For mothers in Somalia respect, honor and love are some of the feelings held and expressed towards them in families and society in general because of the role they play in individual's lives.
However, Aamino Ali, a mother of two, said the general lack of security and the ongoing conflict have given Somali mothers their share of suffering and many heartbreaks for lost sons, husband or other members of the family.
Somalia, which has been through two decades of civil conflicts, has one of the worst maternal deaths in the world with health infrastructures almost nonexistent. Many mothers or would-be mothers face heath risks during pregnancy and child birth.
But many women expressed the hope that things would turn better while some articulated their fears for the future as the east African country faces deepening internal conflicts that resulted in chronic famine, seasonal droughts and widespread communicable disease.
Hawa Abdi, is a mother of five and live in mainly deserted part of the restive Somali capital Mogadishu with her family. She said mothers, more than anyone else, were hit hardest by the insecurity in the war-ravaged Horn of African country. "When fighting breaks out, it is the mothers with small children that face the most of the troubles. Fathers do take their role but children are closer to their mothers and thus they play a greater role in taking care of the children," Hawa Abdi said.
The mother of five said that as violence continued for the best part of the last two decades in Somalia, she can not see any improvement in the country's situation for the better but prays for that day to come sooner rather than later.
Aisho Guled is a widow with nine children in Mogadishu where she works as porter to get the livelihood for her big family. She said she is hopeful. Despite years of anarchy in Somalia, she persisted in making sure that made the best out of life for children.
Two of her children have been already high school graduate while three others in primary school. She has been working as porter in the main Bakara market in Mogadishu since the death of her husband two years ago. "We cannot keep bemoaning ourselves for the misfortunes that happen to us, we need to persevere and do something for ourselves. This country will have peace one day and be part of the world," said Guled.