Still a teen but already a mom to several kids: Every year in Brazil, almost 500,000 girls under 20 give birth – more than in most other countries.
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00:00 Vitoria is 17 and pregnant for the second time.
00:11 Teenage mothers are not uncommon in Brazil, especially in impoverished areas.
00:17 Many people are quick to pass judgment.
00:19 They say all hope is lost, any chance for a future over.
00:23 "It hurts.
00:25 Who wants to hear that their life is over?"
00:30 Nearly half a million teenagers give birth in Brazil every year, making it one of the
00:35 countries with the highest number of teen mums in the world.
01:01 Vitoria's due date is fast approaching.
01:05 Soon she'll give birth to her second child.
01:08 Almost every seventh baby in Brazil is born to a teenage mother.
01:12 In poverty-stricken areas like here, the rate is often much higher.
01:17 Vitoria doesn't like being labelled.
01:19 "Everyone says, 'What, you're having another baby?'
01:23 Everybody has an opinion about it.
01:25 People say I won't be able to finish school, that my life is over, that I won't be able
01:29 to do anything except sit at home and watch the kids."
01:35 She lives with her boyfriend Eduardo and their daughter Lara in one of the many favelas of
01:40 Rio de Janeiro.
01:43 Eduardo is 22 years old and trying to finish high school.
01:48 On the weekends he works in a snack bar.
01:50 In the morning he takes their two-year-old to daycare.
01:53 Along the way he passes the drug dealers, who control the neighbourhood.
01:58 Drugging is forbidden.
01:59 Even life-threatening.
02:02 Vitoria was 12 when she met her boyfriend.
02:05 She first got pregnant at 14.
02:08 They weren't using contraception.
02:10 Still, she wasn't expecting it.
02:13 The subject of contraception is still taboo in Brazil.
02:17 Former President Bolsonaro and his government even tried to restrict sex education in schools.
02:23 Instead, he promoted abstinence.
02:26 No sex before marriage.
02:28 That's what churches preach too.
02:30 Like many here in the favela, Vitoria's family is very religious.
02:34 She concealed her pregnancy from them until the last minute.
02:37 "I was so scared.
02:40 I thought, my God, I'm only 14 and I'm going to be a mother.
02:44 I was in shock.
02:45 I was crying all the time and I was very, very depressed."
02:52 When she got pregnant the second time, she considered having an abortion.
02:57 But doing so in Brazil is illegal and highly risky.
03:01 Many still die from these secret procedures.
03:04 Conditions are often unsafe because there's no access to professional clinics.
03:10 "I'm back."
03:13 Eduardo's occasional shifts at the snack bar barely brings home the equivalent of 100
03:18 euros a month.
03:19 Welfare payments add about 150 euros to their income and half goes towards rent.
03:26 Their new baby dresser barely fits in the one-room apartment.
03:30 And soon, they'll be a family of four.
03:33 Their financial problems are getting worse.
03:36 Vitoria also tries to earn some extra cash.
03:39 She makes house calls to other girls in the favela.
03:47 Vitoria took a makeup course to turn her passion into a profession.
03:51 "What kind of makeup do you want?"
03:54 "Something subtle."
03:55 "I earn a little money doing makeup.
04:02 That helps a lot.
04:04 My dream is to open my own beauty salon."
04:09 But for now, her career plans are on the back burner.
04:12 So is graduating from high school.
04:15 She's in the home stretch of her pregnancy.
04:18 Vitoria is one of around 400,000 teenagers in Brazil who become mothers every year.
04:24 Even if these numbers are falling, the figure is still twice as high as the international
04:29 average.
04:30 In Brazil, almost a third of the population lives in poverty.
04:38 In terms of population, Brazil is the seventh largest country in the world, with more than
04:43 200 million residents.
04:45 Gender inequality is a huge issue.
04:47 The affluent South Zone of Rio de Janeiro is worlds away from the reality of Vitoria's
04:53 life.
04:54 After giving birth the first time, the then 15-year-old was referred directly from the
04:59 hospital to this NGO for social services.
05:03 The Dara Institute is a center for mothers in need, including teen mothers.
05:07 "Good morning.
05:08 How are you?
05:09 Good morning, Eduardo.
05:10 Hi, Lara.
05:11 Are you laughing at me?"
05:12 Social worker Katia Bauer helps the couple set short and long-term goals.
05:20 It's important their education doesn't fall by the wayside, so their job prospects aren't
05:25 limited.
05:26 When that happens, most teen moms find themselves unable to escape the cycle of poverty.
05:31 "Your daughter's only two, and now there's another baby coming.
05:38 With two children, it gets even harder.
