsible for... It's a fulfillment – it really fulfills my soul completely.”
Aminata wears Mohair Cardigan, Tuck Bodice Dress,Morgan Leather Boot, Ilana Leather Belt and Aria Multi Chain Necklace.
What are the hardest and easiest parts of being a mother?
The hardest is that you can't have enough support and I think that's the hardest for every mother. It doesn't matter if you have your in-laws or anything – it can never be enough. The easiest is loving them. Yeah, that's simply easy.
Who is Aminata, besides a loving mother?
I'm a human being first – before a mother and before a wife and before anybody else – so I will put myself first before my kids, meaning that my kids find joy through me. I don't believe the other way around, because you can't give what you don't have. So, I am always acknowledging myself in everything that I do – so yeah, an individual.
What inspired you to start your incredible charity, the Aminata Maternal Foundation?
The risk of losing my daughter. When I was giving birth to her, it gave me an awakening about what was happening around the world. I didn't know until almost coming into the position of losing her – and I almost lost my life – that I really woke up to maternal mortality. I went on to research it and we are now eight years on, having set up [the foundation] in 2014.
I had seven doctors. It was a privilege that I had seven doctors to make sure that she survived and I survived. If I was in Sierra Leone, she would have died and I would have died. Sierra Leone has the highest infant mortality and maternal deaths in the world – 1 in 8 women die in childbirth. In Australia it's 1 in 8,700. I just thought 'how did we let this happen?' – a woman is bringing life into this world.
How can people get involved in your foundation?
How people can get involved is to visit our website (aminatamaternalfoundation.org) and really donate, because we need to sustain the foundation. I am the only staff and I do it for seven days [a week]. We need to raise awareness and raise funds.
If COVID-19 has taught us anything, it is that international problems are our problem, too. I really hope Australia can get behind me so that we can support our sisters, because we are one human family and I can't do it alone. Just $130AUD can take a child [in Sierra Leone] to see an obstetrician or to see a GP, and a midwife's salary is $2,500AUD a year.
“For me, "time" is now. See if I can love my kids now; I can give them a kiss, now; I can tell them they're beautiful, now; I can tell them they are kind, now – so don't wait for tomorrow.”
Aminata wears Dolman Knit, Tie Paper Bag Pant and Kristen Leather Heel.
Your book Rising Heart tells your extraordinary story. Why was it so important to you to write this book and share it with Australians?
I wanted to tell a story from the civil war that happened between 1990-2002. I'm still very shocked that people didn't know about it – it was one of the most vicious wars. I wanted to tell the story of the women – including myself – that went through it. I wanted the people that committed this vicious crime to know what it took from us. I want the world to know the civilians have not had that support from international aid that is needed to really step in and help the infrastructure to grow.
So for me, it was all to tell my story. It is painful but it's worth it. I am not afraid of my story. I also wanted to share the beauty of my country – we don't get to hear the beauty of Africa – my country's absolutely stunning. The people are incredibly resilient and just because the war's ended, doesn't mean that it's really ended, because there's people who have nothing: Sierra Leone is the poorest country in the world and it still has the highest infant mortality rate in the world. So for Australia and the world to know that – let's help these men and women that want to build their life, let's support. That's really why I wrote my book.
Aminata wears High Neck Blouse and Tie Paper Bag Pant.
What’s next for Aminata?
I want to build a hospital not in the capital city of Freetown – because 70% of the healthcare [in Sierra Leone] is in Freetown – so I want to build it in the rural areas. As much as the World Health Organisation stat says 1 in 8 women die in natural childbirth, they don't have the numbers in the rural areas. These are the people that need it.
Some women with an injury, like a fistula, have lived with it for 20-40 years, and don't know how to get access to the clinic that we partner with. It'll be the only clinic in the whole country of 7.8 million people that will do this surgery, so we have to go and search for these women to fix their injury and take them back. So my vision is to build hubs in all the villages and then get a bigger clinic with transport from their villages, as the roads are really bad. So that's the bigger picture, this is my vision.
And of course, raising two amazing kids.
Yes; incredible, kind children. I'm really blessed and have a wonderful husband. I don't use the word "impossible" but close to that – he's really wonderful. It's good to have somebody that wants your light to shine better than [theirs] – that's what we have. I'm really, very blessed.
Aminata wears High Neck Blouse and Tie Paper Bag Pant.
Aminata Maternal Foundation
“Sierra Leone has the highest infant mortality and maternal deaths in the world – 1 in 8 women die in childbirth. In Australia it's 1 in 8,700.”
