Actress and filmmaker Eniola Ajao has shared her journey of becoming a mother at the age of 20, highlighting the challenges she faced due to societal expectations and stigma surrounding young adult pregnancy.

In an interview on the Talk To B podcast, Ajao recounted her experiences, revealing the fear and isolation she felt during that time.

According to Ajao, getting pregnant out of wedlock was heavily stigmatised in her community, leading to feelings of shame and fear of being labelled a “baby mama.”

She was worried about the possibility of never getting married and being ostracised by society.

Ajao kept her pregnancy private, confiding only in close family and friends, due to the societal norms and expectations surrounding early motherhood.

Ajao emphasised that while early motherhood wasn’t inherently shameful, the societal norms in her community made it difficult for her to navigate

She noted that her community valued education and career development, expecting young women to finish school and establish their careers before starting a family.

She said, “You know things are not what they used to be before now. Ladies at my age, then, their parents were always skeptical about not being exposed to so many things that were going on during that time,” she said.

“Having to get pregnant at 20 was a bit dramatic; you just feel like the whole world is coming against you. You probably want to kill yourself or die at some point, and you would probably not be able to get married again.

“So you want to hide it from your parents and the public. At that time, it was considered a thing of shame. Not that it was a thing of shame for me, but it was considered to be early.

“A lot of people got married at 17, but where I come from, they want you to finish your school, graduate, and do a couple of things. I was already in Yabatech when it happened.

“Thinking that probably you may not get married, somebody calling you a baby mama, and you do not want to get stigmatised. Just close friends and family members knew about it”.