05:41 Eduardo has said he wants to give his daughter the life he did not have.
05:45 So it's time for you to reflect on your family and think about contraception."
05:51 Afterwards, they have a consultation with the doctor.
05:58 Like most living in poverty, Vitoria doesn't have health insurance.
06:03 Out of shame, she didn't get any regular check-ups until late in her pregnancies.
06:08 The first time, there were complications, common among teenagers.
06:13 She needed a C-section to deliver her baby.
06:19 Last time, there was fetal distress with your high blood pressure.
06:23 "Her heartbeat dropped out."
06:27 That means this is another high-risk pregnancy.
06:31 "Our goal is for them to become independent and take charge of their own lives.
06:39 We don't want them to require another institution to do that."
06:44 The Dara Institute supports mothers in social and financial need.
06:48 It's unusual to see a supportive partner like Eduardo here.
06:52 Most here are single mothers.
06:54 That's why the NGO also offers vocational training that's compatible with raising children
06:59 – cooking, makeup, cutting hair.
07:02 Vitoria has made use of this opportunity as well.
07:05 Presentations and group discussions also provide guidance and social support.
07:10 "You feel like you're in good hands.
07:14 Everyone here knows what's going on.
07:15 We're all in the same situation and we support each other."
07:18 "My dream came true.
07:22 A girl and a boy."
07:23 "Ours too."
07:27 Vitoria and Eduardo are looking forward to the birth of their second child, despite the
07:32 additional stress.
07:34 But without this external support, they likely would have broken up, as is the case with
07:38 most teenagers who become parents.
07:42 "We argued a lot.
07:47 But at some point, you need to work things out, not only for our sake, but for the sake
07:52 of the children.
07:53 Soon there will be two."
07:57 They receive a bag with formula and diapers.
08:00 Plus a grocery card worth around 40 euros.
08:05 It's a vital supplement to the household budget to get them through the month.
08:17 Back in the favela Morro do Dende in the north of Rio.
08:23 "I didn't have a clue about anything.
08:28 My daughter taught me many things, because becoming a mother so young is like nothing
08:32 else.
08:35 She taught me to be strong, to take care of her, to be a good mother to her."
08:40 "Aren't you so pretty?"
08:43 "Yes, you are."
08:52 Monday is family day.
08:54 They visit Vitoria's grandmother.
08:56 She lives just a few houses away.
08:59 We're not allowed to accompany her on the street with the camera.
09:02 The armed drug dealers in front of the door do not want to be filmed.
09:09 Vitoria grew up with her grandmother.
09:11 When Vitoria was three months old, her mother left her here and ran off with a new partner.
09:18 This loss left its mark on Vitoria.
09:21 She sees it as one of the underlying reasons she became a mother at such a young age.
09:26 "I missed my mother's love.
09:35 I wish I'd had a real mother.
09:37 Of course my grandma is like a mother to me, but I still miss her anyway.
09:42 And I wanted to prove that I could be a better mother than my mother was to me."
09:48 The fact that Vitoria got pregnant before finishing school disappointed the whole family.
09:53 But her grandmother, Sonia Oliveira, did not turn away, which often happens to other girls.
09:58 "People say, 'You have to kick her out, don't support her.'
10:02 But I do support her.
10:04 As long as we're alive, we will help her.
10:07 Now it's up to her if she finishes school."
10:11 Somehow the family holds together, despite the strain of various conflicts and their
10:16 tight finances.
10:18 Even Vitoria's mother has re-entered the picture.
10:21 The birth of her grandchildren has brought her and her daughter closer.
10:28 Larissa is also part of the family.
10:30 Her newborn is her second child too.
10:35 "The baby clothes I was given are too small for him.
10:40 I'll bring them to you."
10:43 Larissa also became a mother when she was still a teenager.
10:47 Her first daughter is now six.
10:51 The family prays for a brighter future.
11:08 Vitoria recognizes the path out of poverty is through education and work.
11:14 "I'd like to study medicine.
11:19 I still want to get my high school diploma.
11:22 I want to work a lot and leave the favela and give my children a better home.
11:29 I'd also like to have a small beauty salon because it's something I really enjoy."
11:39 A selfie at Sugarloaf Mountain, the symbol of Rio de Janeiro.
11:44 Vitoria and Eduardo don't let bleak statistics deter them.
11:48 "We're hanging in there.
11:51 She's doing her job and I'm doing mine to provide a better future for our kids in a
11:55 few years."
11:56 "We want to give them a better life.
12:00 Work hard to give them the best."
12:04 And with that, Vitoria says her family planning is complete before her 18th birthday.
12:11 Everything else will follow, even if the way forward is not so easy.
12:27 (dog barking)
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