By Kadijatu Bangura, Daily Scope Reporter
First Lady Fatima Bio has spoken publicly about fleeing an arranged marriage as a teenager during Sierra Leone’s civil war, crediting the experience with shaping her advocacy against child marriage.
In an interview with the BBC, Bio said her father had arranged for her to marry a man in his 30s when she was 13, with no consultation. She said the outbreak of fighting in 1996 allowed relatives to help her leave the country before the wedding could take place.
“I went to England, I got my voice,” Bio told the BBC, describing her arrival in London on Christmas Eve with only a T-shirt. She later sought asylum in the UK, where she said she gained independence and confidence to speak out for other young women.
Bio worked as an actress in Britain before meeting Julius Maada Bio, now Sierra Leone’s president. The couple married before he took office in 2018.
Her personal experience has informed her public campaign to end child marriage in Sierra Leone. In 2024, the government enacted a law banning the practice, drawing praise from international rights groups.
The First Lady said many girls in Sierra Leone still face barriers to education, including period poverty and early marriage. She told the BBC she regularly distributes sanitary products to schoolgirls to reduce absenteeism during menstruation.
Bio’s activism has drawn both support and criticism. While many young Sierra Leoneans praise her outspoken style, some argue she is overly political for a first lady. “I have been an activist for far too long to be a calendar wife,” she said.
The interview also addressed her continued ties to the UK, including a council flat in Southwark, London, where some of her children live. Bio said she pays for the property herself and has broken no laws. Southwark Council declined to comment directly on the tenancy but said it investigates concerns when necessary.
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