Ini Edo, the Nollywood actress, has shedded light on the emotional and ethical dimensions of her surrogacy journey.
The movie star, who welcomed her child via surrogacy in June 2023, revealed that she chose the path after enduring multiple miscarriages, driven by her desire to become a mother, even without being married.
Speaking at the Meet Surrogate Mothers free IVF conference, Edo emphasised that her surrogate was far more than just a carrier of her child.
She said she and her surrogate shared a deeply collaborative and emotionally charged relationship. She added that she was actively involved, emotionally, medically, and personally.
The award-winning actress also stressed that surrogacy should never be reduced to a mere business arrangement.
For me, the journey was intimate and not transactional. The surrogate who carried my child was not a stranger from a nameless system. She was a woman with her own family, her values, and her dreams, she said.
She wasn’t a vessel. I was involved every step of the way. Intended mothers are typically involved in parental care, prenatal care, medical decisions, and emotional bonding during pregnancy.
Even though they are not physically carrying this child, they walk the journey together. Even though they are not physically carrying this child, they sort of walk the journey together.
Edo also called for stronger legal protections and urged society to approach surrogacy with empathy and transparency.
The 43-year-old actress commended recent legislative efforts in Nigeria, including a proposed bill by the house of representatives to ban commercial surrogacy.
We need a new narrative that champions ethical surrogacy grounded in informed consent, legal protection, and mutual respect, she added.
The world where no woman is being exploited but also where no family is ever denied hope simply because their path to parenthood looks different. Surrogacy is not perfect, it needs regulation, transparency, empathy but it’s not a factory.
It’s a bridge between despair and joy between strangers who become families between the impossible and the miraculous.
Talking about regulation, I was happy to recently read in the news that the House of Representative moved to ban commercial surrogacy in Nigeria and further proposed the jail term and two million find on corporate other keep provisions of the bill.
Other key provision of the bill apart from the ban on commercial surrogacy are the agreements must be strictly altruistic which means no financial profits is involved, except for re-enbossing medical and pregnancy related expenses.
Two, explicit protection against coercion of forced surrogacy arrangements, amongst others. We need legal protection and clarity.
The Nigerian law should recognise and protect the right of mothers through surrogacy, ensuring full legal parentage and avoiding court to disputes. Surrogacy deserve respect not stigma.
