Life, love and cows in southern Sudan

International Editor Lindsey Hilsum writes from southern Sudan.

Our interpreter in Bentiu had a problem.

“I have a new lady,” he said. “But her father has taken her back, because he wants another five cows.”

A little delicate probing revealed that the new lady was deemed to be worth 35 cows. After paying 27, he was haggling over the last eight. He had beaten the price down to 32, but this was still more than he could afford, so – despite the fact that the wedding had already taken place – her father had hauled her back home.

At this point we passed an enormous herd of cattle, lowing gently as they moved towards a watering hole. Some had black tassels attached to their magnificent horns. He looked longingly. A cow costs upwards of £300. We were driving past a fortune on the hoof.

In a country where only six per cent of girls complete school, a bride with a university degree can command 100 cows or more – although our interpreter’s Nuer people also value height. The new lady, whose photo we admired on his mobile phone, was tall and had finished her primary education which explains why this transaction would involve more cows than the last.

For the new lady was not a replacement but an addition. Marriage to Wife #1, who had little education, had involved only 20 cows.

“It is our culture,” he said.

His plan was to send Wife #2 to Uganda for secondary education, so she could realise her ambition to become an accountant.

But first he needed to sort out the five cows and retrieve her from her father.

“Because,” he said. “We love each other.”