Claire Ouedraogo
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Claire Ouedraogo (born ) is a nun and an anti female genital mutilation (FGM) activist in
Burkina Faso Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the ...
. She became the President of the ''Songmanegre Association for Women’s Development'' () and one of her country's Ambassador of Peace. She was chosen as an International Woman of Courage in March 2020.


Life

She was brought up in a Christian family who would go an annual pilgrimage. She decided early that she wanted a Christian life and in 2005 she was studying the bible with choir of a new church when she came across a life changing verse about how people would not be given in marriage, but be like the angels after the resurrection. She decided this was her vocation and in 2006 she went to
Togo Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its c ...
to spend some weeks with the nuns there. She became a nun on the 7 September 2013 in
Yaoundé Yaoundé (; , ) is the capital of Cameroon and, with a population of more than 2.8 million, the second-largest city in the country after the port city Douala. It lies in the Centre Region of the nation at an elevation of about 750 metres (2,50 ...
in Cameroon where she had been a novice for two years. left, 4 March 2020 award Ceremony for Woman of Courage She became the President of the ''Songmanegre Association for Women’s Development'' (). The organisation is known for its struggle against FGM but the group supports women in general with schemes including contraception and micro credit. In 2016 the Prime Minister of Burkina Faso, Paul Kaba Thieba, noted her work with women in the countryside and appointed her an Ambassador for Peace. In line with that, she continues her work even under the threat of terrorism in
Bam Province Bam is one of the 45 provinces of Burkina Faso. It is located in Centre-Nord Region and the capital of Bam is Kongoussi. In 2019 it has a population of 473,955. It is a rural province with 420,314 of its residents living in the countryside; only 5 ...
in particular. She was chosen as an International Woman of Courage on 4 March 2020 by the US Secretary of State.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ouedraogo, Claire Living people Burkinabé women Year of birth missing (living people) Recipients of the International Women of Courage Award Women's rights in Burkina Faso